Her work has garnered acclaim and has been described as "genre-bending",[7] drawing on various genres including electronic music, trip hop, R&B, hyperpop and avant-garde.

Tahliah Debrett Barnett[8] was born on 16 January 1988[8][9] in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire,[10] the only child of an English mother who was a dancer and gymnast and a Jamaican father who was a musician.

[12] She was raised by her mother and stepfather, whom she described as a "jazz fanatic of Bajan descent",[13] and did not meet her biological father until she was 18.

[14] She worked as a backup dancer in music videos by artists such as Kylie Minogue, Plan B, Ed Sheeran, Taio Cruz, Dionne Bromfield, Jessie J, and Wretch 32.

[25] In 2011, she appeared in a two-minute BBC comedy sketch titled Beyoncé Wants Groceries,[26] as a backup dancer.

[34][35] That same month The Guardian profiled Barnett for their "New Band of the Day" feature, describing her as "the UK's best example to date of ethereal, twisted R&B.

Time gave a positive review, saying that Barnett has "made that transition to one of the most compelling and complex acts in R&B", and later ranked it, as did Clash, #1 album of the year.

[45] She then announced a world tour starting on 2 October at The Dome in Brighton, East Sussex and ending on 3 December in Orlando, Florida at The Social.

[51][52] The video for "Glass & Patron", the first song released from this EP, was posted on her YouTube channel on 23 March 2015; it was directed by Barnett.

[12] The EP, stylised as M3LL155X, was released in 2015, containing all five announced tracks and accompanied by four videos, which were directed by Barnett, featuring pregnancy, sex dolls, vogueing and Michèle Lamy.

[57] On 9 July, Barnett debuted a new stage show called Radiant Me² at Moscow's Lastochka Festival, where she unveiled three previously unheard songs.

[70] In November, British singer Dua Lipa hosted a live stream concert, titled Studio 2054, in which Barnett was invited to play as a guest.

[71] On 25 January 2021, Barnett announced the single "Don't Judge Me", featuring rapper Headie One and producer Fred Again, to be released the next day alongside a video co-directed by director Emmanuel Adjei and herself.

[72] The same day, she took part in a podcast episode with Louis Theroux and discussed her previous known relationships and an upcoming album, stating "It was all via the internet...

"[73] In February, she described the album as a "going out" record, and revealed it would feature collaborations with Nigerian Afrobeats musician Rema, British rapper Pa Salieu.

[81] Caprisongs also includes appearances from Pa Salieu, Daniel Caesar, Rema, Jorja Smith, Unknown T, Dystopia and Shygirl.

[85] The "Killer" music video, featuring Barnett performing choreography with Arón Piper on a beach in Portugal, was directed by Yoann Lemoine and released on 20 July 2022.

[86] On 14 September 2023, Barnett performed a cover of Opus III's "It's a Fine Day" at Vogue World: London 2023, accompanied on stage by Cara Delevingne, whom she kissed, and members of the Rambert Dance Company.

[87] On October 1, she introduced a new song titled "Unearth Her" with Koreless as part of a performance at the 2023 Valentino Women's Wear Spring/Summer 2024 Paris Fashion Week show.

[100] Karen Vintges, of the University of Amsterdam, described Barnett's performance style as "porno-chic", and said it "refuses to conform to standard norms of heterosexual beauty".

[104] Pitchfork writer Philip Sherburne compared her breathy vocals and the electronic production style of LP1 to Ciara, the Weeknd and Beyoncé.

[105] The Wall Street Journal described her as "an heir to futuristic R&B muses like Aaliyah, Missy Elliott and others under the progressive sway of producer Timbaland.

"[5] Variety wrote that her music was "darkly avant-garde, aggressive and atmospheric", adding that her "scorched earth-soul of 2014's LP1 and 2019's Magdalene positioned her as a cross between Billie Holiday and Siouxsie and the Banshees", with a production style like Lee Scratch Perry's.

[107] In 2020, The New York Times noted: "in recent years, Twigs, now 35, has begun to harness her pursuit of avant-garde innovation and technical virtuosity toward a deeper exploration of pain and insecurity", making wider comparisons to Janelle Monáe, Fiona Apple, Solange, and Lana Del Rey.

[14] In terms of her relationship to fame and adoption of different personae on the stage and in her music, Simon Critchley aligned her alongside David Bowie.

"[111] In an interview after being shortlisted for the 2014 Mercury Prize, Barnett cited Germfree Adolescents by X-Ray Spex as her favourite album of all time.

[citation needed] Barnett began dating English actor Robert Pattinson in September 2014, and they became engaged before ending their relationship in mid-2017.

[117] She filed a lawsuit against him at Los Angeles Superior Court in December 2020, accusing him of sexual battery, assault, and infliction of emotional distress during their relationship.

[128] Barnett promoted a campaign by Sistah Space encouraging people to lobby their local MP to support Valerie’s Law, which would introduce mandatory training for the police and other agencies when dealing with domestic abuse against black women and girls.

[129] In April 2024, Barnett testified before the United States Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, calling for regulations on deepfakes and artificial intelligence.