Brent Faiyaz

Faiyaz started making music at the age of 12. His parents were not always understanding of his dreams as a musician, which Faiyaz said was warranted as he was "always distracted" by his love for music.

2013–2016: Early career and A.M. Paradox

Faiyaz began uploading his experimental music (Black Child EP) onto SoundCloud in 2014 and moved from his hometown Columbia, Maryland to Charlotte, North Carolina before settling in Los Angeles, California to further his music career. On January 19, 2015, he released his debut single "Allure". On June 1, 2016, Faiyaz released "Invite Me", the lead single from his debut EP. On September 19, 2016, his 21st birthday, the EP entitled A.M. Paradox was released and received positive reviews from music critics.

In October 2016, Faiyaz formed a group named Sonder with record producers Dpat and Atu. The group released their debut single, "Too Fast," on October 25. On December 16, 2016, Faiyaz was featured alongside rapper Shy Glizzy on the single "Crew" by rapper GoldLink.