Mike Posner

Writer, artist and producer Mike Posner became one of the dominant voices in pop/rap crossover in the 2010s. Raised in the upscale Detroit suburb of Southfield, Michigan, Posner was a varsity track runner in high school and a Sigma Nu fraternity member at Duke University; both experiences would flavor many of his lyrics. While still at Duke Posner produced a pair of mixtapes with friend and collaborator Big Sean; the second tape A Matter of Time was distributed through the college channel I Tunes U and became a nationwide campus hit. Between junior and senior years Posner signed with J Records; his first album 31 Minutes to Takeoff was released soon after his graduation. Posner's clever rhymes and the boyish appeal of his singing voice made the album an immediate hit, with the first single "Cooler Than Me" going Top Ten; followups "Please Don't Go" and "Boom Chicka Wow Wow" also saw chart success. Depressed and uncomfortable with his newfound stardom, Posner worked on two followup albums, Pages and Sky High but wound up scrapping both, releasing only singles on digital outlets. Most notably "Top of the World," featuring Big Sean, got additional exposure through a Reebok ad campaign. Posner also furthered his success by writing songs for other artists, including Snoop Dogg & Wiz Khalifa ("French Inhale"), Maroon 5 ("Sugar"), Justin Bieber ("Boyfriend"), Pharrell Williams ("IDGAF") and others. He also opened an arena tour for Bieber in 2013. Five years after his debut, Posner finally released his own new single "I Took a Pill in Ibiza," in July 2015. Posner admitted that the song was autobiographical and referred to alcohol and drug use in the wake of his sudden success. Originally released as an acoustic track, the song was remixed by the duo SeeB and became Posner's biggest hit to date, going Top Ten in 27 countries. The acoustic version appeared on Posner's second official album, At Night, Alone, whose introspective tone and melodic sound showed Posner to be a classic-model singer-songwriter.