Poo Bear

The man who wrote <a href="spotify:artist:23zg3TcAtWQy7J6upgbUnj">Usher</a>'s "Caught Up," <a href="spotify:artist:7urq0VfqxEYEEiZUkebXT4">112</a>'s "Peaches and Cream," and <a href="spotify:artist:7bXgB6jMjp9ATFy66eO08Z">Chris Brown</a>'s "I Can Transform Ya," <a href="spotify:artist:4gRty5KhcBLLZ19U2Qqs3x">Jason Boyd</a>, aka Poo Bear, launched his own singing career in 2014 with the help of frequent collaborator <a href="spotify:artist:1uNFoZAHBGtllmzznpCI3s">Justin Bieber</a>. Born in Connecticut but raised in Atlanta, <a href="spotify:artist:4gRty5KhcBLLZ19U2Qqs3x">Boyd</a> was only 14 when he co-wrote <a href="spotify:artist:7urq0VfqxEYEEiZUkebXT4">112</a>'s "Always," and work for <a href="spotify:artist:6XpaIBNiVzIetEPCWDvAFP">Whitney Houston</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7Aq8lpLMSt1Zxu56pe9bmp">Jagged Edge</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1KCSPY1glIKqW2TotWuXOR">P!nk</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:6DPYiyq5kWVQS4RGwxzPC7">Dr. Dre</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:3TVXtAsR1Inumwj472S9r4">Drake</a>, and many others followed. In 2004 he worked on numerous tracks on <a href="spotify:artist:23zg3TcAtWQy7J6upgbUnj">Usher</a>'s album Confessions, while in 2007 he co-wrote the chart-topping "Make It Rain" with <a href="spotify:artist:55Aa2cqylxrFIXC767Z865">Lil Wayne</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:3ScY9CQxNLQei8Umvpx5g6">Fat Joe</a>. He dropped his debut track in 2014 when "Work for It" landed, featuring <a href="spotify:artist:5LHRHt1k9lMyONurDHEdrp">Tyga</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:1uNFoZAHBGtllmzznpCI3s">Justin Bieber</a>. His collaborations with <a href="spotify:artist:1uNFoZAHBGtllmzznpCI3s">Bieber</a> continued into 2013 with the singer's Journals project, but it wasn't until 2015 that <a href="spotify:artist:4gRty5KhcBLLZ19U2Qqs3x">Boyd</a> scored a handful of hits from <a href="spotify:artist:1uNFoZAHBGtllmzznpCI3s">Bieber</a>'s Purpose, including "Where Are U Now" and "What Do You Mean." That same year, he issued the Beats 2 Make Love 2 mixtape. Work with <a href="spotify:artist:2iojnBLj0qIMiKPvVhLnsH">Trey Songz</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1Cs0zKBU1kc0i8ypK3B9ai">David Guetta</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:1l8Fu6IkuTP0U5QetQJ5Xt">Fifth Harmony</a> followed in 2017, as well as his joint single with <a href="spotify:artist:5he5w2lnU9x7JFhnwcekXX">Skrillex</a>, "Would You Ever." Finally, in 2018, <a href="spotify:artist:4gRty5KhcBLLZ19U2Qqs3x">Boyd</a> delivered his full-length debut album, Poo Bear Presents: Bearthday Music. Among the album's many collaborators were <a href="spotify:artist:1uNFoZAHBGtllmzznpCI3s">Bieber</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:1Xylc3o4UrD53lo9CvFvVg">Zara Larsson</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7c0XG5cIJTrrAgEC3ULPiq">Ty Dolla $ign</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:2DlGxzQSjYe5N6G9nkYghR">Jennifer Lopez</a>. Back on the songwriting side, he contributed to notable releases by <a href="spotify:artist:4iHNK0tOyZPYnBU7nGAgpQ">Mariah Carey</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:0QHgL1lAIqAw0HtD7YldmP">DJ Khaled</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:7lbSsjYACZHn1MSDXPxNF2">Utada Hikaru</a>, while teaming with <a href="spotify:artist:1uNFoZAHBGtllmzznpCI3s">Bieber</a> for a trio of Hot 100 hit collaborations with <a href="spotify:artist:6eUKZXaKkcviH0Ku9w2n3V">Ed Sheeran</a> ("I Don't Care"), <a href="spotify:artist:6qqNVTkY8uBg9cP3Jd7DAH">Billie Eilish</a> ("Bad Guy (Remix)"), and <a href="spotify:artist:7z5WFjZAIYejWy0NI5lv4T">Dan + Shay</a> ("10,000 Hours"). ~ David Jeffries, Rovi