Growing up in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, the boy who would become 9th Wonder performed in the school band and played the keyboard at home. In 1998, he met classmates and future bandmates, Phonte and Big Pooh, and with them soon formed Little Brother. Their first album, The Listening, was released in 2003 and 9th Wonder began to receive further attention for God’s Stepson, a remix album of Nas’ 2002 album, God’s Son. Since then, 9th Wonder has produced tracks for the likes of Jay-Z, Murs, Buckshot, Jean Grae, Destiny’s Child, and Mary J. Blige. In 2005, Little Brother released their second album and 9th Wonder released his proper solo debut, Dream Merchant, Vol. 1.