Charlie Puth

Born in New Jersey in 1991, Charlie Puth had a narrow focus on what he wanted to do when he grew up: he wanted to become a singer. Following that dream took him to the Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts in the late 2000s. Alongside fellow student Emily Luther, Puth started a YouTube channel where the duo performed acoustic covers of songs.

Their rendition of "Someone Like You" by Adele ended up going viral, which led to an appearance on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" (2003- ) and a record deal with DeGeneres' record company eleveneleven in 2011. Puth and Luther returned to Ellen's show in 2012, where they performed an original in addition to a cover. Puth studied hard outside of his burgeoning music career, staying in school and graduating in 2013.

Around the time he graduated, he left DeGeneres' record company and signed with major label Atlantic Records. Moving to Los Angeles, his career quieted down in 2013 and 2014, as he worked in the background with artists such as Trey Songz and Lil Wayne. In 2015, though, he blew up.

He co-wrote "See You Again," the Wiz Khalifia track from the film "Furious 7" (2015). Written as a memorial to the late Paul Walker, "See You Again" quickly become a No. 1 hit, leading to Puth performing on "Saturday Night Live" (NBC 1975- ) and "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" (NBC 2014- ). He also released his first EP Some Type of Love, which featured two other singles, including "Marvin Gaye," a song he wrote and performed with Meghan Trainor.