Producer, songwriter, and DJ Dan Griffith makes wide-eyed, emotional dance-pop under the nom de plume Gryffin. His songs blend organic and electronic instrumentation, incorporating pianos and guitars into melodic house and future bass tracks. First making waves with remixes of songs by pop stars Tove Lo and Maroon 5, he began releasing original material in 2016, and scored over a dozen charting hits with singles featuring guests such as Carly Rae Jepsen, Aloe Blacc, and AlunaGeorge. Many of these hits were included on his 2019 full-length debut, Gravity. He has remained a chart favorite with tracks like "Cry" with John Martin and "Safe with Me" featuring Audrey Mika, both in 2020, and collaborated with OneRepublic for 2022's "You Were Loved." Several of these singles appeared on his second album, Alive, and he released collaborations with Rita Ora and Armin van Buuren in 2024.

A classically trained pianist, Griffith honed his musical abilities playing in bands -- he's also an accomplished guitar player. Upon graduating with an electrical engineering degree from the University of Southern California, he began immersing himself in music production, eventually relocating to Los Angeles. Making his international performing debut in 2015, he released remixes of Tove Lo's "Talking Body," Maroon 5's "Animals," and Years & Years' "Desire" during the same year. In 2016, Gryffin released his debut single, "Heading Home," which featured Aussie singer Josef Salvat and landed on Billboard's Dance/Electronic Songs chart. The Bipolar Sunshine-assisted "Whole Heart" appeared later that August, and in 2017 he released "Feel Good," which saw him working with West Coast DJ/producer Illenium and Pittsburgh-based artist Daya. Two more singles, "Love in Ruins" and "Nobody Compares to You," appeared in 2017, continuing Gryffin's growing run of Billboard Dance chart successes. A collaboration with Quinn XCII and Daniel Wilson called "Winnebago" arrived in 2018, as did the single "Just for a Moment," which featured Norwegian singer Iselin. The latter track landed on his EP Gravity, Pt. 1, which also featured appearances by Elley Duhe and Stanaj. The single "Remember" (with Zohara) became Gryffin's first to make the Billboard Dance Club chart.

In 2019, he continued the series of collaborations with Calle Lehmann and Slander ("All You Need to Know") and Aloe Blacc ("Hurt People"). Additional charting singles such as "OMG" (with Carly Rae Jepsen) and "Baggage" (with Gorgon City and AlunaGeorge) led up to the release of Gravity, Gryffin's debut full-length. Issued by Geffen in late October 2019, the album featured most of his singles to date as well as collaborations with Marina, Seven Lions, Maia Wright, and others. It reached number one on Billboard's Dance/Electronic Albums chart. More stand-alone tracks followed, including 2020's "Cry" with John Martin and 2021 songs like "I Want Love" with Two Feet and "New Blood" with Boy Matthews. "You Were Loved" with OneRepublic and "Caught Up" with Olivia O'Brien arrived in 2022. Alive, primarily consisting of previously issued singles, was released in November. A cover of Gabrielle's "Dreams" appeared in 2023, followed by "Oceans" with Kid Joi. In 2024, Gryffin released "Last of Us" with Rita Ora, and worked with Armin van Buuren on the single "What Took You So Long." ~ James Christopher Monger

The career of singer, songwriter, and producer Aloe Blacc has been filled with sharp creative turns reflective of a diverse listening background. Since starting with underground rap recordings, he's had a crossover hit rooted in gritty soul ("I Need a Dollar," 2010), a global country/folk-EDM smash produced by Avicii ("Wake Me Up," 2013), and an album nominated for a Grammy (Lift Your Spirit, also 2013), all followed with a set that has further refined his amiable hybrid approach (All Love Everything, 2020). Despite a broad range of recordings throughout a career that dates back to the latter half of the 1990s, Aloe has consistently maintained a blue-collar everyman quality -- as enhanced by his rustic tenor voice -- with most of his writing rooted in reality yet typically feel-good and uplifting in nature. Along with fellow traveler Mayer Hawthorne, Aloe made the revered independent label Stones Throw an unlikely and unintentional launching pad for sustained above-ground success.

Aloe Blacc, born Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III to Panamanian immigrants, was raised in California's Orange County. He absorbed styles such as cumbia, merengue, and salsa in his household, and eventually hip-hop in his environment. While in elementary school, he began playing trumpet and started writing rhymes. These pursuits continued through high school. As simply Aloe, he made his recorded debut as a teenager in 1996 on Imaginary Friends, a mixtape by Exile (credited then as Eksile). Aloe and Exile continued to work together as Emanon, primarily through the 12" single format, and in 2004 released a proper album, The Waiting Room. By this time, Aloe had fallen hard for the works of classic soul artists such as Donny Hathaway and Marvin Gaye, and while studying at the University of Southern California had also pored over contemporaneous folk-rock recordings.

A few low-key solo Aloe releases issued amid Emanon activity led to an affiliation with Peanut Butter Wolf's Stones Throw label. The deal yielded two albums of considerably different makeup. Shine Through, released in 2006, was a patchwork exemplified by an off-center update of Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come" and a Spanish-language salsa version of John Legend's "Ordinary People." For the comparatively refined Good Things, issued four years later, Aloe focused on songwriting, emphasizing universal and timeless lyrics, and left the production to Leon Michaels and Jeff Dynamite. Its foundation in vintage soul and funk was indicated several months ahead of release with lead single "I Need a Dollar." Licensed outside the U.S. to a number of major labels, the song was most successful in the U.K. (via Epic), where it reached number two on the pop chart. It went Top Ten in several other territories and was used as the theme for the HBO series How to Make It in America. Aloe's next release was with Roseaux, a French group guided by Radio Nova figure Emile Omar. Recorded between his solo albums but not issued until 2012, Roseaux stylistically ranged from bossa nova to folk-rock with covers of songs originally recorded by the motley likes of D.J. Rogers, the Police, Blaze, and Pearl Jam.

Aloe signed with major-label Interscope prior to the end of 2012, but his next big move was in support of producer Avicii. Aloe co-wrote and fronted "Wake Me Up," a country/folk-EDM hybrid that reached number one in Avicii's native Sweden while topping dozens of charts elsewhere, thus becoming one of 2013's biggest global pop hits. The week the song peaked in the U.S. at number four, Aloe released the polished and composite-oriented Lift Your Spirit, produced primarily by DJ Khalil with contributions from Pharrell Williams, Theron Feemster, and Rock Mafia. The album coincidentally entered the Billboard 200 at number four. It featured an "acoustic" version of "Wake Me Up" but was highlighted by the anthemic "The Man," a retro-contemporary fusion of gospel, soul, and pop that quoted Elton John's "The Man." The single reached number eight in the U.S. and topped the U.K. chart. Its parent release was subsequently nominated for a Grammy in the category of Best R&B Album.

Between albums, Aloe became increasingly involved with philanthropic efforts and multiplied his number of featured collaborations by recording with artists including Fashawn ("Something to Believe In"), Owl City ("Verge"), Zedd ("Candyman"), and Tiësto ("Carry You Home"). He also collaborated with wife Maya Jupiter, contributed to The Hamilton Mixtape, and kept Emanon afloat with Exile. Aloe issued a handful of stand-alone solo cuts across 2016 and 2017 that led to increased activity in 2018. He was featured in America's Musical Journey and recorded "My Story" for the documentary, then released "Make Way" and "Brooklyn in the Summer" as supplemental singles. He also issued a holiday-themed album, Christmas Funk.

Aloe continued to expand his collaborative network and release new material throughout 2019 and 2020. He co-starred on consistently uplifting tracks by the likes of Avicii (the posthumous hit "SOS"), Lost Frequencies ("Truth Never Lies"), David Guetta ("Never Be Alone"), Flight Facilities ("Better Than Ever"), Young Bombs ("Better Day"), and Mesto ("Don't Worry"). The positive energy carried into the making of All Love Everything, Aloe's fourth proper album, which arrived in the fourth quarter of the latter year. ~ Andy Kellman