A native of Toronto, Canada, Saxe grew up in a creative family as the grandson of award-winning Hungarian-born cellist Janos Starker. Inspired by his grandfather, Saxe initially studied the cello as a teenager. Later, after discovering jazz and R&B, he switched to the piano and guitar, and began writing his own songs. By the time he was in his twenties, he was performing weekly in Toronto and posting his songs online. He caught the attention of producers in California, who invited him to record some of his material, an invitation that resulted in Saxe relocating to Los Angeles.
In 2017, he released his debut single, "Changed," followed by "Anybody Else." The single "The Few Things" appeared in 2018 as did the EP Both Can Be True: Part 1. More songs followed, including 2019's "If the World Was Ending," which was produced by Finneas and featured Julia Michaels. Included on Saxe's sophomore EP, 2020's Hold It Together, the single reached the Billboard Hot 100 and earned a Grammy Award nomination for Song of the Year. In 2021, Saxe returned with his debut full-length album, Dangerous Levels of Introspection, which featured guest appearance by Maren Morris. A collection of pared-down versions of songs from the album (Dangerous Levels of Introspection [Stripped]) appeared in early 2022, followed by the singles "When You Think of Me" and "The Good Parts." ~ Matt Collar, Rovi