Standing at the very point where pop and indie rap meet, Futuristic busted out of Tempe, Arizona via social media, touring, and other ways of connecting with fans. Born Zachary Lewis Beck in Bloomington, Illinois, the rapper and producer made his debut in 2013 with the album Chasing Down a Dream. A year later he returned with Traveling Local. A tour supporting the album and a growing social media presence earned him a loyal grassroots following. His fan base was large enough that his self-released 2015 album, The Rise, cracked the Billboard 200 albums chart. Coast 2 Coast, a late 2015 collaboration with Devvon Terrell, did even better and hit the Top 100. Futuristic's solo effort, As Seen on the Internet, arrived in 2016, and also hit the Top 200. The album included guest appearances by Terrell, Hopsin, Karmin, and Goody Grace. ~ David Jeffries & Neil Z. Yeung, Rovi