Establishing herself in the entertainment industry with numerous background roles, Ranna Royce moved out from behind the scenes in 2017 to write and record a prolific quantity of self-assured contemporary R&B and pop with close associate Jonathan Hay. Most notably, she contributed to several tracks on Hay and Mike Smith's Jazz Deluxe album, which topped Billboard's jazz chart in early 2018, and primed her for solo releases such as The First Demos and The Mixtape.

Originally from San Francisco, Ranna Royce relocated to Los Angeles after she earned a Bachelor's degree and soon thereafter began working as an intern for renowned music promotion veteran Joe Isgro. She juggled a variety of roles, from radio promotion to venue booking, and in the process linked with publicist and record producer Jonathan Hay. This led to Royce and Hay working together as celebrity publicists and music artists. Royce, who had started writing songs at the age of 13, was among the many collaborators to appear on Smith and Hay's Jazz. album, released in 2017. A subsequent deluxe edition of the album topped Billboard's Jazz Albums chart early the following year. Throughout the first half of 2018, Royce was behind a slew of recordings, including the solo efforts The First Demos and The Mixtape, in addition to Smith and Hay's The Hoodlum Ball (Red), The Hoodlum Ball (Blue), and The Whoodlum Ball, hosted by DJ Whoo Kid. Most of these releases came out through the Hoodlum Ball label, co-founded by Royce and Hay. ~ Andy Kellman, Rovi