Zimbabwe-born Australian singer/rapper Tkay Maidza burst onto the electronic music scene in 2014 with her debut EP, Switch Tape. The track introduced her artful pop- and R&B-infused style, drawing well-earned comparisons to established artists like M.I.A. and Banks upon its release, and the singles "Switch Lanes" and "MOB" both made strong impressions on the charts. In 2017, Maidza hit the Top 20 in Australian with her full-length Tkay, and followed with a series of equally vibrant EPs, including Last Year Was Weird, Vols. 1 to 3.

Maidza was born in Zimbabwe, but she and her family moved to Adelaide, Australia when she was five. She went on to study architecture at the University of South Australia but quit her studies to become a full-time musician. She was only 17 when she released her debut single, "Brontosaurus," after taking part in an artists' development program in Adelaide.

Following the success of Switch Tape, Maidza set about recording her debut long-player. The lead single, "Carry On," appeared in 2016 and featured Run the Jewels' Killer Mike. The album, titled Tkay, was released in January 2017 and reached number 20 on the Australian album chart. It was followed by the 2018 EP Last Year Was Weird and the single "Flexin" featuring Duckwrth. A companion EP, Last Year Was Weird, Vol. 2, arrived in August 2020 and included the track "You Sad." In July 2021, Maidza released her third EP, Last Year Was Weird, Vol. 3, which included the singles "Kim" with Yung Baby Tate, a cover of Pixies' "Where Is My Mind?, and "Onto Me." Also in November 2021, she teamed up with Young Franco and Nerve for the song "Real Nice (H.C.T.F.)," which was adopted as the theme for the Australian pro-soccer A-League. ~ Matt Collar & Bekki Bemrose, Rovi