Grammy-winning electronic producer Zedd is known for dynamic, electro-house tracks and a glitchy, pulsing production style. He first broke through in 2010 with a remix of Skrillex's "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites" before parlaying that buzz into mainstream success with his 2012 album debut, Clarity. Buoyed by the single "Stay the Night" with Hayley Williams, Clarity reached the U.S. Top Ten and earned him a Grammy for Best Dance Recording. His sophomore album, True Colors, spawned the hit "I Want You to Know" with Selena Gomez and landed at number four (plus number one on the dance charts). Along with his own work, he has remained an in-demand producer, collaborating on tracks with a bevy of pop luminaries including Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber, and Ariana Grande. In 2018, he joined Grammy-winning country singer Maren Morris and L.A. electronic duo Grey for the Top 40 hit "The Middle." Over the next few years, his collaborations included 2019's "365" with Katy Perry and 2022's "Follow" with Martin Garrix.

Born Anton Zaslavski in 1989 in Saratov, Russia, Zedd grew up in Kaiserslautern, Germany, where he started out on piano at four years old. Classically trained, he eventually moved on to drums and by the early 2000s was playing in the German deathcore outfit Dioramic. Along the way, he discovered electronic music and in 2009 began experimenting with producing his own tracks. It was around this time that he adopted the stage name Zedd (inspired by the non-American pronunciation of the letter z), and quickly built his reputation by posting tracks to Beatport and remixing songs by well-known artists, including tracks like Skrillex's "Scary Monsters and Nice Sprites," Lady Gaga's "Born This Way," Armand Van Helden's "Witch Doktor," and others.

Zedd also began releasing his own singles and EPs, and in late 2012, delivered his first full-length, the club-worthy Clarity. Included on the album was the song "Spectrum" which shot to the top of the U.S. dance chart. One of the follow-ups, "Stay the Night" featuring Hayley Williams, also garnered attention, reaching number two on the British pop charts and cracking the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100. The title track, featuring British pop singer Foxes, won a Grammy for Best Dance Recording in 2014. That same year, Zedd scored another hit with Ariana Grande's track "Break Free."

In 2015, he released his sophomore LP, True Colors, which presented more stylistic diversity, dipping into rock and hip-hop influences. The collection featured Selena Gomez, Troye Sivan, and Logic among its guests, and topped the Billboard dance/electronic chart. An international tour in support of the album followed. In 2017, Zedd issued the single "Stay," featuring Canadian singer Alessia Cara on vocals. The following year, he collaborated with country sensation Maren Morris and electro duo Grey for the single "The Middle," which topped Billboard's Hot Dance/Electronic Songs charts and landed three Grammy nominations. 2019 saw Zedd team up with Katy Perry for the single "365" and later with Kehlani for "Good Thing." The song "Funny" featuring Jasmine Thompson arrived in July 2020. Zedd remained relatively quiet over the next year, returning in 2022 with collaborative singles like "You've Got to Let Go If You Want to Be Free" with Disclosure and "Follow" with Martin Garrix.~ Matt Collar

With her 2016 debut album, Hero, and its accompanying hit single "My Church," Maren Morris helped push country music into the 21st century. Morris' music was grounded in country -- prior to striking gold as a performer, she was a professional songwriter in Nashville -- but she also incorporated elements of pop, R&B, hip-hop, and rock, creating a distinctive, stylish hybrid that had wide appeal outside her chosen genre. This versatility was evident on her hit singles "80s Mercedes" and "Rich," while her ability to cross over was showcased in "The Middle," a 2018 dance-pop smash she recorded with Zedd and Grey. Even as she broke into the pop Top Ten with 2019's Girl, Morris maintained strong country roots, as evidenced by her pivotal part in the supergroup the Highwomen. She began the next decade with several collaborations and solo singles like 2020's "Better Than We Found It" and "Circles Around This Town," which heralded the release of her third album, Humble Quest, in 2022. She followed it with the 2023 EP The Bridge.

A native of the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Maren Morris was drawn to music as a child. Picking up guitar at the age of 12, she soon started writing songs. At 15, she released her first album, Walk On, on Mozzi Blozzi Music. A second independent album, All That It Takes, arrived on Smith in 2007, while Morris was attending the University of North Texas. Following a third indie album, Live Wire, in 2011, she relocated to Nashville. The New Music Seminar named her an "Artist on the Verge," which helped her secure work as a professional songwriter in the Music City.

Signing with Yellow Dog publishing, Morris quickly placed songs on albums by Tim McGraw (2014's Sundown Heaven Town) and Kelly Clarkson (2015's Piece by Piece). All the while, she continued to work on her own music, opening for a variety of artists while recording on her own. Morris placed "My Church" on streaming services in mid-2015 and it quickly went viral, earning over 2.5 million streams within a month and, along with it, the attention of major labels. Morris wound up signing with Columbia Nashville in September 2015, and the major put out an eponymous digital EP in November, working "My Church" as a single to country radio.

During the early months of 2016, "My Church" began its climb into Billboard's Country Top Ten -- it peaked at nine on Country Airplay, five on Country Songs -- setting up the release of Hero in June. Greeted by critical acclaim, Hero debuted at number one on Billboard's Country Albums chart and five on its Top 200, spinning off the hit "80s Mercedes" by the end of the year. All the activity elevated Morris to the front ranks of country music stars: she was nominated for four Grammy Awards, taking home the trophy for Best Country Solo Performance; she won New Artist of the Year from the Country Music Association; and she earned a performing slot on Saturday Night Live in late 2016. As a deluxe edition of Hero hit stores in early 2017, Morris toured both as a headliner and an opener for Sam Hunt, while "I Could Use a Love Song" made its way to number one on Country Airplay later in 2017 (it reached seven on Country Songs). Following the mass shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas -- an event at which she played the night before the tragedy -- she wrote and recorded the topical "Dear Hate" with Vince Gill.

Morris broke into the pop mainstream in 2018 with "The Middle," an effervescent dance-pop tune she recorded with Zedd and Grey. Reaching number five on the Hot 100, "The Middle" introduced Morris to new audiences, who were then given "Rich" -- one of the album's glitziest, cleverest songs -- as a belated single from Hero; it went to four Country Airplay, eight on Country Songs.

Early in 2019, Morris announced her second album with the release of its title track, "Girl." An anthem of empowerment delivered in the midst of an ongoing controversy about the lack of women on country airwaves, "Girl" climbed to number one on Country Airplay. Its accompanying album debuted at number one on Billboard's Country charts, number four on the Top 200. The second single from Girl, "The Bones," only went to 57 on Country Airplay in mid-2019, but by that point Morris' attention had turned to the Highwomen, the supergroup that included her, Brandi Carlile, Amanda Shires, and Natalie Hemby. The Highwomen played their first live show at the 60th Newport Folk Festival in July 2019, with their eponymous debut album arriving in September; it was released on Elektra. In 2020, Morris picked up a Grammy nomination for her song "Common" off Girl, which featured Brandi Carlile. The non-album single "Better Than We Found It" arrived in October 2020. After a 2021 collaborative single with Joy Oladokun called "Bigger Man," Morris kicked off 2022 with her next solo track, "Circles Around This Town."

"Circles Around This Town" was the first single pulled from Humble Quest, an album Morris made in collaboration with Greg Kurstin, a pop producer best known for his work with Adele, Beck, Paul McCartney, and Foo Fighters. A year later she resumed working with Kurstin and pop producer Jack Antonoff, who helped her record The Bridge, an EP featuring the song "Get the Hell Out of Here" in reference to her relationship with country music. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Brothers Kyle and Michael Trewartha make up Grey, a Los Angeles-based duo who have achieved multi-platinum success with their sophisticated blend of EDM and pop. Their 2016 breakthrough hit "Starving" (with Hailee Steinfeld and Zedd) was certified quadruple platinum in the U.S., and 2018's "The Middle" (with Zedd and Maren Morris) topped several charts worldwide and earned three Grammy nominations. Following several additional collaborations, the pair explored more personal songwriting with two 2020 EPs, LIGHT and DARK.

Initially anonymous, Grey first appeared in 2015 with a series of remixes of tracks by Zedd, Kaskade, and Jack Ü that combined atmospheric guitars with sharp, startling synth riffs. The brothers sent their remixes to Skrillex, who brought them to the attention of Zedd, who reposted them, gaining Grey thousands of followers. The duo's breakout year arrived in 2016, as "Starving" (their collaboration with Zedd and singer/actress Hailee Steinfeld) became a massive hit across the globe. This was followed by "Adrenaline," a more adventurous track that was also co-produced by Zedd. Grey then teamed with Swedish alt-pop singer Skott for 2017's "Crime." A further collaboration with Zedd, 2018's "The Middle," which also featured Maren Morris, spent 33 weeks on top of Billboard's Hot Dance/Electronic Songs chart, and nabbed three Grammy nominations.

Coming off that success, the duo issued the single "Want You Back" with LÉON in early 2019. After releasing a few more singles, including "Grey Area" (with Sofia Carson) and "Body Count" (featuring Thutmose), Grey issued the 2020 EPs LIGHT and DARK, which were written, performed, and sung by the brothers themselves without any guests. ~ Paul Simpson