• April 13, 1982
• Ty Dolla $ign was born Tyrone William Griffin Jr. in Los Angeles. He is the son of a realtor mother and a multi-instrumentalist father who did session work for Death Row Records and Rick James, and played with funk legends Lakeside, best known for their 1980 #1 R&B hit "Fantastic Voyage."
• Growing up surrounded by music, Ty soaked it all in. By his early teens, he'd learned to play keyboards, guitars, drums, and bass. At 12, Ty was crafting his own sound using two cassette tapes to loop beats. Recognizing his son's talent, Ty Sr. gifted him an MPC (a music production tool), setting him on his way.
  
  His versatility is confirmed by DJ Mustard, the rap hitmaker who created the beats for several of Ty's hits. "He can play like seven instruments, he can sing, he can do anything," Mustard told Rolling Stone.
• In 2004, Ty and his writing partner Kory started a duo called Ty & Kory. They signed a recording contract with Venus Brown's Buddah Brown Entertainment and released their debut mixtape, Raw & Bangin Mixtape Vol 2, in 2008, but the big break remained elusive. The stop-and-go nature of the music industry strained his relationships and finances. He even resorted to growing dreadlocks to save money on haircuts.
  
  "People thought I was tripping," Ty told Billboard. "I was working with all these famous motherf--kers but nothing really happened."
• A chance encounter with YG and producer DJ Mustard proved pivotal. Their 2010 collaboration "Toot it and Boot it" became Ty's first hit. Seeing YG collect a hefty paycheck for a club performance made Ty realize he needed to get serious. With a young daughter to support, he stepped out from behind the scenes and into the spotlight.
• Ty's brother, Big TC, a former Crip incarcerated for murder, has been a constant source of inspiration and influence. Ty's 2015 debut album is titled Free TC.
• Ty Dolla $ign has established himself as a sought-after collaborator, recognized for his smooth vocals and ability to blend genres. He has worked with a wide range of artists, including Wiz Khalifa, DJ Mustard, Christina Aguilera, Mariah Carey, Kanye West, and Post Malone, just to name a few. These collaborations have resulted in numerous hit singles, including the Hot 100 #1 hits "Psycho" (with Post Malone) and "Carnival" (with Kanye West).

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Watching The WheelsJohn Lennon

In the late '70s, John Lennon slowed his roll, becoming a househusband who baked bread and took care of his young son Sean. This inspired his song "Watching The Wheels," where he discovers the benefits of taking it easy.

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"Take My Breath Away" from Top Gun was a huge hit for Berlin, but lead singer Terri Nunn was the only band member to perform on it. This caused friction that broke up the group a year later.

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The Isley Brothers became the first group to score a Top 50 hit in six consecutive decades when their song "Contagious" peaked at #19 in 2001. Their first entry was their song "Shout" in 1959.

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Phil Collins' "I Missed Again" was originally "I Miss You, Babe," and was a very somber song about his recent divorce. Collins decided to lighten it up and inject some humor into the song.

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Katy Perry's breakout hit, "I Kissed A Girl," was surprising to those familiar with her past: Her parents were pastors and she started off singing Christian music.

Try AgainAaliyah

Until December 5, 1998, a song had to be issued as a single to make the Hot 100. Aaliyah's "Try Again" was the first tune to top the chart based on airplay alone, without any sales figures being included.

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