He didn't start rapping until 2010, and that was on a lark, after he was coerced by a friend. Writing and rapping to an instrumental of Kanye West's "Breathe In, Breathe Out" sparked a series of informal sessions that led to being linked with J. Cole. Touring with Cole fostered the fledgling rapper's development as a performer, while mixtape releases such as Quarter Water Raised Me and Quarter Water Raised Me II raised his profile. Cole signed Bas to Dreamville, the Interscope-affiliated label he was getting off the ground. Last Winter, jokingly referred to as "An album from a n*gga who ain't got alotta fans yet," was released as a digital download and a CD in April 2014. It featured appearances from Cole, Mack Wilds, and K-Quick. That June, Bas promoted the set with a brief tour of the U.S. He contributed to Dreamville's Revenge of the Dreamers II compilation in 2015 and released his second proper album Too High to Riot in March 2016. ~ Andy Kellman