After getting dropped by Columbia Records at 18 years old, singer-songwriter Alec Benjamin built a following by playing in parking lots outside of Shawn Mendes and Troye Sivan concerts. The Phoenix, Arizona native caught the attention of Jon Bellion, earning a songwriting credit on Bellion’s debut album and later joined him on tour.

To build on the momentum, Benjamin began uploading new songs to his YouTube channel at a rapid clip and eventually earned a viral hit with “I Built a Friend” and a deal with Atlantic Records.