Taio Cruz

Biography

Adetayo Ayowale Onile-Ere (; born 23 April 1980), known professionally as Jacob Taio Cruz ( TY-oh), is a British singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Cruz was discovered in the mid-2000s by American record producer Tricky Stewart, joining the latter's record company RedZone Entertainment as in-house talent. After several years in songwriting, he released his R&B-styled debut single "I Just Wanna Know" in 2006. A modest hit and his first UK singles chart entry, its success led him to sign with Republic Records and Island Records' UK branch. The labels released his debut studio album, Departure (2008), which he solely wrote, arranged and produced. It received gold certification by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and earned critical praise, as well as a nomination at the 2009 Music of Black Origin Awards (MOBO). Cruz adopted an EDM-pop sound for his subsequent releases.

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