Australian native Ruel debuted in 2017 when he was 14 years old. His neo-soul style followed in the footsteps of Sam Smith, but Ruel had a facility with glassy electronic R&B, something evident on "Golden Years," his debut single recorded with M-Phazes, a producer who'd previously worked with Eminem. Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, Ruel started singing as a child and was discovered by M-Phazes when the vocalist was 12 years old. The pair began collaborating, with "Golden Years" being the first fruit in April 2017. Ruel began to gain momentum with a June cover of Jack Garratt's "Weathered" on Australian radio station Triple J's Like a Version program. A second single, "Don't Tell Me," followed in July, and Ruel set out on a September tour supporting Angus & Julia Stone. He signed with RCA Records late that year. In June 2018, he issued his debut EP Ready. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine