William Singe (born Liam Anthony Singe) got his start in Australian boy band the Collective, the third place finisher on X-Factor Australia's fourth season in 2012. Growing up in Forestville, a suburb just outside of Sydney, the young Maori-Australian was inspired by his father, a guitarist, bassist, and singer/songwriter from New Zealand. Singe and his Collective bandmates released one self-titled album after The X-Factor in 2012 and toured into 2014, when the group disbanded. Though he was the rapper of the Collective, his singing ability helped him gain online exposure with acoustic R&B covers of Justin Bieber, Fetty Wap, Alessia Cara, TLC, Adele, and his most popular cover, Drake's "Hotline Bling." As he kick-started his solo career in 2015, he signed with Paradigm Talent Agency and embarked on an international tour. In July 2016, Singe announced that he had inked a deal with RCA Records. "Rush," his debut single for the label, followed in February 2017. ~ Neil Z. Yeung