Biography

Sir Robert Bryson Hall II (born January 22, 1990), known by his stage name Logic, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Raised in Gaithersburg, Maryland, Logic expressed an interest in music as a teenager, and ventured into a musical career in early 2009, releasing a mixtape titled Young, Broke & Infamous in 2010. He signed with Visionary Music Group, before releasing two more mixtapes over two years.

His fourth mixtape, Young Sinatra: Welcome to Forever (2013), was released to critical acclaim, and allowed Logic to secure a recording contract with Def Jam Recordings. He later released his debut studio album Under Pressure in October 2014, which debuted at number four on the U.S. Billboard 200, eventually becoming certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) and having sold more than 171,000 copies.

Logic's second studio album The Incredible True Story was released in November 2015, receiving mostly positive reviews from critics. Also certified gold in the U.S., it sold over 185,000 copies. Logic released his fifth mixtape, Bobby Tarantino, in 2016. His third studio album Everybody, including the anthem "1-800-273-8255", was released in 2017.

Life and career

1990–2005: Early life

Logic, legal name Sir Robert Bryson Hall II, was born on January 22, 1990, in Gaithersburg, Maryland to Robert Bryson Hall, an African-American Maryland native, and a Caucasian mother. Logic spent much of his youth in the West Deer Park neighborhood of the city, where 24.6% of residents live below the poverty line, including 40.2% of those under age 18. Both of Logic's parents suffered from cocaine addiction and alcoholism. Despite his father initially being absent in his childhood, Logic was able to reconnect with Hall due to his burgeoning rap career. During his early adolescent years, Logic witnessed his brothers produce and distribute crack cocaineto "addicts all over the block," as well as seeing his siblings sell the drugs to his father. Logic maintains that he accurately knows how to manufacture and produce crack cocaine following these experiences. He attended neighboring Gaithersburg High School. However, he did not graduate and was soon expelled after he began skipping classes in the 10th grade. Logic would comment on the expulsion, stating "I started doing badly and failed every class but English, so they kicked me out of school, they gave up on me." 

2005–12: Early career and various mixtapes

At the age of 13, Logic met Solomon Taylor, who would soon become his mentor. Logic became interested in rap and hip hop after watching the movie Kill Bill: Volume 1, directed by Quentin Tarantino. The film's score was produced by RZA, a member of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. Following this, Logic began listening to the group, and soon expressed a deep affection for hip hop. Logic bought The Roots album Do You Want More?!!!??!, later that year, which prompted Taylor to bring Logic a large number of CDs containing instrumental beats, for him to write lyrics over. In 2009, Logic performed under the stage name "Psychological" with Logic describing the name as "one name that really stuck . I just loved this word because it was about the mind and I knew that's what I wanted my music to consist of; something that really challenges the mind". He released an unofficial mixtape titled Psychological – Logic: The Mixtape under his original stage name. The mixtape allowed Logic to serve as the opening act for artists like Pitbull, EPMD, Method Man, Redman, and Ludacris at various shows all over Maryland. Soon after, he shortened the "Psychological" moniker to "Logic".

Following these introductory experiences, Logic released his first official mixtape, Young, Broke & Infamous, on December 15, 2010. The mixtape was well received by critics and was the genesis for Logic to establish an early following. Chris Zarou, the president of Visionary Music Group, heard the mixtape and signed Logic to the independent label. Upon signing, Logic stated in an interview, "Visionary Music Group is like Roc-A-Fella. Damon Dash, that's like Chris Zarou of Visionary Music Group, I like to see myself as a Jay. In no way am I arrogant or cocky, I have to see it in order to do it. They did it independent and when they signed with a major, they did it the way that they wanted to do it". The mixtape was confirmed to have been downloaded over 250,000 times on online mixtape sharing platform DatPiff. Logic released his second mixtape, Young Sinatra, in 2011. It serves as the first installment in the Young Sinatra chronology, and the mixtape received critical acclaim from various publications, including XXL. The music video for "All I Do", released on YouTube, gained over a million views in the week following its release.

After the success of his previous two projects, Logic released his third mixtape Young Sinatra: Undeniable on April 30, 2012. The mixtape is notable for Logic addressing various personal topics, including his future, his father's drug use, his expulsion from school as mentioned earlier, and his mother getting stabbed. Speaking about the mixtape, Logic said, "Fans tend to think that if you fall in love with an artist because he makes this kind of sound bigger and he grows and . But with me, I created all types of sounds from the get go, so you can never say I'm changing." He commented on the musical aspects of the mixtape, stating, "There's stuff on there for the motherfuckers that don't pay attention to lyrics and just want to have fun, but every line is constructed with such depth that the real lyricists and nitpickers have something to listen to." After the release of Young Sinatra: Undeniable, Logic completed his first national headlining tour, the Visionary Music Group Tour.

2012–13: Young Sinatra: Welcome to Forever and recording contract

In early 2013, Logic was featured in an edition of XXL, being included as a part of the publication's annual "Top 10 Freshmen List", alongside artists Trinidad James, Dizzy Wright, Action Bronson, Joey Badass, Angel Haze, Ab-Soul, Chief Keef, Kirko Bangz and Schoolboy Q. Logic completed his first European tour in March 2013, and confirmed his fourth mixtape, Young Sinatra: Welcome to Forever, would be released on May 7. He announced his second headlining national tour, the two-month-long Welcome to Forever Tour, to promote the project. The mixtape was a critical success, with critics praising the project, calling it a "free album", as well as noting the rapper's rapid growth and adaptability. The mixtape received over 700,000 downloads on DatPiff.

On April 15, it was announced that Logic had signed with Def Jam Recordings, with Def Jam producer No I.D. serving as the executive producer of his debut album. Logic released a public statement about the signing, stating, "I'm excited to take this next step in my career. It's incredible for Def Jam and Visionary Music Group to work together, and the opportunity to collaborate is priceless. I'm very humbled to be a part of the most iconic hip hop label of all time." Logic toured with Kid Cudi, fellow Def Jam signee Big Sean, and Tyler, the Creator on "The Cud Life Tour 2013", throughout the fall of the year.

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