The-Dream

Terius Gesteelde-Diamant (né Nash; born September 20, 1977), better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American singer, rapper, songwriter, and record producer. His co-writing credits include songs with "Me Against the Music" (2003) for Britney Spears, "Ride" (2010) for Ciara, "Umbrella" (2007) for Rihanna, "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" (2008) and "Partition" (2013) for Beyoncé, "Touch My Body" (2008) for Mariah Carey, "16 @ War" for Karina Pasian (2008), "Baby" (2010) for Justin Bieber, "All of the Lights" (2010) for Kanye West, and "No Church in the Wild" (2013) for Jay-Z and Kanye West. As a solo recording artist, he released five studio albums between 2007 and 2013: Love/Hate (2007), Love vs. Money (2009), Love King (2010), 1977 (2011) and IV Play (2013). His most recent album releases were the 2018 triple album Ménage à Trois: Sextape Vol. 1, 2, 3 and the 2020 album Sextape 4. He was nominated for the first Grammy Award for Songwriter of the Year at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards for his work on releases by Beyoncé, Brent Faiyaz and Pusha T. Early life Terius Nash was born in Rockingham, North Carolina. He moved with his mother to Atlanta, Georgia when he was two years old. After learning to play trumpet in elementary school, Nash learned how to play the drums and guitar. His mother died in 1992 when Nash was fifteen years old, an event which would inspire him to write songs. He states that the death of his mother gave him a "soft spot" for women, to which he credits his desire to write songs about female empowerment such as Rihanna's "Umbrella". He moved in with his grandfather, a concrete mason who instilled a strong work ethic in Nash. Of his grandfather, Nash recalls "He came out of a bad time for blacks in the South, but even though we lived in the hood, we had a boat, some cars and a house that was paid for. So I've always had a different outlook on life. There's nothing I can't do." Music career