He could be compared to Justin Beiber, Sam Smith, Justin Timberlake, Usher, Ne-Yo, Adam Levine, Taeyang, Jason Derulo and John Legend. Though these legends are a rarity, on September 8, 1989, another young star was born. Singing sensation and producer “Matt B.” was raised in Chicago as one of seven talented children. He grew up in some rough neighborhoods, but was relatively shielded from much of the struggles young PEOPLE encounter in such areas, as he was home schooled until his high school years. He discovered his passion for music at a very early age and spent his entire childhood singing and performing with his two older brothers, Aa-ron & Timothy Benson. Eventually, the three formed a singing group and branded themselves TriEnd'. \r \r The talented group quickly began amazing crowds and soon starting working with some of music's leading pro-ducers, such as the Insomniax and John Monopoly. After achieving some impressive milestones of success as a Jackson Five-esque family singing trio, the young men began growing in different professional directions while, at the same time, Matt B.'s first entry into the Chicago public school system created its own set of challenges.