Born in San Antonio, Texas, Mahone started singing at a young age and in 2010 began posting YouTube clips of himself singing cover songs by artists like Justin Bieber, Jason Mraz, and others. By 2011, Mahone's videos had garnered him a significant online following, so much so that he dropped out of high school, choosing instead to be home-schooled and focus on his burgeoning pop career. In 2012, Mahone signed to Chase/Universal Republic Records and released several singles, including "11:11" and "Say You're Just a Friend," featuring rapper Flo Rida. An eponymous EP featuring those singles showed up in the summer of 2013 and, nearly a year later, a second EP called Secret appeared. ~ Matt Collar