From there, he went on to amass an online following -- most prominently as a member of the O2L (Our 2nd Life) crew -- and then as a solo performer. He released his debut single, "Bust the Floor," in 2011 and, a year later, auditioned for The X Factor with LMFAO's "Sexy and I Know It." After he was eliminated during the boot camp rounds, he continued releasing songs online. In September 2013, he released the K-pop-inflected electronic track "Someone," followed by "The Dark Side" in December. His debut EP, XIAT ("Anxiety"), was released the following December and topped the Billboard Heatseekers chart. A duet with former O2L associate Ricky Dillon titled "Steal the Show" was released in 2015. That same year, Moran also came out of the closet, which influenced the sound of his follow-up EP, Alive. The confident five-song set was released in 2016 and featured the shimmering midtempo single "I Wanna Fly," about his sexuality. ~ Neil Z. Yeung