Sidney Royel Selby III (born May 3, 1997), better known by his stage name Desiigner, is an American rapper from Brooklyn, New York. He rose to prominence when his debut single "Panda", reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. In February 2016, fellow American rapper Kanye West, who sampled "Panda" for his seventh album The Life of Pablo, announced Desiigner's signing to his GOOD Music imprint, under the aegis of Def Jam Recordings. Desiigner was born Sidney Royel Selby III on May 3, 1997,[1] in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York.[2][3] He began practicing vocals in the school choir and at church. At age 14, he began to embark on a music career. Sidney Selby embarked on his rapping career under the moniker Dezolo.[5] He later began working on his tracks under the alias of Designer Royel, as Royel is his middle name. It was his sister, who convinced him to drop the middle name and add the extra I. Under his new pseudonym, Desiigner released his official debut track, titled "Zombie Walk", on December 3, 2015.[6] On December 15, 2015, his commercial debut single, titled "Panda", was released on YouTube and SoundCloud,[7] and on iTunes just five days later before being re-released in February 2016.[8] On February 11, 2016, Desiigner signed a recording contract to GOOD Music, under the aegis of Def Jam Recordings.[9] After signing the deal, Desiigner was subsequently featured on Kanye West's seventh album, The Life of Pablo; appearing on two tracks, "Pt. 2" (which features an interpolation of "Panda") and "Freestyle 4". Desiigner later performed his newest song, "Pluto", at 2016's South by Southwest (SXSW) music festival. In an interview with Billboard, Desiigner confirmed the release of his upcoming trap mixtape, titled Trap History Month.[10] On May 5, 2016, American music producer Mike Dean announced that he is executive producing Desiigner's debut album. Desiigner's musical style is influenced by southern hip hop, namely trap music which originated in Atlanta, Georgia.[10] His rapping technique and vocals have been compared to that of Atlanta-based rapper Future. When asked about the comparisons, he told Complex: "God gave him a blessing, but he gave me a blessing too. I ain't gonna doubt the man's music. He make beautiful music too. Music is made every day. Big ups to him, big ups to Future. I actually like Future's music. I like his music, you feel me. I’m not a hater or a critic on him, you know, I do me. God bless him, God bless me."