GRAMMY Award-nominated singer, songwriter, and producer Marian Mereba, known as Mereba, got her start with a series of folk-soul hybrid releases, including her self-released EP Room for Living, an alternately spacy and rustic set accompanied by her own guitar playing and production. In 2018, Mereba released her first singles through major-label Interscope. A 9th Wonder collaboration titled "Black Truck" marked her official debut that February and was followed by the release of "Planet U," which she produced herself with co-production from Ayo Olatunji and Sam Hoffman. Both tracks were included on her groundbreaking debut album The Jungle Is the Only Way Out, which arrived in February 2019 and also featured appearances from 6LACK and J.I.D. The acclaimed project earned praise from Vogue, Pitchfork, Billboard, Earmilk, Hypebeast, and Ones to Watch, who noted that "Mereba has pushed the boundaries of R&B and established herself as a voice of the future." Her innovative offering earned her an invitation to perform for the coveted show COLORS. Subsequently, she joined NPR's Tiny Desk for a solo set in 2019 and a set alongside the genre-bending collective Spillage Village in 2020. She also appeared on Dreamville's now-platinum, GRAMMY Award-nominated album Revenge of the Dreamers III.