Danny Brown, born Daniel Dewan Sewell on March 16, 1981, in Detroit, Michigan, began rapping in the mid-2000s as a member of the group Reser'vor Dogs. Influenced by his father's house DJ background and Detroit's underground party scene, including ghetto tech, he released early mixtapes like Detroit State of Mind and The Hybrid before his breakthrough with the 2011 independent album XXX, which earned Hip Hop Album of the Year from Spin magazine. Brown's style blends experimental hip-hop with punk and electronic elements, evident in albums such as Old (2013), Atrocity Exhibition (2016) on Warp Records, and later projects like Scaring the Hoes. His lyrics address poverty, drug addiction, and personal struggles with hyperactive flows and boundary-pushing beats. Live, Brown performs solo with his DJ SKYWLKR, delivering intense, idiosyncratic shows compared to punk or heavy metal performances, as seen at 2017 SXSW.