Slim Man is a multi-instrumentalist musician born in Baltimore, Maryland, who studied trumpet, piano, composition, and harmony at Peabody Institute. He began his career as a songwriter for Motown Records, with compositions recorded by the Temptations and Angela Bofill. In the early 1980s, he formed BootCamp, a band that achieved early MTV success with videos among the first 100 played on the network, performing alongside acts including The B-52s, Squeeze, and Split Enz. After BootCamp disbanded, Slim Man organized a nationwide country music talent contest where he discovered Ronnie Dunn, who later formed the Grammy-winning duo Brooks and Dunn. In the late 1990s, he established Bona Fide, an instrumental group blending funk and jazz that produced the number one single "X Ray Hip." Slim Man has released 13 studio albums and is known for his signature style combining jazz, soul, and pop elements.