Ester Dean

Est her Renay Dean, known professionally as Ester Dean, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. She rose to prominence as a pop songwriter in the late 2000s and wrote numerous hit songs for singers including Rihanna, Katy Perry, Britney Spears, Nicki Minaj, and Beyoncé through the 2010s. She has acted in numerous films, including the 2012 musical comedy Pitch Perfect and its sequels.

Life and career Esther Renay Dean was born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, to single mother Hester Dean and raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma, as the younger of five children. She is of Black Indian descent. She began singing at a young age. When Esther was 15, her mother moved her and her sister Deandria to Omaha, Nebraska, where she began working as a session singer and writing for local musicians. At the age of 20, Dean moved to Atlanta with $500 to pursue a career as a songwriter and record producer. She was discovered by music producer Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, who overheard Dean singing along in the crowd of a Gap Band concert. On the strength of her voice and songwriting ability, Tricky signed Dean for a publishing contract.

Dean later parted ways with Tricky and relocated to Los Angeles, where she was introduced to Polow da Don and signed a deal with Zone 4 Records under the aegis of Interscope Records.

Artistry Voice Dean possesses a mezzo-soprano range. Her vocals were described by Billboard as "raw, energetic vocals [that] cover a wide range: from club banger to melodic doo-wop/hip-hop." Dean's vocals have also been described as similar to Rihanna and Nicki Minaj. "The songwriter's voice is pitched dead center between two artists. The first is frequent collaborator Rihanna...the other is Nicki Minaj when she sings."

Songwriting style In a 2012 article in The New Yorker, Dean described her preferred method of songwriting: "I go into the booth and I scream and I sing and I yell, and sometimes it's words but most time [sic] it's not...and I just see when I get this little chill [on her upper arm, below the shoulder] and then I'm, like, 'Yeah, that's the hook.'" "I Am" (as a writer) "Rude Boy" (as a writer) "Sex Therapy" (as a writer)

Grammy Awards Loud (as a producer and writer) Album of the Year

Herself Songwriter of the Year

Pop Song of the Year

"Super Bass" (as a writer) "Rude Boy" (as a writer) "S&M" (as a writer) "What's My Name?" (as a writer)

Urban Song of the Year

"What's My Name?" (as a writer)

"Mr. Know It All" (as a writer)

"Turn Me On" (as a writer) "Where Have You Been" (as a writer) MTV Movie Awards Pitch Perfect (shared with the cast) Best Musical Moment Annie Awards Ice Age: Continental Drift (as a producer) Best Music in a Feature Production

Hollywood Music in Media Awards "Dancing in the Dark" (as a writer) Best Song – Animated Film

Dance Award

Award-Winning Pop Songs

Award-Winning Pop Songs

Canadian Country Music Awards "Champagne Night" (as a writer) Songwriter of the Year