Also known as Amir Moahmed or Amir Khalifa, Oddisee was born in Washington, D.C. to a Sudanese father and an African-American mother and grew up in Maryland. He was influenced by soul and rap as well as the myriad of musicians on both sides of his family. He was to pursue visual art at the Art Institute of Philadelphia until when a friend of his introduced him to hip-hop producing. Captivated by it, he changed his plans and concentrated on making beats, ending up with the track “Musik Lounge” on DJ Jazzy Jeff’s 2002 record, Magnificent. Part of the Low Budget crew, which included fellow D.C. area MC and producers Kenn Starr, Cy Young, and Kev Brown, Oddisee released his solo debut, Foot in the Door, mixed by Jazzy Jeff, on Halftooth in 2006.