Ester Dean

Ester Dean is an American singer-songwriter, and record producer. She is most notable for her U.S. hit single "Drop It Low" in 2009, which featured singer Chris Brown. Dean has also written songs for many artists including Christina Aguilera, Florence + The Machine, Beyoncé, Drake, Selena Gomez, Mary J. Blige, Kelly Clarkson, Ciara, The Pussycat Dolls, Usher, Kelly Rowland, R. Kelly, Britney Spears and Lil Wayne.

While at a Gap Band concert in Atlanta, Georgia, music producer Tricky Stewart overheard Dean singing in the crowd along with the band. He immediately asked her to set up a meeting. While going through her catalog of songs, Tricky was impressed by not only her voice but also her songwriting ability. He signed her to a small publishing deal.

Dean relocated to Los Angeles where she was eventually introduced to Polow da Don, and later signed to Zone 4 Records/Interscope Records.

In 2009 Dean released her first single, "Drop It Low", which peaked at number 38 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming her first US Top 40 single.

Dean's big break came when she collaborated with super producers Stargate, creating her first number one single, Rihanna’s "Rude Boy". She went on to write "What's My Name", "Where Have You Been" and several other Rihanna hits. She also wrote Katy Perry's "Firework", Nicki Minaj’s "Super Bass" and co-wrote "Pills n Potions" with Nicki Minaj.

In 2011, Dean contributed to the soundtrack for the animated film, Rio.

In 2012, Dean was named ‘The Song Machine’ in an article by John Seabrook.

Dean played role of Cynthia Rose in the hit movie Pitch Perfect (2012), which led to her co-starring in the sequels Pitch Perfect 2 (2015) and Pitch Perfect 3 (2017).

Dean current hosts an American songwriting competition series on NBC, "Songland." Each episode, producers team up with songwriters to create the next big hit to be recorded by the guest performing artist.