īhasker's collaborations span multiple genres, including writing and production credits on Alicia Keys's 2009 album, The Element of Freedom, including the charting singles " Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart" and " Wait Til You See My Smile", and the album tracks, "Love Is Blind", and "Like the Sea". Bhasker received the Grammy Award for Best Rap Song for West's " All of the Lights", and the Jay-Z/ Rihanna/Kanye West song " Run This Town". Bhasker collaborated on West's albums 808s & Heartbreak, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy and the Jay-Z/Kanye West collaboration album, Watch the Throne, including the songs " Welcome to Heartbreak". He was set to be the musical director for the cancelled Fame Kills: Starring Kanye West and Lady Gaga, before going on to be the music director of Lady Gaga's The Monster Ball Tour. Initially serving as a substitute keyboardist for West's Glow in the Dark Tour, West was impressed by Bhasker's musical ability, and hired him as his musical director. Bhasker then began an association with rapper/producer Kanye West. He played cover songs in a band with Mars around Los Angeles. He began writing with Bruno Mars, and songwriter and executive Steve Lindsey served as their mentor. He got a job doing demos for songwriter Diane Warren. īhasker relocated to Los Angeles, in 2005. Bhasker produced a song on rapper The Game's first album, The Documentary (2005). One of his first productions was with neo soul singer Goapele, on her album Even Closer (2002). He toured with the jam band Lettuce and began focusing more on songwriting. After playing with the 1970s era R&B band Tavares, Bhasker moved to New York on September 11, 2001.
He gigged around Boston as a keyboardist and played in a wedding band. He played in the jazz band at Socorro High School, where he graduated in 1993, and then studied jazz piano and arranging at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Bhasker was introduced to jazz by his mother and his piano teacher. His American-born mother is a pianist and his Indian-born father, Ravi Bhasker, is a medical doctor who has served as Socorro's mayor for over 24 years. Bhasker was born in Kansas City, Kansas, and raised in Socorro, New Mexico.