A Chicago-born singer and songwriter, Ann Marie (alternately Annmarie), is known for her intimate, assertive, and explicit approach to contemporary R&B. She initially built her fan base through social media before gaining wider attention with 2017's Ann Marie and the two-volume Tripolar, which spawned the number 22 Hot R&B Songs hit "Secret" in 2019. In 2021, she released the full-length Hate Love. The two-part Pain Never Looked This Good appeared in 2022.

Born Joann Marie Slater in Chicago in 1995, Ann Marie started singing at a young age. She also wrote poetry in elementary school and eventually put lyrics to beats. She viewed music strictly as a hobby until her social media posts reached an audience far outside her native South Side of Chicago. Her commercial recorded debut was made in 2015 with "Different," and was quickly followed the next year with the Misunderstood EP. In 2017, Ann Marie released a self-titled full-length featuring "Nobody" with Englewood neighbor Lil Durk, as well as another EP, Unfuckwitable. Her mixtapes, Tripolar and Tripolar 2, were issued in 2018 and 2019. Included on Tripolar 2 was the single "Secret" featuring YK Osiris, which reached number 22 on Billboard's Hot R&B Songs chart.

In December 2020, Ann Marie was arrested and charged with aggravated assault in relation to the shooting of a longtime associate at an Atlanta-area hotel. She was ultimately released on bond and spent almost a year out of the spotlight. In 2021, she returned with the Hitmaka-produced Hate Love, which featured guest appearances by Tink and Yung Bleu. Pain Never Looked This Good, released in "Day" and "Night" editions, followed in 2022. ~ Andy Kellman, Rovi