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Beyoncé and Chloe x Halle -

Beyoncé’s team discovered sisters Chloe and Halle Bailey after finding their cover of Beyoncé’s song 'Pretty Hurt.' Queen Bey later signed them to her management team, which gave their career a major boost.

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Lil Wayne and Drake -

Starting as a former child actor from Toronto, Drake has come a long way in his music career. He started posting music on his Myspace, and in 2007 Lil Wayne discovered his tracks. The rest is history.

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Lil Wayne and Nicki Minaj - Lil Wayne was first introduced to Nicki Minaj via her Myspace page. Together they made a bunch of mixtapes, which helped boost her debut album.

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Birdman and Lil Wayne -

When Lil Wayne was just eight years old, he met Cash Money Records owner Birdman. To get Birdman’s attention, he would leave rap messages on his answering machine. This worked, and Lil Wayne became the youngest rapper ever to be signed to the label. This early helping hand could explain why he's invested in the career of so many artists.

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Drake and The Weeknd  -

An associate of Drake spotted The Weeknd performing at the University of Toronto. Drake later tweeted about him and shared one of his songs, 'Wicked Games,' which resulted in his initial success. Now that's what paying it forward looks like!

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Akon and Lady Gaga -

In 2008, Lady Gaga was working as a songwriter at Interscope Records when Akon heard her sing. He quickly signed her to his own label, and she released her first album that same year.

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Fugees and Akon - When Akon first started out he met with the Fugees, who featured him on their 1995 EP. Collaborating with the hip-hop group was an important start to his musical career.

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Joan Baez and Bob Dylan - Musical icon Bob Dylan got his start in 1963, when Joan Baez saw him play and invited him to go on tour with her.

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Pete Wentz and Panic! at the Disco -

Pete Wentz from Fall Out Boy discovered Panic! at the Disco's demos online and signed them before they even played a show.

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Jay-Z and Rihanna -

Jay-Z received a demo of 15-year-old Rihanna singing 'Pon de Replay.' He traveled straight to Barbados to have her sign a deal with his record label, which she did in the end.

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Jamie Foxx and Ed Sheeran - Jamie Foxx became a fan of Sheeran when he came on his radio show in LA. Foxx allowed him to stay at his place for six weeks and took him to an open mic, where he got a standing ovation.

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Usher and Justin Bieber  -

Initially discovered on YouTube by music executive Scooter Braun, it was actually Usher who helped launch Bieber’s mainstream success.

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Justin Bieber and Carly Rae Jepsen - The 'Call Me Maybe' singer got her shot at fame thanks to Justin Bieber, who found Jepsen singing it on YouTube. Bieber then created a lip sync video of the song and tweeted it to his fans. If anyone knows the power of YouTube, it's Justin Bieber!

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One Direction and 5SOS -

One Direction discovered the Australian group on YouTube, later choosing 5 Seconds of Summer to tour with them.

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Jay-Z and Kanye West -

Kanye West was a producer before becoming a famous rapper, and worked together with Jay-Z. Jay-Z was reluctant to sign West, but took a chance, making him one of Roc-A-Fella’s official artists not long after.

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Kanye West and John Legend -

John Legend was working as a management consultant in 2001 when his demos made it to rapper Kanye West, who hired Legend to work on music together. When West started his own label, Legend was the first artist he signed.

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David Crosby and Joni Mitchell -

David Crosby was passing through Florida when he heard Joni Mitchell play a show in the late '60s. Impressed, he invited her back to LA where he introduced her to managers and record execs. She was later signed to a record label thanks to his persistence.

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Jay-Z and Rita Ora - Jay-Z signed the British singer to his label and even featured her in the music video for 'Young Forever.'

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Dr. Dre and Eminem -

In 1997, when Eminem was still unknown, a copy of his EP landed on the desk of rapper Dr. Dre. He instantly asked to see Eminem and helped him become the rapper he is today.

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T.I. and Travis Scott -

T.I. heard some of Travis Scott’s early songs and decided to meet with him. Scott later signed with T.I.’s label.

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Ludacris and 2 Chainz -

In 1997, 2 Chainz was introduced to rapper Ludacris, who soon became a chart-topping artist. Ludacris ended up signing 2 Chainz to his own record label.

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Jennifer Knapp and Katy Perry -

Raised by pastor parents, Katy Perry started off singing in church choirs, but at 15 she set off to pursue her music career. Her singing impressed folk rock musician Jennifer Knapp, who invited her to Nashville. There she improved her songwriting skills, recorded demos, and learned how to play guitar.

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Lil Jon and Pitbull  - Rapper Lil Jon first met Pitbull in his early days in Miami, and liked his songs so much that he invited him to feature in his upcoming album. This collaboration helped Pitbull reach mainstream success.

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The Beatles and James Taylor - James Taylor came a long way since his beginnings in the music industry. Having moved to London in the late '60s, he met with the Beatles representatives for their new record label, Apple Records. He was immediately signed after Paul McCartney heard his music.

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Big Boi and Janelle Monáe -

Outkast rapper Big Boi discovered Janelle Monáe at an open mic night, which later resulted in him inviting her to collaborate on his album 'Got Purp? Vol. II.'

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Diplo and M.I.A -

Diplo and M.I.A met at a party in the 2000s, and he later produced her hit song 'Paper Planes.'

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Pharrell Williams and Maggie Rogers -

Indie star Maggie Rogers was enrolled at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts when Pharrell Williams stopped by one of her classes to listen to her and some of her classmates' music. He was immediately impressed with her would-be hit song 'Alaska.'

Sources: (TheThings) (BuzzFeed) (Stacker) (Marie Claire) 

See also: Backup singers who became famous

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