Imagine Dragons
In 2008, lead singer Dan Reynolds met drummer Andrew Tolman at Brigham Young University, where they were both students. Reynolds and Tolman recruited Andrew Beck, Dave Lemke, and Aurora Florence to play guitar, bass, and piano respectively for their band. Their name is an anagram for a phrase only known to members of the group, which Reynolds said each member approved of. The five released an extended play called Speak to Me that year. However, Beck and Florence left the band later that year. In 2009, Tolman recruited long-time high school friend Wayne Sermon to play guitar. Sermon had graduated from Berklee College of Music. Tolman later recruited his wife, Brittany Tolman, to sing back-up and play keys and the band began to play again. Lemke left the band later on, so Sermon recruited Ben McKee to join the band as their bassist. The band got a large following in their hometown of Provo, Utah before they moved to Las Vegas, where the band recorded and released their first three extended plays.