Considering the orchestra of music that Jon B. (born John David Buck) was born and raised in, it's hard to imagine that he would grow up to become anything other than an R&B singer/songwriter. Little Johnny Buck's grandparents owned a record store where he would listen to pop, soul and R&B records for days at a time. Jon preferred artists like The Bee Gees, Earth Wind and Fire, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye- not surprising for a kid who grew up in the 1980s. Jon's father was a professor of music, and his mother was a concert pianist who helped Jon learn the keyboard and piano by the time he was in high school. The young Jon B. sang disco, funk, and R&B songs extensively and also picked up the drums and bass.

Jon B. performed in small-time events and as part of a rap group before he was spotted in 1994 by Yab-Yum Records' CEO Tracey Edmonds, who signed him to a contract with the label, intending for Jon B. to write songs for her husband, the popular recording artist Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds. By 1995 Jon B. was writing songs for himself and working on an album called Bonafide. The album went gold and peaked at No. 24 on the U.S. R&B charts. Even though the success of the album was nowhere near blockbuster levels, "Someone to Love," a duet with Babyface on Bonafide, made its way to the soundtrack of the blockbuster summer movie Bad Boys. "Someone to Love" topped out at No. 10 in the U.S. Hot 100 and spread Jon B.'s name throughout the recording industry.

Much like his friend and mentor Babyface, Jon B. has written numerous songs for the rap group Az Yet and contemporary R&B singer Toni Braxton. In his 2007 album Cool Relax Jon B. worked with the late 2Pac on a song titled "Are U Still Down."