Contemporary R&B singer Tank, whose moniker refers to his physique, recorded solo albums sporadically, beginning with his 2001 debut, Force of Nature, and kept increasingly busy behind the scenes as a songwriter, musician, and producer. Born Durrell Babbs in Milwaukee, WI, before later moving to the Washington, D.C., suburb of Clinton, MD, Tank became interested in music at an early age. As a youth, he was able to develop his singing ability at his local church, where his cousin was choir director. As a teenager, Tank became interested in sports as well as music, and he considered playing college football.

Ultimately, he stuck with music and landed an opportunity to sing background vocals for Ginuwine. Further opportunities presented themselves, most notably with Dave Hollister, whose album Chicago '85... The Movie (2000) includes several songs credited to Tank. A recording contract with Blackground Records followed, resulting subsequently in Tank's solo debut, Force of Nature (2001), which spawned a pair of singles ("Maybe I Deserve," "Slowly") and topped Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart (number seven overall). A second solo album, One Man (2002), followed shortly thereafter and was nearly as successfully as its predecessor, spawning another pair of singles ("One Man," "Let Me Live") and breaking into the Top Five of the R&B album chart (number 20 overall).

It would be five years before the release of his next album, Sex Love & Pain (2007), however. In the meantime, he busied himself as a songwriter, musician, and producer. His credits over this time period include songs on Aaliyah (Aaliyah, 2001), Things in the Game Done Changed (Dave Hollister, 2002), I Care 4 U (Aaliyah, 2002), U-Turn (Brian McKnight, 2003), Real Talk (Dave Hollister, 2003), Stronger Everyday (Jon B, 2004), Free Yourself (Fantasia Barrino, 2004), O (Omarion, 2005), Naked (Marques Houston, 2005), Charlie, Last Name Wilson (Charlie Wilson, 2005), Unpredictable (Jamie Foxx, 2005), Journey of a Gemini (Donell Jones, 2006), The Return (Ruben Studdard, 2006), Alter Ego (Tyrese, 2006), The Makings of Me (Monica, 2007), Veteran (Marques Houston, 2007), Ain't Nothin' Like Me (Joe, 2007), and Ms. Kelly (Kelly Rowland, 2007).