[9] They signed with English singer Lily Allen's record label In the Name Of, an imprint of Sony Music to release their eponymous debut studio album (2011).

A song from the album, "Bad Things" was sampled by American rapper J. Cole for his 2013 single, "She Knows", on which they were credited as featured artists.

[10] Cults formed in 2010 while guitarist Brian Oblivion and singer Madeline Follin, both from San Diego, were students in New York City.

[14] Their eponymous debut studio album was released on June 7, 2011, by Columbia Records imprint In the Name Of run by Lily Allen.

In an interview with the magazine Coup De Main,[22] Follin was quoted saying that "You Know What I Mean" is her favorite song on their self-titled debut album.

In 2013 they were featured alongside Amber Coffman on J. Cole's Born Sinner album which peaked at number one on the Billboard 200.