After posting a number of songs on SoundCloud he became increasingly influenced by the emerging emo rap scene on the platform, which led to him taking on the Lil Lotus moniker and associating with members and affiliates of GothBoiClique.

John "Elias" Villagran[2] grew up in Pleasant Grove, Dallas, Texas with devout Christian parents.

[4] His father was a musician, who introduced him to a wide variety of musical styles including jazz, reggaeton and oldies.

He became influenced to make music through groups like Linkin Park and Paramore, as well as various emo and heavy metal songs that his friend had put on an iPod that Villagran had stolen.

[3] By fourteen, he and his brother were performing praise and worship music at their church, which led to him forming a Christian melodic hardcore band.

[5] He found himself doing fill-in spots for various acts in his local metalcore scene, including Be//Gotten and Azurah,[6][7] as well as becoming a frequent user of drugs such as LSD and Xanax.

When Villagran was eighteen, his father died, which led him to leave home and live in his car for the following two years.

[4] After returning home, he commenced his fill-in roles, organising local concerts and working day jobs in factories.

The birth of his son Luca led him to stop performing with bands and begin pursuing music solo.

[4][8] He soon changed his stage name to Lil Lotus, after being introduced to and becoming influenced by the sound of GothBoiClique members Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Horse Head and Coldhart.

[43] On March 30, 2021, the band announced a split EP with SeeYouSpaceCowboy called A Sure Disaster, which will be released on May 14, 2021, through Pure Noise Records.

[47] Villagran's early solo music has been categorised by critics as emo rap,[18][48][19] with Hysteria magazine hailing him as "one of the biggest influences of the emo-rap genre".

[24] Dead Press writer Tyler Turner described his music as "push[ing] the boundaries of modern emo without falling too deeply into the trap of instrumental idleness".

[22] On his debut album Error Boy, Villagran transitioned his music closer to pop punk.

[33][50] He has cited influences including the Red Jumpsuit Apparatus,[6] Saosin, Alesana, Escape the Fate, SeeYouSpaceCowboy,[7] Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Horse Head and Cold Hart.