[2] Phonte is a member of the North Carolina hip-hop trio/duo Little Brother (revived in 2019 without producer 9th Wonder) and one-half of the duo The Foreign Exchange.

Phonte first met the other members of Little Brother, rapper Big Pooh and producer 9th Wonder, in 1998 while attending North Carolina Central University, as an English major.

The group received a Grammy nomination for Best Urban/Alternative Performance for the track "Daykeeper" (featuring Muhsinah) from the second album, Leave It All Behind.

In the following year he contributed vocals to rap group Playaz Circle's song "Paper Chaser", from their album Supply & Demand.

Phonte's recent projects include The Foreign Exchange's third album, Authenticity, as well as a collaboration (as Tiggalo) with Detroit-based musician Zo!

& Tigallo Love the 80s is a homage to early 1980s R&B and pop music and features covers of popular songs such as a-Ha's "Take On Me", Toto's "Africa", and Joe Jackson's "Stepping Out".