[3] In his early twenties Beal joined the U.S. Army, moving to Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.
Here Beal spent some time homeless, and working entry-level jobs, notably as a night-shift security guard.
During this time Beal began to record music, leaving CD-Rs in public spaces around Albuquerque.
[1] Beal participated in auditions for Simon Cowell's The X Factor television show, but dropped out of the "boot-camp" stage of the competition.
[9] In 2013, Beal was the star and subject of the musical drama film, Memphis, directed by Tim Sutton.