Meet Frank Ocean, the enigmatic musician whose new album is about to be everywhere

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Frank Ocean isn't just one of the most important artists in hip hop, he's one of the most important artists in all of music.

His 2012 album "Channel Orange" is widely considered one of the best albums in the past few years. Since then, he's become something of a recluse, taking time for only a few interviews and to speak out against LGBT discrimination. Since Ocean revealed his sexuality a few years ago, he's been a leading light in the music industry.

Ocean's long-awaited new album, "Boys Don't Cry," is due to drop at any moment. A notorious perfectionist, Ocean teased the album several times over the past few years, but it'll start streaming on Apple Music this Friday, according to The New York Times. We're finally getting a followup to "Channel Orange."

Meet Frank Ocean.

Hurricane Katrina destroyed Ocean's New Orleans recording studio in 2005.

Frank Ocean grew up in New Orleans (originally Christopher Edwin Breaux, he legally changed his name last year), and dabbled in the local music scene since his early teens. He started college at the University of New Orleans, but after Hurricane Katrina, he transferred to the University of Louisiana at Lafayette for a stint, before deciding to move to Los Angeles.

He saved up some money doing sheetrocking, then drove cross-country to Los Angeles with $1,100 in his pocket, planning to stay for six weeks to record some demos. He's still there.

Shortly after, he moved to Los Angeles, where he got hired to write songs for Beyoncé, Justin Bieber, and Nas.

Ocean worked as a Subway “sandwich artist,” flipped burgers, had stints at Kinko’s and AT&T, and processed claims at Allstate. But soon enough, he got gigs writing songs for other artists. After awhile, big-label producers started noticing him and he got gigs writing for and working with Beyoncé, Alicia Keys, Justin Bieber, John Legend, Brandy, Pharrell Williams, and Nas.

But he wanted to make his own music.

Ocean joined Odd Future, a rap collective led by Tyler, The Creator. They produced a clever, occasionally absurdist rap album called "The OF Tape Vol. 2." Ocean and Tyler won acclaim for their ten-minute track "Oldie."