Born Navraj Singh Goraya on November 3, 1989, Nav grew up in the suburban Rexdale neighborhood in Toronto, Ontario. His interest in music first began after his mother bought him a boombox when he was in third grade. Knowing his interest, Nav's uncle also bought him a studio that he later used to make mash-ups and produce beats in high-school.

Beginning his music career as a SoundCloud artist, Nav had his first taste of fame when Kylie Jenner posted a Snapchat video of herself singing along to his song "Myself" in 2015. Another of his song, "Take Me Simple", also garnered people's attention as it was streamed more than ten million times. It didn't take long enough until his talent was recognized by big names in the industry, including Drake who included "Take Me Simple" and "The Man" on his OVO Sound Radio in 2016. He also collaborated with Travis Scott (II) on platinum-certified single "Belbs in the Trap".

In February 2017, Nav signed to the XO label and Republic Records. He then began to work on his debut commercial mixtape "NAV", which was released on February 24. The effort peaked at No. 24 on Billboard 200 and at No. 4 on Canadian Albums. Months after that, he released his collaboration mixtape with Metro Boomin entitled "Perfect Timing". Making its way out on July 21, the effort debuted at No. 13 on Billboard 200.

After receiving nomination at the 2018 Juno Awards, Nav unveiled his debut album "Reckless" on May 18. Its first single, "Wanted You" featuring Lil Uzi Vert, became his first song as a lead artist to chart on Billboard's Hot 100 chart. In addition to releasing his own album, Nav was featured on Travis Scott (II)'s "Astroworld", joining forces on track "Yosemite".

Despite his success, Nav shockingly announced retirement after Uzi Vert did the same in January 2019. Fortunately, he came out of retirement just two months later after Uzi Vert suggested him to do so. Soon after that, he released his second studio album "Bad Habits" on March 22. Featuring the likes of Gunna, Meek Mill and Future, the effort debuted at No. 1 on Billboard 200, becoming his first chart-topping album on the chart.