Daniel Olivas was born in San Diego and grew up listening to the Beatles, Red Hot Chili Peppers, John Williams, Danny Elfman and a plethora of punk rock bands. When he became a teenager, he learned how to play bass guitar and proceeded to become a song writer and play in rock bands. His interest in music grew as he then learned how to play guitar, piano, drums, and ukulele, until developing a focus on vocal performance.

When he studied art & film at UC Davis, he minored in music with an emphasis of vocal performance. He studied theory and ethnomusicology, being a part of a Hindustani Music Ensemble, Gospel Choir, and University Chorus. In pursuing his degree, he took an interest in musical theatre and performed in Studio 301's rendition of Tommy and Hair: The Broadway Musical.

His interest in film grew as he experimented with video and animation. This was when he began music composition, incorporating the use of multiple instruments both live and digital to create original scores for his film and animation.