Sermon was born on June 15, 1984, in American Fork, Utah, to parents Jeff and Debbie Sermon..
He is one of five children and grew up a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints but has since left the church. As a youth, Sermon learned to play both cello and guitar.
Wayne Sermon first met Dan Reynolds after hearing him perform at a club in Utah and approaching him afterwards about his musical interests.
Reynolds invited him to join his band and move to Las Vegas.