Diplo

By mashing together a collision of cultures, genres, and styles into a melting pot of hip hop, dancehall, and electro clash, Diplo became one of the most eagerly sought DJs and producers during the 2010s and 2020s. Years before taking his stage name from the Diplodocus dinosaur, Thomas Pemtz was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, on November 10, 1978, and launched his DJing career while attending college in Florida. He ran parties and club nights under the Hollertronix banner with his friend DJ Low Budget, then began releasing material as Diplo in 2003. His first mixtape, AEIOU, was released that same year, with the debut album Florida following in 2004. He met Sri Lankan rapper M.I.A. while DJing in London, and the pair struck up an immediate friendship. Diplo went on to produce several tracks on her albums Arular (2005), Kala (2007), and Maya (2010), including the international hit single "Paper Planes." A renowned remixer for acts as diverse as Britney Spears, Radiohead and Beck, he also developed a signature sound steeped in reggae, African rhythms, and Latin influences, and even released several compilations of Baile Funk, a form of Brazilian dance music that emanates from the Rio ghettos. For his record label Mad Decent, Diplo collaborated with Santogold on the album Top Ranking: A Diplo Dub (2008) and released the remix collection Decent Work For Decent Pay (2009), then teamed up with Switch under the guise of Major Lazer for the Jamaican dancehall record Guns Don't Kill People, Lazers Do (2009). He remained similarly busy during the 2010s, working with a wide range of artists while also scoring solo hits with 2015's Top 10 dance single "Be Right There," 2017's "Get it Right," 2018's Ellie Goulding collaboration "Close to Me," and 2019's quadruple-platinum smash "Heartless." Maintaining his prolific streak into a new decade, he released the album Diplo Presents Thomas Wesley, Chapter 1: Snake Oil in 2020, followed by the singles "One By One" and "Don't Be Afraid" in 2021.