Diplo (Musician)

Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is a co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer; a member of the supergroup LSD, with Labrinth and Sia; a member of electronic duo Jack Ü, with producer and DJ Skrillex; and a member of Silk City, with Mark Ronson. He founded the record company Mad Decent in 2006, as well as the non-profit organization Heaps Decent the following year. His 2013 extended play (EP), Revolution, debuted at number 68 on the US Billboard 200. The EP's title track was later featured in a commercial for Hyundai and is featured on the WWE 2K16 soundtrack. Diplo worked with and dated British musician M.I.A.; Diplo produced her 2008 breakout single "Paper Planes," which gave him initial mainstream exposure. In 2011, he and fellow producer Switch formed the electronic musical group Major Lazer and its namesake cartoon series for FXX, which ran for one season. The group released five studio albums which explored EDM and dancehall music, pioneering a new musical genre called ReggaeEDM. Since then, Diplo has produced for and collaborated with a number of mainstream musical acts, including Lil Peep, Gwen Stefani, Die Antwoord, Britney Spears, Madonna, Shakira, Beyoncé, Ellie Goulding, No Doubt, Justin Bieber, Usher, Snoop Dogg, Trippie Redd, Chris Brown, CL, G-Dragon, Bad Bunny, Kali Uchis, Joji, MØ and Poppy. His alias, short for Diplodocus, derives from his childhood fascination with dinosaurs.