A-List DJ Diplo's New Spin on World Music


A-list producer and DJ Diplo knows where the real party's at - and that's South Africa. Siberia's on the brink, too.

"Blow Your Head," an all-new interactive art exhibit from Diplo and photographer Shane McCauley, aims to capture the raw energy of the many overseas music scenes they've conquered. "I was fascinated by how good the music was [in South Africa]. You don't see a festival environment like that [in America]. There's no marketing or anything," Diplo explained to attendees during a live Q&A for the exhibit's opening on Wednesday, September 4.

Diplo has lent his production stylings to stars like Usher, Justin Bieber and Snoop Lion. Thousands flock to his DJ sets at festivals across the world. He also performs as big-room reggae-dancehall act Major Lazer. Now, he's unveiled "Blow Your Head" as an introduction to some of his favorite international music destinations. "World music is not very marketable itself, you kind of have to put something behind it to make people excited about it… it's always been in my mind to help put a face to the music," he said.



The exhibit features black-and-white video and still images projected to fill the walls of the gallery space at Sonos Studio in Los Angeles. At the center of the space is the Sonos Controller - a tablet that allows attendees to select tracks from a playlist curated by Diplo. The sound of each track acts as a perfect juxtaposition alongside the music-inspired photographs and moving clips featured in the exhibit.



Aside from making music and sharing it with others, Diplo is also the head honcho of major electronic dance music label Mad Decent. Not only does the label back some of the most revered artists in the genre but it also executes major dance music events across the globe. And there seems to be no limit on distance for this tastemaker - it's wild to think who's next on his list.  "We're gonna try to do some shows in Siberia - way out there. For us, it's just about where we can turn up."

"Blow Your Head" runs at Sonos Studio in Los Angeles (145 N. La Brea Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90036) from September 4-October 6.