Major Lazer
Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music trio, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Jillionaire
Jillionaire and Walshy Fire. It was founded in 2008 by Diplo
Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after three years in 2011. He was then replaced by both Jillionaire
Jillionaire and Walshy Fire. Its music spans numerous genres, mixing reggae with dancehall, reggaeton, soca,[1] house and moombahton.[2][3][4][5] Major Lazer
Major Lazer has released three full-length albums: Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do in 2009, Free the Universe
Free the Universe in 2013, and Peace is the Mission in 2015. They have also released two EPs: Apocalypse Soon in March 2014, which featured vocal contributions from Pharrell Williams and Sean Paul, and Know No Better
Know No Better in 2017, which featured appearances from Camila Cabello, Quavo, Travis Scott, and J Balvin, among others. Major Lazer
Major Lazer has also notably produced Reincarnated, the debut Reggae
Reggae album by Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg under his "Snoop Lion" persona.[6] In March 2018, Billboard named Major Lazer
Major Lazer as number five on their 2018 ranking of dance musicians titled Billboard Dance 100.[7][8]

Contents

1 History

1.1 2009–11: Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do
Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do and Lazers Never Die EP 1.2 2012–13: Free the Universe
Free the Universe and Apocalypse Soon
Apocalypse Soon EP 1.3 2015–16: Peace is the Mission and Extended 1.4 2016–present: Music Is the Weapon

2 Discography

2.1 Studio albums

3 Television series 4 Awards and nominations 5 References 6 External links

History[edit] 2009–11: Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do
Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do and Lazers Never Die EP[edit] At Coachella Festival, 2010. Originally made up of DJs Diplo
Diplo and Switch, the two were introduced while working with M.I.A.. The duo's first album Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do was released on 16 June 2009, on Downtown Records. It was recorded in Jamaica
Jamaica at Tuff Gong
Tuff Gong Studios.[9] Vocalists such as Santigold, Vybz Kartel, Ward 21, Busy Signal, Nina Sky, Amanda Blank, Mr. Vegas, Turbulence, Mapei, T.O.K, Prince Zimboo, Leftside and others contribute guest vocals to the album, as well as additional production from Afrojack
Afrojack and Crookers.[10] This is the first release to come out of the label partnership between Downtown Records and Diplo's label Mad Decent.[11] Major Lazer
Major Lazer ended a US tour summer of 2009.[12] The album's first single was "Hold the Line", the video for which, directed by Eric Wareheim, was nominated for a MTV Video Award in the Breakthrough Video category. "Hold the Line" was also featured in the video game FIFA 10. The track "Zumbie" has a music video that features comedian Andy Milonakis.[13] Music videos for the songs "Pon de Floor", "Keep It Going Louder", and "Bubble Butt" were directed by Eric Wareheim. In June 2009, Major Lazer
Major Lazer were featured for the first time on the cover of the publication The FADER, in its 62nd issue.[14] Major Lazer
Major Lazer performed at the Falls Music & Arts Festival (Lorne, Victoria, Australia) on 30 December 2009 and the Coachella Music Festival in April 2010. They also performed at the Pitchfork Music Festival in July 2010 and the Sasquatch Music Festival on Monday 30 May 2011. Live visuals were created by Pomp&Clout. Major Lazer performed at the 2011 Outside Lands festival in San Francisco.[15] A mixtape with La Roux
La Roux entitled "Lazerproof" was made available for free download on 26 May.[16] Diplo
Diplo posted cover art on his Twitpic. It is the character Major Lazer
Major Lazer in War Machine's silver suit, Elly Jackson
Elly Jackson of La Roux
La Roux in the signature Iron Man suit, and Whiplash, the villain in the Iron Man 2 movie. On 20 June 2010, the group released an EP titled Lazers Never Die. It contained two new songs and three remixes, by Thom Yorke
Thom Yorke and others. Switch provided production for Beyoncé's "Run the World (Girls)", which sampled "Pon de Floor". Major Lazer
Major Lazer also features in the track, "Look at Where We Are", from the extended version of Hot Chip's album In Our Heads, released June 2011.

2012–13: Free the Universe
Free the Universe and Apocalypse Soon
Apocalypse Soon EP[edit] Diplo
Diplo and Jillionaire
Jillionaire performing at the Congress Theater, Chicago, in 2013. Major Lazer's live shows previously included hype man Skerrit Bwoy,[17] although he left the group in 2012 to pursue religion. In 2012, Major Lazer
Major Lazer began working with Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg to produce some tracks that were to be included on his new reggae project. Along with the project came his new alter ego persona known as "Snoop Lion". Switch left the collaborative effort due to "creative differences" as claimed by Diplo. He departed in late 2011 and was replaced with DJ/Producers Jillionaire
Jillionaire and Walshy Fire. Also, Boaz van de Beatz, artist from Mad Decent
Mad Decent (record label of Diplo), has collaborated with most of the group albums and is considered a member of the group.[citation needed] In September 2012, Major Lazer
Major Lazer announced that its upcoming album, Free the Universe, would be released on 12 March 2013 on Mad Decent. They also announced Fall 2012 tour dates.[18] Major Lazer
Major Lazer partly produced UK singer Rita Ora's debut album, Ora. Major Lazer
Major Lazer worked with No Doubt
No Doubt for their sixth studio album, Push and Shove. The album's title track features producers Major Lazer
Major Lazer and Jamaican reggae artist Busy Signal, and was released as a promotional single in August 2012. Major Lazer
Major Lazer launched their Fall Tour 2012 in October, with shows in Oakland, Washington, D.C., Boston, and New York City, amongst others. In February 2013, Major Lazer
Major Lazer signed with indie record label Secretly Canadian. At the same time, they announced the new release date, 16 April, for their album Free the Universe. They also announced the Free the Universe 2013 World Tour, which ran through the spring of 2013.

2015–16: Peace is the Mission and Extended[edit] Walshy Fire
Walshy Fire of Major Lazer
Major Lazer performing at Flow Festival
Flow Festival in Helsinki, Finland, August 2015 On February 8, 2015, during the Grammy Award
Grammy Award ceremony, Diplo
Diplo revealed details of the third Major Lazer
Major Lazer album. He confirmed that the album would incorporate artists such as Ariana Grande, Ellie Goulding
Ellie Goulding and Pusha T, and would be titled Peace is the Mission. The first single, "Lean On", was a collaboration with French producer DJ Snake
DJ Snake and featured vocals from Danish recording artist MØ. It was released on March 2, 2015. The song was first offered to Rihanna
Rihanna and then Nicki Minaj, who both turned it down; however Major Lazer
Major Lazer later expressed that no one could have done a better job than MØ
MØ in the recording.[19] The song reached number 4 on the US Billboard's Hot 100 chart and number 2 in the UK charts. It also became Spotify's most streamed song of all time,[20] receiving universally positive reviews while reaching over 2 billion views on YouTube, making it the twelfth most viewed video on the site.[21] Four promotional singles were released; "Roll the Bass" on March 23, 2015, "Night Riders", a collaboration with Travi$ Scott, 2 Chainz, Pusha T
Pusha T and Mad Cobra, released on April 20, 2015, and "Too Original", a collaboration with Elliphant
Elliphant and Jovi Rockwell, released on May 11, 2015. On June 2, 2015, a lyric video was released for "Be Together", a collaboration with Wild Belle, making it the fourth promotional single. The second single from the album, titled "Powerful", featured English singer-songwriter Ellie Goulding
Ellie Goulding and Jamaican singer Tarrus Riley. It was released simultaneously with the album, and was added to BBC Radio 1's playlist on June 21, 2015. It reached the Top 10 in Australia and Poland. The album was released on June 1, 2015.[22] It featured artists such as Machel Montano, Wild Belle, Pusha T, Ellie Goulding, and Ariana Grande. It peaked at number 12 on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200 chart and received general critical success. In an interview with inthemix on May 22, 2015, Walshy Fire
Walshy Fire announced that Major Lazer's fourth studio album would be titled Music is the Weapon and that it would be released late 2015 or early 2016.[23] The album never arrived in 2015 or 2016, though Diplo
Diplo did reveal on April 27, 2015 during an interview with Belgian radio station Studio Brussel
Studio Brussel that Major Lazer
Major Lazer was working on a new track with Belgian singer Selah Sue, and that it might appear on their next album.[24] Selah Sue
Selah Sue herself had confirmed this during an earlier interview with the same radio station on May 4, 2015. On November 27, 2015, Major Lazer
Major Lazer released a re-issue of their third studio album Peace is the Mission, re-titled as Peace is the Mission: Extended. It featured five additional songs, including a collaboration with Dutch electro house DJ MOTi
MOTi (featuring Ty Dolla $ign, Wizkid, and Kranium), a remix of their previous track "Light It Up" featuring Nyla and Fuse ODG, and a cover of Frank Ocean's "Lost" featuring previous collaborator and Danish recording artist MØ.[25] On November 5, 2015, Major Lazer
Major Lazer featured on Katy B's single ''Who Am I'' alongside Craig David. Exactly one year after Peace is the Mission was released, Major Lazer announced a new remix album titled Peace Is the Mission: Remixes. It featured remixes of selected tracks from their third studio album, including "Lean On", "Powerful", "Be Together", "Night Riders", and "Roll the Bass". Major Lazer
Major Lazer had over 27 million tags in music identification service Shazam in 2015. This, along with Diplo's other collaboration Jack Ü, gave Diplo
Diplo the greatest number of Shazams in 2015.[26]

2016–present: Music Is the Weapon[edit] On July 22, 2016, a new track titled "Cold Water", featuring vocals from MØ
MØ and Justin Bieber, was released by Major Lazer. It debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number 1 in several other countries including on the UK Official Charts, making it their most popular single yet.[27] On September 30, 2016, "Believer", a collaboration with Dutch production duo Showtek, was released as the second single from Major Lazer's upcoming fourth album. The album's title, Music is the Weapon, had been announced in May 2015, and was set to have "a few more club songs, a few more festival songs" than Peace is the Mission, but to be "in the same spectrum."[28] On December 6, 2016, Major Lazer
Major Lazer released a promotional single for Music Is the Weapon, titled "My Number". The song is a collaboration with Bad Royale that samples "54-46 That's My Number", which Pitchfork describes as "a genre-defining classic from legendary ska/reggae group Toots and the Maytals."[29] The song contains newly recorded vocals from frontman Toots Hibbert
Toots Hibbert specifically designed for Major Lazer, changing the original lyrics to incorporate the group into the song while keeping the original melody.[30][31] Following the success of singles "Cold Water" and "Believer", Major Lazer released their third single titled "Run Up" on January 26, 2017. The song features Canadian musician PartyNextDoor
PartyNextDoor and rapper Nicki Minaj, serving as a follow-up to the tropical, laid-back sound of "Cold Water". Music is the Weapon, however, still failed to arrive, prompting rumors that Major Lazer
Major Lazer would not be releasing an album after all. However, in 2018, Diplo
Diplo stated that the album will be released in 2019 and that it will be their last.[32] On June 1, 2017, Major Lazer
Major Lazer released a six-song extended play titled Know No Better, with the title track featuring Camila Cabello, Travis Scott, and Quavo. The EP's second single, "Sua Cara", features Brazilian musicians Anitta and Pabllo Vittar. Several remixes of the EP's title track have since been released.

Discography[edit] Main article: Major Lazer
Major Lazer discography Studio albums[edit] Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do
Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do (2009) Free the Universe
Free the Universe (2013) Peace Is the Mission
Peace Is the Mission (2015) Music Is the Weapon (2019) Television series[edit] Main article: Major Lazer
Major Lazer (TV series) A Major Lazer
Major Lazer animated series premiered on April 16, 2015 on FXX. Diplo
Diplo serves as co-creator and executive producer of the show.[33]

Awards and nominations[edit]

Year

Awards

Category

Nominee/Work

Outcome

Ref

2016

NRJ Music Awards

Best Live Performance

Major Lazer

Nominated

[34]

Best Single Dance/Electro

"Light It Up"

Nominated

Best Collaboration of the Year

Major Lazer

Won

Billboard Music Awards

Top Dance/Electronic Song

Lean On

Won

[35]

American Music Awards

Favorite Artist – Electronic Dance Music

Major Lazer

Nominated

[36]

2017

iHeartRadio Music Awards

Dance Artist of the Year

Nominated

[37]

Dance Song of the Year

"Cold Water"

Nominated

Kids' Choice Awards

Favorite DJ/EDM Artist

Major Lazer

Nominated

[38]

Billboard Music Awards

Top Dance/Electronic Artist

Major Lazer

Nominated

[39]

Top Dance/Electronic Song

"Cold Water"

Nominated

Teen Choice Awards

Choice Electronic/Dance Artist

Major Lazer

Nominated

[40]

MTV Video Music Awards

Best Dance Video

"Cold Water"

Nominated

[41]

Electronic Music Awards

Single of the Year

Won

[42]

Remix of the Year

"Shape of You" ( Major Lazer
Major Lazer Remix)

Nominated

2018

Latin Grammy Awards

Best Urban Fusion/Performance

"Sua Cara"

Nominated

[43]

References[edit]

^ "Listen to Major Lazer's Jillionaire
Jillionaire Join Forces With Soca Star Bunji Garlin on 'Television' (Exclusive)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 June 2017..mw-parser-output cite.citation font-style:inherit .mw-parser-output .citation q quotes:"""""""'""'" .mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center .mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center .mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center .mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration color:#555 .mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center .mw-parser-output code.cs1-code color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit .mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error display:none;font-size:100% .mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error font-size:100% .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em .mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format font-size:95% .mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left padding-left:0.2em .mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right padding-right:0.2em

^ "Interview – EDM Band Interview – Major Lazer
Major Lazer (USA)". indoclubbing.com.

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Diplo & Major Lazer
Major Lazer – Meet the People Keeping Moombahton
Moombahton Alive – Complex CA". Complex CA.

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Major Lazer Shoots To Thrill • Interviews •". Exclaim.ca. Archived from the original on 14 July 2012. Retrieved 16 April 2013.

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Major Lazer ( Diplo
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Diplo takes Mad Decent
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Diplo wanted Rihanna
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Nicki Minaj to sing on Lean On". Retrieved 4 August 2016.

^ " Major Lazer
Major Lazer & DJ Snake's 'Lean On' Becomes Spotify's Most-Streamed Song of All Time". Retrieved 4 August 2016.

^ majorlazer (22 March 2015), Major Lazer
Major Lazer & DJ Snake
DJ Snake – Lean On (feat. MØ) (Official Music Video), retrieved 4 August 2016

^ "Diplo's Major Lazer
Major Lazer Announce New Album Peace Is The Mission Featuring Collaborations with Pusha T, Ellie Goulding, 2 Chainz, Ariana Grande, More". Retrieved 13 May 2015.

^ " Major Lazer
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^ " Major Lazer
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^ " Diplo
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^ " Major Lazer
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^ " Major Lazer
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^ " Major Lazer
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^ https://www.complex.com/music/2018/09/diplo-says-the-next-major-lazer-album-might-be-their-last

^ " Major Lazer
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MTV Video Music Awards 2017 nominations". BBC News. 25 July 2017. Retrieved 26 July 2017.

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^ "NOMINEES 19th Annual Latin GRAMMY Awards" (PDF). The Latin Recording Academy. Retrieved 23 September 2018.

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Major Lazer. Official website Major Lazer discography
Major Lazer discography at Discogs Major Lazer
Major Lazer in VK vteMajor Lazer Diplo Walshy Fire Jillionaire Switch Skerrit Bwoy Studio albums Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do Free the Universe Peace Is the Mission Music Is the Weapon Extended plays Lazers Never Die Original Don Apocalypse Soon Know No Better Singles "Pon de Floor" "Original Don" "Get Free" "Jah No Partial" "Watch Out for This (Bumaye)" "Bubble Butt" "Aerosol Can" "Come On to Me" "Lean On" "Powerful" "Lost" "Light It Up" "Cold Water" "Believer" "Run Up" "Know No Better" "Sua Cara" "Let Me Live" "Blow That Smoke" Other songs "Be Together" "All My Love" "Particula" Related articles Discography Mad Decent TV series Reincarnated

vteDiplo Discography Production discography Studio albums Florida Compilation albums FabricLive.24 Decent Work for Decent Pay Blow Your Head: Diplo
Diplo Presents Dubstep Random White Dude Be Everywhere Mixtapes Piracy Funds Terrorism Top Ranking: A Diplo
Diplo Dub Singles "C'mon" "Earthquake" "Dirty Vibe" "Doctor Pepper" "Be Right There" "Hey Baby" "Bang Bang" "Swerve" "Welcome to the Party" "Close to Me" Featured singles "Elastic Heart" "Time Is Up" Related articles Major Lazer Jack Ü LSD Mad Decent What Would Diplo
Diplo Do? Diplo's Revolution Silk City

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