FASHION Magazine
-
Go continent-hopping with Diplo through his just-released documentary book
Diplo sprang to our collective consciousness as rap star M.I.A.’s DJ and collaborator (and, briefly, romantic partner). He’s gone on to record two albums as one half of Major Lazer and work with pop-dance artists such as La Roux, Santigold and Robyn, and he worked with Beyoncé on the beats for “Run the World (Girls).” Naturally, all of this led to a busy touring schedule. While he criss-crossed the globe, Diplo (a.k.a. Thomas Wesley Pentz) began to explore local music scenes in search of acts to sign to his Philadelphia-based Mad Decent label—notably baile funk from the favelas of Brazil, kuduro from Angola and “bounce” from New Orleans. Now, he’s released a book of the highlights from his journeys, 128 Beats Per Minute: Diplo’s Visual Guide to Music, Culture, and Everything in Between (Universe), with a foreword by the high priest of coolness, Alexander Wang.