An influential DJ, producer, and MC—in that order—Madlib is among the most respected figures in underground hip-hop. • Madlib was born into a family of musicians. His father was a jazz performer, his mother was a songwriter and guitarist, and his uncle was the renowned jazz trumpeter Jon Faddis. • In the late ’80s, he and his friends formed the hip-hop collective Lootpack. After their 1996 debut EP, Psyche Move, the group inked a deal with Stones Throw Records. • Under the moniker Quasimoto, he delivered his debut solo album, The Unseen, in 2000. He recorded the LP while high on mushrooms. • He joined forces with fellow underground icon J Dilla for the 2003 album Champion Sound, credited to Jaylib. • Madlib teamed with masked rapper-producer MF DOOM for the 2004 joint album Madvillainy. Regarded as an instant classic, the LP made the Billboard 200. • He composed the film score for the Grammy-nominated 2011 documentary Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest. • Madlib co-produced “No More Parties In LA”, a single from Kanye West’s 2016 album The Life of Pablo. • Another frequent collaborator is Freddie Gibbs. In 2019, the pair (known as MadGibbs) released Bandana, their sixth project