Major Lazer discuss their Jamaican roots in new mini-doc

by: David Klemow Mar 6, 2015

Diplo‘s dance hall-dedicated production trio, Major Lazer, are known for putting on some of the most rowdy performances in the dance music space today. Although as big and as grand as Diplo has built up the reggae-influenced party music in the America market, in Jamaica, Major Lazer are idolized as icons. How they began and where Walshy Fire, Jillionaire, and Diplo find their collective inspiration, all begins in Jamaica, so Rolling Stone sent cameras along with the crew to learn about Major Lazer from the ground up and capture the movement have started among Kingston’s galvanized youth.

Major Lazer Take Kingston opens with Diplo explaining how his upbringing in South Florida exposed him to a diverse blend of cultures and music growing up, shaping his affinity for Caribbean-born dub and dance hall sounds from an early age. Humble beginnings alongside M.I.A. shot Diplo to production stardom and by 2009, Major Lazer became a reality. Like any new idea, it took time to catch on, as the Mad Decent label head brings the viewer back to the earliest days of Major Lazer playing to virtually empty rooms. Diplo tells of brave Jamaican disc jockeys that began to give him a chance around the time “Pon De Floor” hit shelves and the rest is history.

The group finds a great deal of inspiration as they connect with national recording legend King Jammy during their visit to Kingston. Regarded by the group as the man who bridged the gap between traditional dub and electronic music in the 80’s, Jammy’s influence is evident across Major Lazer’s body of work. The idea for Major Lazer’s now iconic artwork is inspired from Jammy’s one-of-a-king album artwork, jumping off of stacks and stacks of record sleeves stowed away in Jammy’s private studio.

As one of the premier performance and production outfits in dance music today, Major Lazer has created something special. Footage of the group’s raucous performance in Kingston captures the growth and popularity Major Lazer has garnered in Jamaica. From imaginative beginnings to worldwide dominance, a look at Major Lazer from where it all began shows just where the group is headed in the future.