Diplo reveals Jack U plans, Kanye collaborations, and more in Reddit AMA

by: Eric Zwilling Jul 30, 2014

“So, what’s next for electronic music?”

While this very question is asked in countless interviews with artists ranging from every side of the industry, the answer is nearly always the same: “I don’t know. Ask Diplo.” As the man in charge of the relentless Mad Decent label, Wesley Pentz’s taste holds a great deal of weight in the music industry, and he consistently has stayed a step ahead of the crowd in terms of musical taste. Diplo’s influence is simply undeniable; if Pentz puts his name behind a sound, that sound will ring successful.

Recently, the tastemaker took to Reddit to participate in the popular Ask Me Anything (AMA) subreddit’s ongoings. While the Florida-native was only able to provide fans a sliver of time out of his hectic and show-filled schedule, Diplo held nothing back, revealing the information that fans of his material wanted most. From revealing the forthcoming Jack U mixtape with Skrillex to confirming that he has somewhere in the area of eight children, Wentz’s AMA brought out the best of Diplo’s usual shenanigans, complete with an exciting look into the future of both Diplo and Major Lazer.

After simply posting “[I’m] ready kids,” the AMA was off with a bang, immediately tackling the questions that diehard electronic music fans begged to be answered. His first music-related question he chose to take on? Jack U.

Diplo recently revealed a new Jack U track at a small party, and a video of that moment made its way onto the internet in high quality. The revealed track, now properly identified by Diplo as “Take You There” featuring Kiesza, has taken the internet by storm, leaving fans sitting on the edge of their seats to hear more. While the Jack U mixtape has no release date publicly set, Pentz made it clear on his AMA that he plans to try to stream that very track this week. With heavy touring schedules, though, it’s often hard for two superstars like Skrillex and Diplo to have any time together, let alone time to produce fresh material that will live up to the Jack U hype.

Speaking on his other famous collaboration, Diplo reassured fans of the history and continuation of Major Lazer, his joint endeaver with, well, whoever is around. In response to a question asking why Jillionaire had left Major Lazer, Diplo took the opportunity to clear the air.

Pentz also took the opportunity to share why Switch, the other original half of the Major Lazer project, stepped away from the musical endeavor for other opportunities. As it turns out not only is there no bad blood over the split of the original Major Lazer, but the two remain close friends even today. Diplo even goes as far to compliment his progressive mixing skill.

With Diplo’s position atop the electronic music scene, he has been afforded the opportunity to work with people outside of the immediate electronic circle. From Kanye West during the Watch The Throne era to Jai Paul in his current mysterious state, Wentz has a number of unheard high-caliber collaborations under his belt. While he offered no release details regarding these collaborations, or if they would ever be released at all, confirmation of the projects gives hope to the possibility of their reveals.

As for within his immediate circle of producer friends and vocalists, Diplo has also done a great deal of collaborative work that we can look forward to hearing soon. From working with GTA to Mø, Diplo has been random and everywhere. Touching upon a recent work he did with R&B vocalist Usher on top of his recent work with Madonna, Wentz’s work will most certainly break through the overall top charts on top of his usual domination of the electronic circuit.

Oh, and of course, Diplo has a new plan to disqualify himself from the DJ Mag Top 100 poll. While his plan failed last year, he seems more than confident that he will remain outside the ranks of what has become the hottest topic in the electronic industry.

What’s next for Diplo? Apart from his current Mad Decent Block Party tour on which he is joined by countless friends to keep up the label’s rambunctious and playful reputation, the artist looks to expand the Mad Decent brand name, even hinting at a possible venture into…. K-Pop?

As for Pentz himself, he is currently working towards a rerelease of his debut album, Florida, and plans on touching up three unheard demos to give the fans a new gift with the older tunes. With a potential November release date not too far off, fans of Diplo have much to look forward to.