Major Lazer

Biography

Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music and DJ group, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Walshy Fire, Ape Drums and vocalist America Foster. They were founded in 2008 by Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after three years in 2011. He was then replaced by both Jillionaire and Walshy Fire. In June 2019, Jillionaire left the group and was replaced by Ape Drums. In 2025, British-Jamaican artist and Internet personality America Foster joined the group. Their music spans numerous genres, mixing reggae with dancehall, ReggaeEDM, reggaeton, soca, house and moombahton.
Major Lazer has released four full-length albums: Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do in 2009, Free the Universe in 2013, Peace Is the Mission in 2015, and Music Is the Weapon in 2020. They have also released six EPs, including Apocalypse Soon in March 2014, which featured vocal contributions from Pharrell Williams and Sean Paul, and Know No Better in 2017, which featured appearances from Camila Cabello, Quavo, Travis Scott, and J Balvin, among others. Major Lazer has also notably produced Reincarnated, the debut reggae album by Snoop Dogg under his "Snoop Lion" persona. In March 2018, Billboard ranked Major Lazer at number five on their 2018 Billboard Dance 100 ranking of dance musicians.

2009–11: Guns Don't Kill People... Lazers Do and Lazers Never Die EP

Originally made up of DJs Diplo and Switch, the two were introduced while working with M.I.A. The duo's first album Guns Don't Kill People...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 June 16, 2009, on Downtown Records. It was recorded in Jamaica at Tuff Gong Studios. 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 M.I.A., with others contributing guest vocals to the album, as well as additional production from Afrojack, Nebat Drums and Crookers. This is the first release to come out of the label partnership between Downtown Records and Diplo's label Mad Decent. Major Lazer ended a US tour summer of 2009.
The album's first single was "Hold the Line×Hold the Line19 April 2009 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 4 tracks1Hold the Line (DJ edit)2Hold the Line (Lehtmojoe remix)3Call Mi (Dave Kelley’s Hold the Line remix)4Hold the Line (Prince Zimboo Freestyle)", the video for which, directed by Eric Wareheim, was nominated for a MTV Video Award in the Breakthrough Video category. It was also featured in the video game FIFA 10. The track "Zumbie" has a music video that features comedian Andy Milonakis. 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 were featured for the first time on the cover of the publication The Fader, in its 62nd issue.
Major Lazer performed at the Falls Music & Arts Festival (Lorne, Victoria, Australia) on December 30, 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 May 30, 2011 and at the 2011 Outside Lands festival in San Francisco.
A mixtape with La Roux titled "Lazerproof×LazerProof26 May 2010 · Studio album · Mixtape/StreetSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracks1Bulletproof (Nacey remix)3:042Colourless Artibella2:423I’m Not Your Lemonade + Heroes ’n’ Villans (remix)3:534Independent Kill2:555Keep It Fascinating3:156Magic (Falling Soldiers dub)3:327In 4 the Kill Pon de Skream4:318Houstatlantavegas Pains2:499Tigerlily (DYWHAP Blend)2:5110Can’t Stop Now (Armor Love remix)3:3911Quicksand (Mad Decent 2010 rerub)5:0712Cover My Eyes (Costra Nostra edit)3:5413I Said It (Major Lazer dubplate)1:4414Hold Yuh (Double dubplate)6:21" was made available for free download on May 26. It used the instrumental tracks from the self-titled debut album and "brazenly mashes them up with beats and rhymes that are almost wholly up-to-the-minute hip, encompassing rap, R&B, dancehall, and dubstep". On June 20, 2010, the group released an EP titled Lazers Never Die×Lazers Never Die20 July 2010 · EPSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 5 tracks1Sound of Siren3:502Good Enuff (Cash Flow dub)2:513Bruk Out (Buraka Som Sistema mix)6:224Can’t Stop Now (K.L.A.M. remix)5:175Jump Up (Thom Yorke remix)4:47. It contained two new songs and three remixes, by Thom Yorke and others. Switch provided production for Beyoncé's "Run the World (Girls)", which sampled "Pon de Floor". 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.

2012–15: Free the Universe, Apocalypse Soon EP, and Peace Is the Mission

Major Lazer's live shows previously included hype man Skerrit Bwoy, although he left the group in 2012 to pursue religion. In 2012, Major Lazer began working with 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".
In 2012, Switch left the collaborative effort due to "creative differences" as claimed by Diplo. He departed in late 2011 and was replaced with both Jillionaire and Walshy Fire while Boaz van de Beatz and Jr. Blender featured as an additional producers.
In September 2012, Major Lazer announced that its upcoming album, Free the Universe×Free the Universe10 April 2013 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 14 tracks1You’re No Good4:042Jet Blue Jet3:193Get Free4:504Jah No Partial4:135Wind Up4:286Scare Me3:017Jessica4:148Watch Out for This (Bumaye)4:299Keep Cool4:2210Sweat4:2911Reach for the Stars4:0712Bubble Butt3:4813Mashup the Dance3:4914Playground3:57, would be released on March 12, 2013, on Mad Decent. They also announced Fall 2012 tour dates.
Major Lazer co-produced UK singer Rita Ora's debut album, Ora and with No Doubt for their sixth studio album, Push and Shove. The album's title track features producers Major Lazer and Jamaican reggae artist Busy Signal, and was released as a promotional single in August 2012 reaching no. 22 at Alternative Song Chart Sales.
In February 2013, Major Lazer signed with indie record label Secretly Canadian. At the same time, they announced the new release date, April 16, for their album Free the Universe. They also announced the Free the Universe 2013 World Tour, which ran through the spring of 2013 with support by Dragonette, Angel Haze, and Lunice.

In early March 2015, Diplo confirmed the release of a third Major Lazer album. The first single, "Lean On", was a collaboration with French producer DJ Snake and featured vocals from Danish recording artist MØ. It was released March 2, 2015. The song was first offered to Rihanna and then Nicki Minaj, who both turned it down; however Diplo later mentioned that no one could have done a better job than MØ in the recording. 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, receiving universally positive reviews while reaching over 2 billion views on YouTube, making it the twelfth most viewed video on the site.
Four promotional singles were released; "Roll the Bass×Roll the Bass23 March 2015 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Roll the Bass3:46" March 23, 2015, "Night Riders", a collaboration with Travi$ Scott, 2 Chainz, Pusha T and Mad Cobra, released April 20, 2015, and "Too Original×Too Original11 May 2015 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Too Original3:27", a collaboration with 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 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.
In an interview with inthemix on May 22, 2015, Walshy Fire announced that Major Lazer's fourth studio album would be titled Music Is the Weapon×Music Is the Weapon23 October 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Hell and High Water2:252Sun Comes Up2:403Bam Bam2:344Tiny3:225Oh My Gawd3:006Trigger2:517Lay Your Head on Me3:208Can’t Take It From Me2:569Rave de favela2:3410QueLoQue2:4511Jadi buti2:4212Que calor2:50 and that it would be released late 2015 or early 2016. The album never arrived in 2015 or 2016, though Diplo did reveal on April 27, 2015, during an interview with Belgian radio station Studio Brussel that Major Lazer was working on a new track with Belgian singer Selah Sue, and that it might appear on their next album. Selah Sue herself had confirmed this during an earlier interview with the same radio station on May 4, 2015.
Peace Is The Mission was released on June 1, 2015. 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 chart and received general critical success.
On November 27, 2015, Major Lazer released a re-issue of their third studio album Peace is the Mission×Peace Is the Mission29 May 2015 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube MusicTracklist · 17 tracks · 2 discsDisc 1A1Be Together3:53A2Too Original3:27A3Blaze Up the Fire3:35A4Lean On2:57B5Powerful3:26B6Light It Up3:19B7Roll the Bass3:46B8Night Riders3:53Disc 21Be Together3:552Too Original3:273Blaze Up the Fire3:354Lean On2:575Powerful3:266Light It Up3:197Roll the Bass3:468Night Riders3:539All My Love (remix)3:50, re-titled as Peace is the Mission: Extended. It featured five additional songs, including a collaboration with Dutch electro house DJ MOTi (featuring Ty Dolla $ign, Wizkid, and Kranium), a remix of their previous track "Light It Up×Light It Up1 June 2015 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Light It Up3:18" featuring Nyla and Fuse ODG, and a cover of Frank Ocean's "Lost" featuring previous collaborator and Danish recording artist MØ.
On November 5, 2015, 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 had over 27 million tags in music identification service Shazam in 2015. This, along with Diplo's other collaboration Jack Ü, gave Diplo the greatest number of Shazams in 2015.

2016–19: Know No Better EP, Essentials and Africa Is the Future EP

On July 22, 2016, a new track titled "Cold Water", featuring vocals from 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. On September 30, 2016, "Believer×Believer30 September 2016 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Believer3:43", 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×Music Is the Weapon23 October 2020 · Studio albumSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 12 tracks1Hell and High Water2:252Sun Comes Up2:403Bam Bam2:344Tiny3:225Oh My Gawd3:006Trigger2:517Lay Your Head on Me3:208Can’t Take It From Me2:569Rave de favela2:3410QueLoQue2:4511Jadi buti2:4212Que calor2:50, 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."
On December 6, 2016, Major Lazer released a promotional single for Music Is the Weapon, titled "My Number×My Number29 November 2016 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1My Number3:18". 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." The song contains newly recorded vocals from frontman Toots Hibbert specifically designed for Major Lazer, changing the original lyrics to incorporate the group into the song while keeping the original melody.
Following the success of singles "Cold Water" and "Believer", Major Lazer released their third single titled "Run Up" January 26, 2017. The song features Canadian musician 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 would not be releasing an album after all. However, in 2018, Diplo stated that the album will be released in 2019 and that it will be their last.
On June 1, 2017, 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.
On October 19, 2018, Major Lazer released a compilation album titled Major Lazer Essentials×Major Lazer Essentials19 October 2018 · Album · CompilationSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 25 tracks1Blow That Smoke3:432Lean On2:573Cold Water3:054Light It Up (remix)2:465Know No Better3:466Sua cara2:477Watch Out for This (Bumaye)4:298Powerful3:269Pon de Floor3:3410Hold the Line3:3911Keep It Goin’ Louder3:4712All My Love (remix)3:5013Original Don (Flosstradamus remix)3:5414Get Free4:5015Run Up3:2316Jah No Partial4:1317Be Together3:5318Bubble Butt (remix)3:2819Jet Blue Jet3:1920Come On to Me3:3221Boom3:0622Orkant/Balance Pon It4:4023Loyal3:0624All My Life2:5425Tied Up3:07, a 10-year anniversary record that includes all of Major Lazer's greatest hits, and new songs including "Blow That Smoke", featuring Tove Lo, which was released October 17, 2018.
On March 20, 2019, Major Lazer released an extended play titled Africa Is the Future.

2019–present: Jillionaire's departure and Music Is the Weapon

On May 10, 2019, Major Lazer released the song "Can't Take It from Me×Can't Take It from Me10 May 2019 · SingleSpotify (search)YouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Can't Take It from Me2:56", featuring Skip Marley, as the new lead single for their fourth studio album. In June 2019, Jillionaire left the group to focus on solo projects, and was replaced by American DJ and record producer Ape Drums. The album's second single, "Que Calor", featuring J Balvin and El Alfa, was released September 11, 2019. The album's fifth single, "Lay Your Head on Me×Lay Your Head on Me26 March 2020 · SingleSpotifyYouTube Music (search)Tracklist · 1 track1Lay Your Head On Me3:20", featuring Marcus Mumford of the band Mumford & Sons, was released on March 26, 2020.
In a 2019 interview with Complex Magazine, Diplo revealed that the album would be titled Lazerism, but the name was later changed back to the original title, Music Is the Weapon, and was released on October 23, 2020.
They performed at the closing ceremony of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics at the Verona Arena in Verona, Italy.

Band members

This is a list of the members of Major Lazer.

Current members

Diplo – production (2008–present)
Walshy Fire – production (2011–present)
Ape Drums – production (2019–present)
America Foster – vocals (2025–present)

Former members

Switch – production (2008–2011)
Jillionaire – production (2011–2019)

Television series

A Major Lazer animated series premiered April 16, 2015, on FXX. Diplo serves as co-creator and executive producer of the show.