Eric Alberto-Lopez (born June 28, 1990), known professionally as Ape Drums, is a Mexican-American DJ and record producer. Ape Drums is known for fusing electronic dance music with Caribbean sounds, described by ''Thump'' as "modern

dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots reggae, roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2 ...

music". He is also one third of the DJ/production trio

Major Lazer Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music and DJ trio, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Walshy Fire and Ape Drums. They were founded in 2008 by Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after three years in 2011. He was the ...

, replacing

Jillionaire Christopher Leacock (born 3 April 1978), better known by his stage name Jillionaire, is a Trinidadian DJ and music producer. He is best known for being a former member of the American electronic music group Major Lazer, along with Diplo and W ...

in the summer of 2019.

Career

His debut single "Bashment" was released in 2014 on Slow Roast Records. His

collaboration, "The Way We Do This" (a reimagining of the classic "Bookshelf Riddim"), was played at festivals worldwide by the group, before it was finally released in 2016 on Ape Drums' debut EP for

Mad Decent Mad Decent is an American record label founded by Diplo. The label has helped introduce Brazilian baile funk and Angolan kuduro to clubs around the world. In the early 2010s, it popularized moombahton, a genre of electronic dance music create ...

. Later in 2016, Ape Drums released "LFUTP", featuring the up-and-coming Philadelphia rapper

Lil Uzi Vert Symere Bysil Woods ( ; born July 31, 1995), known professionally as Lil Uzi Vert, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, they gained initial recognition following the release of the commer ...

, on

Fool's Gold Records Fool's Gold Records is an independent record label based in Brooklyn, New York, United States. The label is known for its annual series of Day Off concerts across the US and Canada. History Fool’s Gold Records was founded in 2007 by DJs A-Tr ...

. Ape Drums gained a new level of international fame when his single "Mutant Brain" was used in the 2016 Kenzo world ad campaign, directed by

Spike Jonze Adam Spiegel (born October 22, 1969), known professionally as Spike Jonze (), is an American Filmmaking, filmmaker, actor, musician, and photographer. His work includes films, commercials, music videos, skateboard videos and television. Jonze ...

and starring

Margaret Qualley Sarah Margaret Qualley ( ; born October 23, 1994) is an American actress. A daughter of actress Andie MacDowell, she trained as a ballet dancer in her youth. She made her acting debut in the 2013 drama film ''Palo Alto'' and gained recognitio ...

. The single was then quickly signed and released by

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label based in Santa Monica, California, owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture ...

. On June 1, 2019, at the

Governors Ball Music Festival The Governors Ball Music Festival (commonly known as Governors Ball or Gov Ball) is a multi-day music festival held in New York City. Launched in 2011 by Jordan Wolowitz, Tom Russell, Yoni Reisman, the festival features an array of genres and ...

, it was officially announced that Ape Drums would replace Jillionaire as the new member of Major Lazer. The trio now consists of founding member

Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is a co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer; a member of the supergroup LSD (group), ...

Walshy Fire Leighton Paul Walsh, better known by his stage name Walshy Fire, is an American DJ, MC and record producer. He is part of the dancehall reggae-influenced group Major Lazer alongside fellow DJs Diplo and Ape Drums. Walshy Fire toured with the B ...

and Ape Drums.

Discography

Extended plays

Singles

As artist

As feature artist

Remixes

References

{{Authority control American electronic musicians American DJs Record producers from Texas Mad Decent artists Major Lazer members Electronic dance music DJs 1990 births Living people