Today, Diplo, as one-half of dancehall duo Major Lazer, released his second album, Free the Universe. The record, which they've been teasing for nearly three years (though to be fair, they did deal with some restructuring after founding member Switch left the group) boasts an incredible lineup of featured guests, including Shaggy, Wyclef, Tyga, and Flux Pavilion.

After seeing Diplo and new partner Jillionare tear down Coachella this past weekend, it's really amazing to see how far he's come in his (roughly) ten year music career, if you consider his now-famous Hollertronix party in Philly his jumping off point. Not only is Diplo a cultural sponge - he made a feature documentary about the baile funk movement in Brazil - he's a musical virtuoso who's as comfortable working with Bruno Mars as he is producing for Snoop Lion.

One thing that's remained constant in Diplo's trajectory is his love for hip-hop. From his early days as a DJ, he wasn't shy about including trap music in his sets before it was cool to do so, and over the years as he's become a respected producer, he's been involved in the making of some of hip-hop's most popular hits and remixes.

To celebrate the release of Free the Universe, we decided to take a look back at Diplo's best hip-hop moments. And with the Snoop album dropping next week, and Diplo rumored to be working with 2 Chainz, we're sure there are many more to come.

Hollertronix - Never Scared Mixtape (2003)

Diplo got his start as one half of Philadelphia DJ duo Hollertronix, who blended early iterations of trap music with sped-up 128 BPM dance music. This mix not only cemented their spot as Philly's most ahead-of-the-curve DJs but also got their unique style out to the world in a major way.

FabricLive.24 Mix (2005)

Famous London club Fabric has made a name for itself by inviting the world's best DJs to its stage for recorded sets that are eventually released as part of the FabricLive series. Diplo said of his mix, "I just wanted to do as a history of the electro/Miami bass sound, but throwing all sorts of things in there." The result features appearances from Pitbull, Killer Mike and Ludacris, and as a whole falls somewhere between funky hip-hop and straight up techno. It's a party starter.

Spank Rock - "Put That Pussy On Me" Diplo Tonite Remix (2008)

Indie art rapper Spank Rock had his first-ever performances at Diplo's Hollertronix parties. To celebrate the youngn's ascent, Diplo remixed Spank's sexy "Put that Pussy On Me" for his own Decent Work, Decent Pay album.

Paper Route Gangstaz - Fear and Loathing in Hunts Vegas Mixtape (2008)

In 2008, Diplo and DJ Benzi co-presented a remix mixtape of Hunstville, Alabama natives Paper Route Gangstaz, titled Fear and Loathing in Hunts Vegas. The supremely underrated record stems from a strange idea, but the combination of the gruff Southern rappers' vocals over Diplo's eclectic soundscapes is weirdly great.

Santogold - "Unstoppable" (2008)

Before Santigold became a global pop phenomenon, Diplo worked with her on her self-titled debut, producing the Caribbean-influenced "Unstoppable." Not long after its release, Drake snatched the record and got a Lil Wayne feature for it, and included it on his So Far Gone mixtape.

Kanye West - "Flashing Lights" (Diplo Remix) (2009)

On Decent Work, Decent Pay, Diplo tongue-in-cheek joked about being a world-touring DJ and put together a diverse compilation of remixes of songs by everyone from Hot Chip to CSS to Peter Bjorn and John. The album's best song, though, was a remix of Kanye's "Flashing Lights," a disco-infused take on the emotional single.

Diplo Presents: Free Gucci Mixtape (2010)

When Gucci Mane went to prison in September of 2011 after a string of run-ins with the law, the rap world lamented, but Diplo took the loss of Gucci as an excuse to call upon his closest DJ friends and revisit and celebrate Gucci's Cold War mixtape series. The result is a trappy, dancey exploration through the mind of Gucci Mane, and is incredible from start to finish.

Snoop Dogg ft. Kid Cudi - "That Tree" (2010)

This cut off Snoop's More Malice marks the first time Diplo was officially commissioned to produce a record for a major rapper. "Tree" is a groovy banger, in no small party because of Cudi's catchy hook.

Tiesto vs. Diplo - "C'Mon" ft. Busta Rhymes (2010)

In this unlikely collaboration, a burgeoning Diplo teamed with the world's premier DJ, Tiesto, for a face-off record that could easily cause a dancey riot in an eager festival crowd of thousands. Busta jumps on the track and provides his signature rapid-fire bars, making this a seamless hip-hop/festival house music medley.

Chris Brown - "Look At Me Now" ft. Busta Rhymes & Lil Wayne (2011)

Despite your feelings about Chris Brown, this song was so damn good you couldn't help singing and rapping along to it whenever you heard it. Diplo's minimalist production here is outrageous but genius - all he does is mesh enormous drums with a few filtered synth lines, allowing Busta and Wayne to rock undisturbed, and the result is a certified banger that has over 210 million YouTube plays to date.

Lil Wayne - "Two Shots" (2011) 

Diplo scored a bonus cut on Wayne's Tha Carter IV, but honestly this should've been on the actual album. The slow, trippy beat showcases the confident, drugged-out Weezy that we all love.

Travis Porter - "Wobble" (2012)

Diplo continued to expand his hip-hop portfolio with this collaboration with Atlanta party-rocking trio Travis Porter. It sounds slightly similar to "Two Shots," but honestly the boys of Travis Porter clearly know how to rock on a Diplo beat way better than Wayne does.

Iggy Azalea - Trap Gold Mixtape (2012) 

This 26-minute mix is by far Iggy's best music to date, and features Diplo (who executive produced the project) embracing the re-emerging trap movement alongside production from Flosstradamus and Bro Safari.

Azealia Banks - "Fuck Up the Fun" (2012) 

After Azealia Banks put out a massive hit with "212," Diplo hit her up and put together this drum line-inspired anthem. Azealia gets super ignorant here, but she flows like a beast and gets the world excited for more Diplo/Azealia collabs. Though the two appeared on the cover of Vibe together a few months after this song's release, they unfortunately haven't put out new music since "Fuck Up."

Wale - "The One Eyed Kitten Song" ft. Travis Porter (2012) 

While Diplo and Wale's first collaboration didn't work out too well - 2012's "Slight Work" was a sub-par bust - this cut off Wale's Folarin mixtape is awesome. The DC spitter doesn't get too deep or introspective here, and he works well with Travis Porter, who again show up on a Diplo track to flex their lyrical abilities.

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