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Writer's picture Andrew Kettle

DJ Unknown Drops his Brand New Studio Album "Leaving Earth"

“Leaving Earth” is more than an album—it's an immersive experience. DJ Unknown has teamed up with Trinumedia to merge CGI visuals and animation with the music, crafting a sci-fi space opera that tells the story of leaving a dystopian Earth in search of meaning. This multimedia collaboration brings the album’s futuristic themes to life in a bold, cinematic way. 


DJ Unknown's distinctive style—described as “soulful and harmonious” (DJBooth.net) and packed with “pulsing, percussive dub reggae/rap headbangers” (NOW Magazine)—has earned critical acclaim from outlets like The Source and HipHopCanada. He has played at top-tier festivals, including NXNE and Wakestock, and opened for major acts like Brother Ali, Pete Rock & CL Smooth, and De La Soul. 


With "Leaving Earth," DJ Unknown is set to captivate audiences through a visionary fusion of music, visuals, and storytelling, marking a new chapter in his already storied career. 


DJ Unknown said:

"In general, I started this record as an attempt to pay homage to Dj Shadow’s classic album “Entroducing.”


I spent 6 months listening to records and cataloguing samples, as I wanted to produce a full length, sample based album that had many moods and arrangements.


After 6 months of digging in the crates, I started working on the songs.  I produced 3 beats over a weekend that were mostly one section loops, and that's when I got stuck.  All the samples I catalogued still sounded dope on their own, but I had trouble visualising how to string any of them together within a single song to create different arrangements.



One weekend, after sitting on those beats for about a week, I decided to take a fresh approach that I hadnt done before. I loaded up an electric guitar VST and jammed some guitar riffs on some open drums on song 1 (Farewell).  What happened next caught me off guard, as I these riffs that just started pouring out of me.


Over the course of the next 2 weeks I wrote the ENTIRE Leaving Earth album using a blend of samples and VST instruments.


It was a true moment of inspiration, all the music I loved outside of hip hop was pouring through me and manifesting in this album. All the while, I started forming this story narrative about a DJ who feels trapped on earth, and longs to leave the planet to explore the wonders of the universe.


I had the whole album done, and started playing it for my band mates - and their response was universal “This music is fantastic dude, but you gotta let us play the rock arrangements as a band”


And thus, the final interaction of this album was born - a hybrid of sample based hip hop with live band hard rock, with a DJ as the lead.  I am not sure there’s anything really like it out there, but in spirit, I think its still a direct descendent of Entroducing."



Leaving Earth is out now



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