RJD2
Background information
Birth name	Ramble John Krohn
Also known as	RJ
Born	(1976-05-27) May 27, 1976 (age 36) Eugene, Oregon, United States
Origin	Columbus, Ohio, United States
Genres	Hip hop, Electronica, Rock, Trip hop, Lo-fi, Nu jazz
Occupations	Producer, instrumentalist, singer
Years active	1993–present
Labels	Definitive Jux XL
Associated acts	Soul Position
Website	rjselectricalconnections.com

RJD2 (born Ramble John "RJ" Krohn on May 27, 1976) is an American music producer, singer and musician. RJD2 was born in Eugene, Oregon, and raised in Columbus, Ohio. He currently resides in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was signed to the Definitive Jux label where he released two largely instrumental hip hop albums and has produced tracks for many prominent rappers. However, he has now left Def Jux and has signed with XL Recordings.^[1] His 2007 album, The Third Hand, is a striking departure from his usual style and features RJD2 singing and playing instruments on nearly every track.

In 2009, RJD2 established his own label, RJ’s Electrical Connections and reissued three early records as well as a box set. RJD2’s new full length The Colossus was released on January 19, 2010 on his new label, which is distributed by The Orchard.

RJD2's work has been used heavily in media and advertisement, particularly the singles "The Horror" and "Ghostwriter". Since 2007, RJD2's "A Beautiful Mine" has been the theme song for AMC's Mad Men.

Biography [link]

Ramble originally began his career in Columbus, Ohio, DJing in 1993 with a pair of turntables bought from a friend. He went to high school at Fort Hayes Metropolitan Education Center, where his mother taught dance, and graduated in 1994. He claims his name originates from another friend who referred to him as "Rjd2" in his raps, and the name stuck.^[2] Originally working the role of DJ in the Columbus rap group MHz, he later signed to Bobbito Garcia's Fondle 'Em label, releasing the self-proclaimed "mix CD" Your Face or Your Kneecaps. A year later he signed to El-P's record label Definitive Jux and released his solo debut album Deadringer to much acclaim. Rjd2 later collaborated with Columbus rapper Blueprint under the name Soul Position, releasing Unlimited EP in 2002 and 8 Million Stories in 2003. He released his second solo album Since We Last Spoke on Definitive Jux in 2004 and released Soul Position's second album Things Go Better with RJ and AL in 2006 under Rhymesayers Entertainment label. He still continues to produce tracks, working with many independent rappers, such as Copywrite, Cunninlynguists, Cage, DOOM, Diverse and Aceyalone. He contributed a cover of "Airbag" by Radiohead for the 2006 album "Exit Music". 2006 also saw the release of the collaborative record "Magnificent City" with Aceyalone. In 2007, he released the solo album The Third Hand on XL Recordings, which he toured for extensively in '07 and '08.

In 2009, RJD2 established his own label, RJ's Electrical Connections, and reissued Your Face Or Your Knee Caps, The Horror, and Since We Last Spoke as well as a box set entitled “2002-2010”. RJD2’s new full length The Colossus was released on January 19, 2010 on his own label, which is distributed by The Orchard. On January 7, 2010 a music video for "Let There Be Horns" premiered on Pitchfork followed by a video for "A Spaceship For Now" on March 3, 2010, directed by Michael Ebner, via SPIN Magazine. In 2010, RJD2 remixed indie rockers Yo La Tengo's single, Here To Fall for the Here To Fall Remixes EP which included remixes by De La Soul and Pete Rock.

On February 1, 2011, RJD2 released the album We Are The Doorways under the pseudonym The Insane Warrior, on RJ's Electrical Connections.

His latest project is Icebird, an album in collaboration with Aaron Livingston, one of the leaders of a Philadelphia-based band called "The Mean". Their album Abandoned Lullaby was released October 11, 2011. Livingston previously appeared on "Guns Are Drawn" from The Roots album The Tipping Point and appeared on "Sleep" from The Roots recent album, Undun.^[3][4]

Discography [link]

Main albums [link]

• Deadringer (2002)
• Since We Last Spoke (2004) U.S. #128^[5]
• The Third Hand (2007) U.S. #190
• The Colossus (2010)

EPs [link]

• The Horror (2003)
• The Mashed Up Mixes (2004)
• The Tin Foil Hat (2009)
• The Glow Remixes (2011)

Mix albums [link]

• Your Face or Your Kneecaps (2001)
• Loose Ends (2003)
• Lobster and Scrimp (mix)| Lobster and Scrimp (2003)
• Constant Elevation (2005)

Instrumental albums [link]

• 8 Million Stories Instrumentals (2003)
• In Rare Form: Unreleased Instrumentals (2004)
• Magnificent City (2006)
• The Third Hand (2007)
• Things Go Better with RJ and AL (2007)
• Inversions of the Colossus (2010)

Singles [link]

• "Rain"
• "Pilot study (Genital Edit)"
• "Here's What's Left"
• "Let the Good Times Roll"
• "June" (w/ Copywrite)
• "1976"
• "Through the Walls"
• "The Horror b/w Final Frontier (Remix)" (w/ Blueprint, Vast Aire, El-P, Aesop Rock & Murs)
• "Ghostwriter (Cat-Gut Edit)"
• "Exotic Talk"
• "Counselling" (w/MHz)
• "True Confessions"
• "Get Off My Spaceship Bitch"
• "You Never Had It So Good"
• "Final Frontier"
• "Holy Toledo"
• "Hondo" (w/ Nyles Sanna and Delicious Memories)
• "Christmas Eve Montage" (Nightmare Revisited, 2008)
• "Devil Inside (RJD2 Remix)" - featured on Utada's single, Devil Inside

Collaborations [link]

• MHz - Table Scraps (2001)
• Pryor Convictions - The Dirty Birds (RJD2 & Poppa Hop)
• Unlimited EP - Soul Position (RJD2 & Blueprint) (2002)
• I Really Like Your Def Jux Baby Tee - Definitive Jux Presents II (RJD2) (2002)
• 8 Million Stories - Soul Position (RJD2 & Blueprint) (2003)
• Rjd2 Meets Diplo from Hollertronix - Diplo (RJD2 & Diplo) (2004)
• Haul & Mason 11th Hour Mega Mix - (Haul & Mason & RJD2)
• Magnificent City - Aceyalone (Aceyalone & RJD2) (2006)
• Things Go Better with RJ and AL - Soul Position (RJD2 & Blueprint) (2006)
• The Last Sunshine - Pigeon John (featuring RJD2 & J-Live)
• "Christmas Eve Montage" (Nightmare Revisited)

References [link]

External links [link]

• rj's electrical connections official website
• RJD2 on MySpace
• RJD2 Interview with Jarrod Dicker (2010)
• Definitive Jux website
• Caught In The Crossfire Interview
• Synthesis Magazine Interview
• JamBase: Got To Do What You Got To Do - Interview
• RJD2 Discography on Discogs.com
• RJD2 Live at SXSW 2007 on 89.3 The Current
• RJD2 Playlist from The Breezeblock on BBC Radio 1
• "Droid and Bass: RJD2" --interview with starwars.com
• Indiepit Article
• Full and Deep Radio Interview 2010
• Interview with WhoSampled.com
• "RJD2's The Colossus" at Bluefat