DJ Rels

by Marisa BrownDJ Rels is yet another moniker for the prolific and imaginative Madlib (aka Otis Jackson, Jr.), although the notes off his 2004 debut album, Theme for a Broken Soul, do credit work to a "J. Relmond." Madlib created DJ Rels after having gone to London's Co-op Club and hearing the broken beat scene there (in fact, he is often compared to West Londoners Seiji and Bugz in the Attic). His first 12" single, "Diggin in Brownswood," came out in 2003 and was widely praised, including by his own Stones Throw label, which now acknowledges DJ Rels to be an alter ego of Madlib.