Los Angeles native
Valentino Khan produces numerous styles of EDM and hip-hop, including trap, hardstyle, future house, and moombahton. First gaining notice in 2012 with his productions for rappers like
T.I. and
B.o.B, he soon earned support from several major EDM DJs and released material on
Diplo's Mad Decent label,
Skrillex's OWSLA (including 2014 EP
In Khan We Trust), and
Steve Aoki's Dim Mak. While much of his material tends to fall on the harder-edged side of the EDM spectrum, he's also released more accessible dance-pop tunes such as "Gold," a 2017 collaboration with
Sean Paul.
Valentino Khan's name appeared on a variety of commercial rap and EDM releases beginning in 2012, a year in which several of his remixes were officially released. Most notably, he remixed Gent & Jawns' "Holler," issued on Mad Decent offshoot Jeffree's. He and
Will Bailey collaborated on a single, "Rukus," released that year on the same label.
Khan also produced "Play for Keeps," a trunk-rattling album cut from
B.o.B's
Strange Clouds, as well as
T.I.'s "Loud Mouth" (featuring
2 Chainz).
The producer and DJ's name was hard to miss for the next few years.
Khan worked with
Diplo's
Major Lazer, co-producing the
Bruno Mars-featuring single "Bubble Butt." He remixed tracks by
Skylar Grey,
the Bloody Beetroots (featuring
Paul McCartney), and
M.I.A., among many others. He also released bruising original material of his own on
Skrillex's OWSLA, starting with 2014's
In Khan We Trust EP and
Steve Aoki's Dim Mak ("TNT," with
Tittsworth). The 2015 single "Deep Down Low" became a hit with DJs, and reached the Belgian singles chart. In 2016,
Khan teamed up with
Skrillex for the trap single "Slam Dunk" (featuring
Kstylis). The next year, he released the solo singles "Hello" and "Pump" as well as "Gold," which featured
Sean Paul. His 2018 singles "Lick It" and "Feel Your Love" were issued by Mad Decent.
Khan's remixes that year included the tracks "One Kiss" by
Calvin Harris and
Dua Lipa; "One Kiss" from
Diplo,
French Montana, and
Lil Pump (featuring
Zhavia Ward); and "Mad Love" by
Sean Paul and
David Guetta (featuring
Becky G). In 2019,
Khan released the singles "Pony" and "Novocaine" (with
Kayzo). ~ Andy Kellman