MTV Artist To Watch: Dillon Francis

EDM king Dillon Francis is MTV's latest Artist to Watch.

Meet Dillon Francis: Sure, you could call him "just another EDM/remix DJ," but that wouldn't be accurate. Turns out Dillon's also a mega-talented visual artist (he started out dabbling in every art medium from printmaking to photography to graphic design), AND he's a musician in his own right.

Yep, Dillon remixes ultra-famous songs (uh, hello Justin Timberlake's "Suit & Tie"!), DJs, creates original work, helped found two little movements called "moombahton" (a fusion of house and reggaeton) and "moombahcore" (a variation of moombahton only infusing other weird phrases like gabber, breakcore, techstep, and brostep), AND he was our special correspondent at last spring's Hangout Fest! #BestFriends!

Read more about Dillon Francis after the jump.

Born and raised in L.A., Dillon Francis' music career got off the ground in 2010 after teaming up with fellow producer Diplo for "Que Que." Following that, Dillon released one of his first moombahton tracks, "Masta Blasta," and dropped his first EP, Swashbuckler, in 2011.

And, in the vein of Matthew Wilder's "Break My Stride," Dillon went on to drop a series of EPs in 2011: Westside!, Ultra, Bossa Rocka, AND Que Que (Remixes). Later, in 2012, Dillon unveiled Something, Something, Awesome. via Skrillex's (yep, Skrillex!) OWSLA Records.

Like we were saying, though, the amazing thing about Dillon is his ability to create original tracks as well as remix practically every musician ever -- they don't even have to be electronic! In addition to his own material ("Without You," "Bootleg Fireworks (Burning Up)," "Messages," etc.), Dillon's remixed Cher Lloyd's "Swagger Jagger," Calvin Harris' "Feel So Close," Passion Pit's "Carried Away," and even Death Cab For Cutie's "Underneath the Sycamore." Among MANY others.

These days, Dillon's releasing original videos (see: the emoji-heavy "Messages" and dancefloor-beckoning "Bootleg Fireworks") and is working on his debut studio album, slated for a 2014 release. I know what you must be thinking -- FINALLY! But in case you can't wait till 2014 (who can?), The MTV Artist To Watch is currently headlining his "Wurld Turr" across the U.S. and Canada, with dates spanning from September to February. I know, I know: Get yer glow sticks out!

+ Download Dillon Francis' "Without You."

+ Watch Dillon Francis perform "Without You."

+ Watch Dillon Francis perform "Bootleg Fireworks."

Photo credit: Mad Decent

via Rachel Brodsky