Johnson Barnes (born April 15, 1983), better known by his stage name Blu, is an American West Coast rapper and producer from Los Angeles, California. Following the success of his 2007 debut album, Below the Heavens, Blu was named HipHopDX's "Rookie of the Year". Since then, Blu has released six full-length albums. In September 2011, he released the album Open, his 4th solo project. His fifth solo studio album Good to Be Home was released on May 20, 2014 by Nature Sounds.
Otis Jackson Jr. (born October 24, 1973), known professionally as Madlib, is an American DJ, music producer, multi-instrumentalist, and rapper. One of the most prolific and critically acclaimed hip hop producers of the 2000s, he is known for his collaborations with numerous hip hop artists under a variety of pseudonyms, including with MF DOOM (as Madvillain), J Dilla (as Jaylib), and Freddie Gibbs (as MadGibbs). Madlib has described himself as a "DJ first, producer second, and MC last," and has done several projects as a DJ, mixer, or remixer.