Dijon Isaiah McFarlane (born June 5, 1990), known professionally as Mustard (formerly DJ Mustard), is an American record producer and DJ. A frequent collaborator of fellow California-based artists YG, Ty Dolla Sign and Kendrick Lamar, he began his career producing singles and albums for both rappers, and has since done so for other prominent acts in hip hop and R&B. He first saw recognition for his work on Tyga's 2011 single "Rack City".
Mustard's production style has been described as up-tempo and club-oriented, but also rudimentary and melodic. Most of his works begin or end with the producer tag "Mustard on the beat, hoe!"—a voice sample of YG (who says it at the end of "I'm Good", one of their early collaborations)—and include heavy use of synthesizers, claps, and frequent, reverberated use of a "hey!" voice clip.[4] He has been credited as influential in the sound of both mainstream and West Coast hip hop productions during the early-to-mid 2010s, a style he refers to as "ratchet music".[11]
Mustard signed with Republic Records and Roc Nation to release his debut studio album, 10 Summers (2014), which narrowly entered the Billboard 200; his second album, Cold Summer (2016), failed to chart. He then signed with Interscope Records to release his third album, Perfect Ten (2019), which peaked within the top ten of the chart and spawned the Billboard Hot 100-top 40 singles "Ballin'" (featuring Roddy Ricch) and "Pure Water" (with Migos). The success of Kendrick Lamar's 2024 single, "Not Like Us"—his first number-one production on the chart—foresaw the release of Mustard's fourth album, Faith of a Mustard Seed (2024). He founded the record label 10 Summers Records in 2014, through which he has signed musical acts including British singer Ella Mai, as well as fellow California-based artists Kiana Ledé and RJMrLA.[12][13] As of 2024, he announced his upcoming fifth studio album Perfect Eleven as a sequel to his third album Perfect Ten (2019).
Early life
McFarlane was born in Los Angeles, California, to Jamaican parents. In a 2013 interview with The Fader magazine, he stated that his father was deported to Jamaica when he was young, though they still contact each other.[14]
When McFarlane was 11 years old, his uncle, Tyrei Lacy, who was both a parental figure and a DJ, let him DJ at a family party. Soon thereafter he was spinning records at parties as a student at Dorsey High.[15] He began DJing more as he got older, and became much more skilled at the craft which led to him DJing at the local clubs.
He acquired his DJ name from the condiment Dijon mustard because his first name is also Dijon.
Career
A DJ Mustard concert
In an interview with Sway's Universe, DJ Mustard described his business relationship with West coast rapper YG. Since YG's second mixtapeThe Real 4Fingaz,[16] he has produced on all of his mixtapes. "I started making beats for YG; he was one [of] the first people to do my beats. I started with him, so for us to do a mixtape was easy. We created this dancing sound. I feel like we owed it to the streets and we're not stopping."[5] DJ Mustard has produced singles by YG such as "Bitches Ain't Shit" featuring rappers Tyga and Nipsey Hussle, and "You Broke" also featuring Nipsey Hussle. During 2010, DJ Mustard released an unofficial compilation album with various artists through the label Thump Records that was called Let's Jerk named after the street dance called jerking in Los Angeles.[17]
During late 2011, DJ Mustard produced Tyga's third single "Rack City" from his second album Careless World: Rise of the Last King. The song was released in December 2011, and peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, number 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and number 2 on the Hot Rap Songs chart.[18] It was also certified 2× platinum by the RIAA.[19] According to Mustard, the beat for the song was originally for YG. YG told Mustard that Tyga needed a beat, so he sent the beat to Tyga.[5] DJ Mustard's career was given a huge blast from the song. He also produced two tracks from Tyga's mixtape Well Done 3, the third installment of his Well Done series and his song "Hit Em Up" featuring rapper Jadakiss from his third album Hotel California, released on April 9, 2013.
During 2012, DJ Mustard produced Atlanta rapper 2 Chainz's song "I'm Different" that was released as the third single from his major debut album Based on a T.R.U. Story on November 8. The song charted at number 6 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart[20] and was certified gold by the RIAA, selling over 500,000 copies digitally.[21] Also later in 2012, DJ Mustard produced the song R.I.P. by Atlanta rapper Young Jeezy that was released as the lead single from his twelfth mixtape It's Tha World on February 5, 2013. The song features 2 Chainz, making this the second time he has rapped over Mustard's beats since "I'm Different". The song charted at number 17 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[22] Mustard has also produced tracks on rapper Bow Wow's seventh album Underrated such as "We In Da Club" which was released as the second single from that album. However, as stated by Bow Wow in 2012, the album has been indefinitely been delayed and he is no longer focusing on it.[3][23]
On June 3, 2013, DJ Mustard released his official debut mixtape Ketchup. The mixtape contained guest appearances from artists such as Lil Snupe, YG, Ty$, Joe Moses, Kid Ink, Nipsey Hussle, Casey Veggies, Ca$h Out, Clyde Carson, Dorrough, Dom Kennedy, and Lil Jon.[24] Later in June, Mustard produced Atlanta rapper B.o.B's song HeadBand featuring 2 Chainz, which was released as the second single from his third studio album Underground Luxury. The song has charted at number 21 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[25] On September 17, DJ Mustard produced West coast rapper Kid Ink's song "Show Me" featuring Chris Brown, released as the first single from his upcoming second studio album My Own Lane. The single peaked at number 1 on the U.S. Rhythmic Billboard Chart. On September 17, 2013, DJ Mustard produced YG's mega-anthem "My Nigga" for his debut studio album "My Krazy Life", which peaked at number 5 on the U.S. Rhythmic Billboard chart.
On November 18, 2013, DJ Mustard announced that he had signed to Jay-Z's Roc Nation as an artist, and revealed plans to release his own studio album.[26] On December 18, 2013, he was named the runner-up for producer of the year by HipHopDX.[27]
On March 11, 2014, DJ Mustard produced Kid Ink's "Main Chick" also featuring Chris Brown for his second studio album My Own Lane. It peaked at number 3 on the U.S. Rhythmic Billboard chart.
In 2016, worked with Trea Fittz on his debut album, released October 11. He released "Don't Hurt Me" with Jeremih and Nicki Minaj on his album Cold Summer.[28] The album included long-time collaborators YG and Ty Dolla Sign.[28] The album also included Rick Ross, Young Jeezy, K Camp, and more. It was released on September 30, 2016.[28]
On June 28, 2019, Mustard's third album, Perfect Ten was released, and spawned the Grammy-nominated single, "Ballin'.
In 2024, he contributed to the production of the Kendrick Lamar diss track, "Not Like Us", released as part of the Drake–Kendrick Lamar feud.[29] He also co-produced two tracks on Lamar's 2024 album GNX, those being "hey now" and "TV Off". Lamar's screaming of Mustard's name on "tv off" became an internet meme.[30]
Mustard's production style has been described as an up-tempo, radio-friendly, club-oriented, catchy hip hop style which he calls "ratchet music".[5][6][7][8] Mustard's body of work has been recognized by critics as sonically cohesive and recognizable in that many of his tracks have recurring, identifiable motifs.[31] Most apparent is his producer signature "Mustard on that beat, ho!" which prefaces the beat drop in many of his songs.[31] This signature is often strategically placed to span the third and fourth counts of the measure preceding the song's drop to make it more catchy. On a compositional level, however, Mustard's motifs also include: an ambient chant of "Hey!" on the off-beats in the background of his music;[31] the emphasized, minimalist bass synth opening to many songs (most notably on "My Nigga", "R.I.P.", and "Rack City"),[32]808 kicks[33][34][35] and the use of crisp hand-claps and snap-snares.[36]
Mustard uses the music production software Reason, first using 5, 6 and currently using 6.5. In an interview with The Fader magazine he stated, "With this ratchet music, I'm trying to create my own sound. I want to make this to where it can't leave, this is something that everybody's gonna get used to. Like how everybody got used to Lil Jon or Luke. I don't want it to be something that comes and goes, I want it to be something that's here forever like a real culture."[3]
As a result of the recognizably and commonality between many of Mustard's chart-topping singles, a number of artists who employ production similar to DJ Mustard's have been criticized for lack of originality and plagiarism. In a July 2014 interview with Tim Westwood, the rapper YG, whose album My Krazy Life was mostly produced by Mustard, stated that Iggy Azalea's song "Fancy" 'jocked' Mustard's style.[37]
Like many of Mustard's songs, the song includes a minimalist G-funk style synth and samples a layered "Hey" voice chant. He has been compared to rap producers like Dr Dre and many old rappers from the golden age of hip hop.
Personal life
Mustard started dating Chanel Thierry in 2009 and they were married on October 10, 2020.[38] They have three children together.[39] They separated in 2022 and divorced in 2023.[40] He filed for sole custody of their children in 2024, after which she accused him of attempting to "destroy [her] name" in an effort to avoid paying child support.[41]
^Turner, Nathaneal (November 20, 2013). "Interview: DJ Mustard LA's club king makes friends in New York". The Fader magazine. Retrieved May 20, 2019. He was like my father figure, because my dad got deported when I was young. My dad lives in Jamaica now. I talk to him sometimes.
^Brown, August (October 22, 2014). "DJ Mustard sets the beat for mainstream hip-hop and R&B". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved May 9, 2024. Mustard is a born DJ, in the literal sense. He got his start spinning records at parties as a student at Dorsey High.
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