A Sample and a Drum Machine

DL Incognito is an acclaimed Canadian underground rapper/producer who began breaking into the national mainstream in the mid-2000s with a pair of Juno Award nominations. Born Oliver Nestor in Ottawa, Ontario, he is of Haitian and French-Canadian heritage and relocated from Ottawa to Toronto. He cited his chief influences as mid-'90s East Coast rappers including O.C., Gang Starr, Nas, the Notorious B.I.G., and Wu-Tang Clan. DL Incognito began his recording career in 2001 with a couple singles ("Street Caviar," "Spit Forever"), a full-length album (Welcome to the Land of the Lost), and a couple mixtapes (Hiphopmix, Vol. 1, Under Pressure, Vol. 1). His output the following year was similar: a couple singles ("Head Rush," "Spit Forever, Pt. 2"), a full-length album (A Sample and a Drum Machine), and a couple mixtapes (Under Pressure, Vol. 2, Underground Hip-Hop, Vol. 1). More singles followed in 2003, including the release of "Spit Forever, Pt. 2" in the United Kingdom on Wolftown Recordings, but it was his 2004 album Life's a Collection of Experiences that firmly established him as an up-and-coming talent to watch. Released on the independent label Nine Planets Hip Hop, Life's a Collection of Experiences was nominated for a 2005 Juno Award in the category of Best Rap Recording. Two years later the follow-up album Organic Music for a Digital World (2006) was nominated for the same award; plus, it was widely distributed via an arrangement between Nine Planets Hip Hop and Universal Music Canada. A Captured Moment in Time (2008) continued DL Incognito's output on the Nine Planets label. ~ Jason Birchmeier