View source for DJ Lethal

{{Short description|Latvian-American disc jockey}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{BLP sources|date=January 2021}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name              = DJ Lethal
| image             = DJ Lethal performing with Limp Bizkit 2019 (Quintin Soloviev).jpg
| image_upright     = 1.2
| landscape         = yes
| caption           = DJ Lethal performing with [[Limp Bizkit]] at Québec Agora Fest 2019
| birth_name        = Leors Dimants
| alias             = 
| birth_date        = {{Birth date and age|1972|12|18}}
| birth_place       = [[Riga]], [[Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic|Latvian SSR]], Soviet Union
| genre             = {{flatlist|
* [[Hip-hop]]
* [[Electronic music|electronic]]
* [[nu metal]]
}}
| instruments       = {{flatlist|
* Keyboards
* turntables
* sampler
}}
| occupation        = {{flatlist|
* [[Turntablism|Turntablist]]
* music producer
}}
| years_active      = 1989–present
| label             = {{flatlist|
* [[Tommy Boy Records|Tommy Boy]]
* [[Atlantic Records|Atlantic]]
* [[Interscope Records|Interscope]]
* [[Geffen Records|Geffen]]
* {{nowrap|Lethal Dose}}
}}
| current_member_of = {{flatlist|
* [[Limp Bizkit]]
* [[La Coka Nostra]]
}}
| past_member_of    = [[House of Pain]]
}}

'''Leor Dimant''' ({{langx|lv|Leors Dimants}}, {{langx|ru|Леор Григорьевич Димант}}, {{IPA|ru|lʲɪˈor grʲɪˈɡorʲjɪvʲɪd͡ʑ‿dʲɪˈmant|}}; born December 18, 1972), better known as '''DJ Lethal''', is a [[Latvian Americans|Latvian-American]] [[Turntablism|turntablist]] and producer and is best known as a member of the groups [[House of Pain]] and [[Limp Bizkit]].

== Early life ==
Leor Dimant was born to a [[History of the Jews in Latvia|Latvian-Jewish]] family in [[Riga]], when it was part of the [[Soviet Union]]. His first contact with music was through his father Grigory "Grisha" Dimant (1951–2007),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://myspace.com/djlethal|title=DJ LETHAL $-LCN-$ &#124; Listen and Stream Free Music, Albums, New Releases, Photos, Videos|website=Myspace.com|access-date=July 20, 2025}}</ref> who performed in a rock band with his friends as a guitarist.

In 1976 when Dimant was four, he and his family emigrated to [[Italy]], where they remained for a year until they obtained a [[Travel visa|visa]]. His parents chose to move to the New York area. There, his father performed in various Russian clubs and restaurants, mostly in [[Brighton Beach]].

Dimant and his parents lived in [[Jersey City, New Jersey]] for some time. They moved to [[Los Angeles]] in 1987, where his father got a job at a new Russian restaurant. His first introduction to hip-hop was in Jersey City, when his school held a talent show with several students performing a rap song, and Dimant was amazed. Once he moved to Los Angeles, he quickly became interested in [[hip hop]] culture, including [[breakdancing]] and [[graffiti]]. Before learning to DJ, he started off as a [[Beatboxing|beatboxer]]. He later practiced DJing using his friend's [[Phonograph|turntables]] and [[DJ mixer|mixer]].<ref name="DJT" />

== Career ==
=== Everlast and House of Pain ===
In the late 1980s, Dimant became friends with a rapper who, at that time, dated rapper [[Everlast]]. When Everlast was about to go on a European tour with [[Ice-T]] and Rhyme Syndicate, he mentioned that he would like to hear Dimant beatbox, and they met. Everlast was impressed by his beatboxing skills, and he invited Dimant to be his DJ on the upcoming tour. Dimant, who was only 16 at the time, decided to do so and dropped out of school.

After the tour, in 1990, Everlast's [[Forever Everlasting|first solo album]], including a track featuring scratching by Dimant, was released to both critical and commercial failure.

Following that, Everlast and Dimant, now known as DJ Lethal, decided to start a group, and with the addition of Everlast's high school friend [[Danny Boy (rapper)|Danny Boy]], [[House of Pain]] was formed. The group's 1992 [[House of Pain (album)|self-titled debut album]] went multi-platinum and is best known for the [[DJ Muggs]]-produced hit single "[[Jump Around]]" and the DJ Lethal-produced "[[Shamrocks and Shenanigans (Boom Shalock Lock Boom)|Shamrocks and Shenanigans]]". [[Same as It Ever Was|A second album]] was released in 1994.

In 1996, on the eve of the release of the group's third album, produced by Everlast and DJ Lethal, things began to go sour. DJ Lethal claims it started to become a hassle, and simply was not fun anymore. The day the album was released, the group broke up.

=== Limp Bizkit ===
On House of Pain's final tour, [[Limp Bizkit]], an up-and-coming band from [[Jacksonville, Florida]] was hired as a supporting act. DJ Lethal and the band became friends, and later, Limp Bizkit hired him to do some work on their recordings, eventually asking him if he wanted to join them. DJ Lethal accepted the offer, and the band became one of the most popular [[nu metal]] groups during the late 90s and early 2000s, selling more than 40 million records worldwide.
[[File:DJ Lethal performing with Limp Bizkit at KROQ Weenie Roast 2019 (Quintin Soloviev).jpg|thumb|DJ Lethal performing with Limp Bizkit at KROQ Weenie Roast 2019]]
DJ Lethal wanted his contributions to the band recordings to be more original than typical DJs in bands at the time. "There are a couple of other rock bands that have DJs and they're just like, [mimics a chirp scratch] 'Hey, what's going on? Let me spin around a couple of times and show off that I can spin two records.' So I definitely knew I didn't want to be just another DJ in a rock band. I wanted to be another instrument—a part of the band, like another guitar player."<ref name="DJT">{{Cite web|url=http://www.djtimes.com/original/djmag/jan00/Lethal.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061021013529/http://www.djtimes.com/original/djmag/jan00/Lethal.htm|url-status=dead|title=DJ Lethal (Jan. 2000)|archive-date=October 21, 2006|website=Djtimes.com|access-date=July 20, 2025}}</ref>

On March 17, 2018, five years after his departure from the band, DJ Lethal reunited with Limp Bizkit on stage during a concert in New Zealand. He later announced through [[Twitter]] that he had officially rejoined Limp Bizkit.<ref>{{cite tweet|number=974961460991291393|user=djlethal|title=It's pretty official. Nice to be...|date=March 17, 2018}}</ref>

=== Features ===
Besides the work with his groups, DJ Lethal is producing records in his [[Hollywood, Los Angeles|Hollywood]] based studio, working for artists such as Scott Harris, and is also preparing his long-delayed solo album, which is set to feature [[will.i.am]], [[Ol' Dirty Bastard]], [[Chester Bennington]], [[Kurupt]], [[Cypress Hill]], [[Redman (rapper)|Redman]], [[Tha Alkaholiks]], [[Adil Omar]], [[Rock (rapper)|Rock]] of [[Heltah Skeltah]], [[Pharoahe Monch]], [[Chino XL]], [[Diamond D]], [[Dilated Peoples]], [[Hitmaka|Yung Berg]], [[Method Man]], [[Streetlife (rapper)|Streetlife]], [[Talib Kweli]], [[Bun B]] and more, along with his [[La Coka Nostra]] bandmates.

=== Career timeline ===
* House Of Pain (1991-1996)
* La Coka Nostra (2006-present)
* Limp Bizkit (1996-2012, 2012-2013, 2018-present)

== Personal life ==
In a 2009 interview with the Latvian newspaper ''[[Diena]]'', Dimant professed to still feeling "Latvian" despite his many years in the USA. This connection stems from the fact that he was born there, and has a grandmother, other relatives, and many friends of the family there. He mentions [[Laima Vaikule]] as an important family friend who encouraged him to maintain contacts with the country of his birth.

During his early years growing up in Riga, Dimant spoke mainly [[Russian language|Russian]] at home and at school. He says his parents could speak [[Latvian language|Latvian]], but did not want their son to learn it, so that they could have private conversations without him being able to understand. Nevertheless, Dimant can still recall several phrases in Latvian, such as "''Nevajag viņam!''" ('He doesn't need [it] !').<ref>{{cite news |first=Džeina |last=Tamuļeviča |author2=Tamuļevičs, Dainis |author3=Baņģieris, Artis  |title=VIDEO: Limp Bizkit mūziķis DJ Lethal joprojām jūtas latvietis |url=http://www.diena.lv/diena-tv/izklaide-makslas/video-limp-bizkit-muzikis-dj-lethal-joprojam-jutas-latvietis-668439 |language=lv, en |work=[[Diena]] |date=May 19, 2009 |access-date=May 20, 2009}} Note that the interviewer incorrectly interprets that by the phrase "''Nevajag viņam!''", Dimant means to say "''{{lang|lv|Nestāsti viņam!}}''" ('Don't tell him!').</ref>

== Partial discography ==
{{further|House of Pain|Limp Bizkit}}
* [[Everlast]] – ''[[Forever Everlasting]]'' (1990)
* [[Funkdoobiest]] – ''[[Which Doobie U B?]]'' (1993)
* [[Sugar Ray]] – ''[[Lemonade and Brownies]]'' (1995)
* [[Funkdoobiest]] – ''[[Brothas Doobie]]'' (1995)
* [[Sepultura]] – ''[[Roots (Sepultura album)|Roots]]'' (1996)
* [[Biohazard (band)|Biohazard]] – ''[[Mata Leão]]'' (1996)
* [[Tura Satana (band)|Tura Satana]] (aka Manhole) – ''[[All Is Not Well]]'' (1996)
* [[Soulfly]] – ''[[Soulfly (Soulfly album)|Soulfly]]'' (1998)
* [[Cradle of Thorns|Videodrone]] – ''[[Videodrone (album)|Videodrone]]'' (1999)
* [[Powerman 5000]] – ''[[Tonight the Stars Revolt!]]'' – [[Good Times Roll]] (1999)
* [[Coal Chamber]] – ''[[Chamber Music (Coal Chamber album)|Chamber Music]]'' (1999)
* [[Dope (band)|Dope]] – ''[[Felons and Revolutionaries]]'' (1999)
* [[Rob Zombie]] – ''[[American Made Music to Strip By]]'' (1999)
* [[Run-DMC]] – ''[[Crown Royal (album)|Crown Royal]]'' (2001)
* [[Kurupt]] – ''[[Space Boogie: Smoke Oddessey]]'' (2001)
* [[Rob Zombie]] – ''[[The Sinister Urge (album)|The Sinister Urge]]'' (2001)
* [[Dope (band)|Dope]] – ''[[Life (Dope album)|Life]]'' (2001)
* [[Professional Murder Music]] – ''[[Professional Murder Music (album)|Professional Murder Music]]'' (2001)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/professional-murder-music-mw0000620972/credits|title = Professional Murder Music – Professional Murder Music &#124; Credits &#124; AllMusic|website = [[AllMusic]]}}</ref>
* [[Shihad]] – ''[[Pacifier (Shihad album)|Pacifier]]'' (2002)
* [[Slaine (rapper)|Slaine]] – ''The White Man Is the Devil Vol 1'' (2005)
* [[Street Drum Corps]] – ''Street Drum Corps'' (2006)
* [[Darryl McDaniels|DMC]] – ''[[Checks Thugs and Rock n Roll]]'' (2006)
* [[Dead Celebrity Status]] – ''[[Blood Music (Dead Celebrity Status album)|Blood Music]]'' (2006)
* [[Jamie Kennedy]] & [[Stuart Stone|Stu Stone]] – ''[[Blowin' Up]] (Theme music)'' (2006)
* Main Flow – ''The Flowfessionals'' (2006)
* [[Evanescence]] – ''[[The Open Door]]'' (2006)
* [[Ill Bill]] – ''Ill Bill Is the Future Vol. II: I'm a Goon!'' (2006)
* [[Street Drum Corps]] – ''We Are Machines'' (2008)
* [[Ill Bill]] – ''[[The Hour of Reprisal]]'' (2008)
* [[Adil Omar]] – ''[[The Mushroom Cloud Effect]]'' (2012)
* [[Vinnie Paz]] – ''[[God of the Serengeti]]'' (2012)
* [[La Coka Nostra]] – ''[[To Thine Own Self Be True]]'' (2016)

== Accolades ==
{{awards table}}
!{{Abbr|Ref.|References}}
|-
|align=center|[[43rd Annual Grammy Awards|2000]]
|"[[Take a Look Around (song)|Take a Look Around]] (Theme from ''[[Mission: Impossible 2|M:i-2]]'')"
|rowspan="2"| [[Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance]]
|{{nom}}
|rowspan="4"| <ref>{{Cite web|date=November 23, 2020|title=DJ Lethal|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/dj-lethal/12358|access-date=April 4, 2021|website=[[Grammy Award|Grammy]]|language=en}}</ref>
|-
|rowspan="2"| [[42nd Annual Grammy Awards|1999]]
|"[[Nookie (Limp Bizkit song)|Nookie]]"
|{{nom}}
|-
|''[[Significant Other (album)|Significant Other]]''
|[[Grammy Award for Best Rock Album]]
|{{nom}}
|-
|align=center|[[35th Annual Grammy Awards|1992]]
|"[[Jump Around]]"
|[[Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group]]
|{{nom}}
|-
{{end}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
*{{MusicBrainz artist|id=c357969c-696f-4011-867c-b8cccd082921|name=DJ Lethal}}

{{Navboxes|
|list1=
{{House of Pain}}
{{La Coka Nostra}}
{{Limp Bizkit}}
{{Soul Assassins}}
}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lethal, DJ}}
[[Category:1972 births]]
[[Category:Latvian Jews]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Limp Bizkit members]]
[[Category:Musicians from Riga]]
[[Category:House of Pain members]]
[[Category:La Coka Nostra members]]
[[Category:Latvian record producers]]
[[Category:American hip-hop DJs]]
[[Category:Rock DJs]]
[[Category:Jewish heavy metal musicians]]
[[Category:Jewish hip-hop record producers]]
[[Category:American people of Latvian descent]]
[[Category:Soviet emigrants to the United States]]
[[Category:American people of Latvian-Jewish descent]]