Yawn Zen

Pronounced "mind design," Mndsgn is a New Jersey-born, Los Angeles-based hip-hop producer with a sound unique and odd enough to land on the vanguard label Stones Throw. Born Ringgo Ancheta to former members of the Philippine arm of the Aum Supreme Truth Cult, Mndsgn's parents were granted political asylum in rural New Jersey. Raised on the edge of a New Jersey commune with no electricity, the future producer didn't encounter hip-hop until he hitchhiked to Philadelphia to experience the modern world. A downtown resident explained sampling and beat-making, and within the day Mndsgn acquired some equipment. Trips back to Philadelphia led to a move to Los Angeles, where he issued EPs and MP3s on labels like Klipmode and Fresh Selects. The Stones Throw label signed the producer in 2014 and released his debut LP, Yawn Zen, that same year.