Dharius

Rapper Alan "Dharius" Maldonado first gained recognition as a lead MC within the Mexican hip-hop collective Cartel de Santa. From the age of nine he began appearing with assorted regional rap crews before linking up with the group in 1996 alongside MC Babo, Rowan Rabia, and DJ Augustine. Although the quartet quickly built a reputation through live shows and an early, resourceful online presence, they did not secure a contract with RCA until 2003, at which point they delivered their self-titled debut album. With the arrival of Volume II the following year, the act had already established itself among the most commercially dominant hip-hop outfits in Mexican recording history.

The ensemble later shifted to Sony and continued releasing studio projects that surpassed each predecessor in popularity. Following the 2012 release of the double-live set Me Atizo Macizo Tour, Dharius declared his departure from Cartel de Santa in order to launch a solo path. His first independent project, Directo Hasta Arriba, appeared in December 2014 and included contributions from Revel Day, Alkhol, Billy Kent, and Sick Jacken of Psycho Realm.