N.A.S.A.

N.A.S.A., short for North America/South America, is a collaborative alternative dance project led by producers Squeak E. Clean and DJ Zegon. The duo is best known for their 2009 debut album, The Spirit of Apollo, which featured an eclectic mix of underground and mainstream artists including David Byrne, Seu Jorge, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Tom Waits, Kanye West, George Clinton, M.I.A., Santigold, and Lykke Li.

Squeak E. Clean, born Sam Spiegel, first gained recognition as a producer of television commercial soundtracks in the early 2000s. His work on the Adidas spot “Hello Tomorrow,” a collaboration with Karen O of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, earned the Gold Lion for Best Music at the 2005 Cannes International Advertising Festival and was later released as a single. He also produced the Grammy-nominated Yeah Yeah Yeahs album Show Your Bones (2006) and collaborated with his brother, director Spike Jonze, on projects including the skateboarding film Yeah Right! (2003).

DJ Zegon, born Zé Gonzales, is Spiegel’s South American counterpart. Originally from São Paulo, Brazil, he gained prominence as a member of the rap group Planet Hemp, active from 1993 to 2001. After relocating to Los Angeles, he joined forces with Spiegel to create N.A.S.A., drawing together a wide array of musical talent over several years to complete their debut album.

After The Spirit of Apollo, Spiegel contracted Lyme disease, putting N.A.S.A. on hold. He continued scoring films and video games before relaunching the project in 2015 with new singles, including “Meltdown” featuring DMX and Priyanka Chopra, “Jihad Love Squad” featuring KRS-One, “Iko” featuring Lizzo, and “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!” featuring Lizzo and Sean Paul.