Member Since: 03/02/2006
Band Website: http://www.mixthegroove.co.uk
Influences:
Darren Campbell took to the turntables at the innocent age of 12. By the age of 15, driven by his desire to air his favourite records, he was funding his love of vinyl by selling mix-tapes to the kids on the back of the school bus. At 18 years old Darren Campbell was voted second most followed dj in his home city, thereby qualifying in a quarterly poll, a remarkable achievement in itself. He then faced a dj play off in front of a festival crowd of 10,000. Up against djs nearly twice his age, Darren sure enough took to the stage for the second performance of the evening. He scratched it up, and brought home the No...1 prize on the day; By the end of Darren's set the third DJ due to perform had already given up, which said it all. Darren lives this culture, and the dj battle is his forte.
By the ages of 19 he was working full time for LEAP Dance Music Magazine, an international publication with a readership of 150,000. During the day you could find Darren interviewing some of the biggest players on the UK house music scene at the time, names such as Danny Rampling and Boy George to name a couple, whilst also holding down the magazines house music single reviews. Also extremely active as a DJ, Darren's schedule saw him travelling throughout England from Preston to Portsmouth, to just about everywhere in between, as well as holding down a successful underground house music radio show on WAXX 95.0FM broadcast across the Midlands and guest appearances on other legal radio stations throughout the UK. :
It was at this time that Darren also enjoyed spinning at many House Music venues across the Canary Islands during the summer; his first taste of international gigging. He returned every summer for guest appearances for the next 3 years. :
Also at the age of 19, Darren won a second competition this time nationally. After responding to an advert in DJ Magazine and weaving his magic through 3 heats, Darren again found himself down to the last 3 and faced a 15 minute play off at London's Shepard's Bush No Miss Studios. With a record deal awaiting the dj who turned it on the most, Darren was last to get called to the stage. Turning up with only a pair of headphones, and two copies of the same record, Darren cut it, scratched it, phased it and mixed it up, to a standing ovation! Even the sound engineer was on his feet, clapping and whistling! :
It was after this that Darren decided he wanted to venture in to as yet uncharted territory and take his career to the next level in the studio. He was accepted as one of only ten students to a music college in London and although obviously very honored, something didn't feel quite right. Darren wanted as much practical, hands on studio exposure as possible so instead opted to raise enough money to create his own custom built £25,000 studio. This is where Darren worked 12 hrs a day for the next 5 years, honing his skills as both an engineer and a producer / remixer. :
Bringing it up to 2004, Darren decided to develop his media skills further and conceived the idea of a House Music Network. A place where all the skills he had learnt over the years fused into one and www.mixthegroove.co.uk : was born. Today, Mix The Groove has evolved into more than just a place to read interviews, listen to mix-tapes, and check the for the latest house music flyers. It has a readership of 40,000 and you can now find an ever expanding Digital Music Store - offering house music MP3 downloads, and a DJ Clothing Store - offering a complete, hassle free, merchandising solution for house music record labels, radio stations and related organizations and companies.
After many years away from the radio, Darren decided 2006 was the time to remerge as a radio dj. This he has achieved in true style, taking over the slot from Franke Estevez of Fuzion Records, Thursdays 3pm (EST / 8pm GMT) on the NYC Choice Award winning radio station Cyberjamz Radio ( www.cyberjamz.com ). After enjoying over 12 months broadcasting the show at this time, his slot time moved to Mondays 4pm - 6pm NYC and 9pm - 11pm London. Such were the demands for this show, Darren could also be found on a Friday morning 2am - 4am GMT on London's Push FM 107.7FM ( www.pushfm.com ) and occasional Saturday evenings on Soul-Satellite Radio ( www.Soul-Satellie.com ) 10pm Midnight. :
Summer 2007 saw new studio collaborations with some serious players on the house music scene - Starting with ex-Blackwax Records honcho Steven Reid, and a new Birmingham dj residency for Jus Soul playing alongside Richard Earnshaw, Sir Piers, plus a host more big profile dj's, and a successful residency for Filthy Funky in the UK. By the end of the summer, Darren had launched Mix The Groove Radio, and built a roster of over 35 of the finest underground house djs from around the globe, including the likes of David Harness, Jay-J, Matthias 'Matty' Heilbronn, Hippie Torrales and DJ Dove, as well as helping to break exciting new dj talent such Glenn Gregory, Gil Aguilar and DJ Selina. In addition to the radio, studio projects and dj gigs, Darren managed to secure agreements with over 40 global brands for marketing and advertising affiliations, including global brands such as Apple, Reebok, O2, Carphone Warehouse, and Dolphin Music. Mix The Groove was also chosen as one of only three online publications to officially promote the Ibiza Reunion Weekender that is the annual weekend festival 'United Kingdom of Dance' and organised by Butlins, Miss Moneypennies, Eden and Housexy. By the end of 2007 Mix The Groove had launched its retail arm, selling DJ equipment, studio hardware and software from leading brands such as Pioneer, Ecler, Mackie, Steinberg and Propellerheads to name a few. :
Moving forward to 2008, Mix The Groove as a network has continued to grow at a remarkable rate now reaching Version 5 (v5) in its development and achieving record breaking readership (with an average monthly page readership of 1.8 million) and cumulating in the launch of MTG-TV, an global on-demand music TV channel dedicated to underground dance music and culture. MTG-TV will feature club footage from around the globe, exclusive interviews, dj tips, techniques and documentaries.: :
May 2008 will see Darren start his tour of South America beginning with dates in Brazil May 29th, 30th, 31st respectively, where he will take in media interviews and dj gigs at some of the finest house clubs in Brazil. You can also look forward to some exciting new releases on his Sounds of Subway Recordings imprint including studio productions from new artists such as 'A&G Project'. :
:
Further international dj appearance dates will also be announced shortly. : :
Stop Press: ! Hot News! - Look out for forthcoming projects for Sounds of Subway Recordings over the coming months! :
Those that are already bringin' the HEAT.....
Darren Campbell - Hold On Me (DC's Step 2 This Mix)
Mix The Groove CDR | 2009
Dru Hill - Sleepin' In My Bed (DC's Exclusive Re-Work)
Mix The Groove CDR | 2009
Darren Campbell - BIGGIE Anthem (DC's Exclusive Intro)
Mix The Groove CDR | 2009
Kim Davis - Valentine 4 Life (DC's Share The Secret Remix)
Home Recordings | 2009
Kim Davis - Valentine 4 Life (DC's Callin' 4 U Remix)
Home Recordings | 2009
SWV - Youre The One (Darren Campbell's Classic Garage Mix)
White Label Promo | 2008
Brandy - I Wanna Be Down (Darren Campbell's 2008 Dub)
White Label Promo | 2008
Rob Hayes - Loungin' (Darren Campbell's Back in 96 Mix)
Sounds of Subway Recordings 003 | 2008
Rob Hayes - Loungin' (Darren Campbell's Way Back Mix)
Sounds of Subway Recordings 003 | 2008
DJ Purple - SARA3
Sounds of Subway Recordings 002 | 2008
Emil Lane- Beat Street (Darren Campbell Remix)
OneThirty Recordings Recordings (US) | 2008
Darren Campbell - Garage Fame
Sounds of Subway Recordings 001 | 2008
Darren Campbell - The Way You Loved Me
Sounds of Subway Promo CDR | 2007
Darren Campbell - Headz Up
Sounds of Subway Promo | 2007
Darren Campbell - Be Around
Sounds of Subway Promo White Label | 2007
Darren Campbell - Selina's Groove
Sounds of Subway Recordings Promo | 2007
Darren Campbell & Blackwax - Saturday Keyz
Sounds of Subway Promo | 2007
Darren Campbell & Blackwax - One For The Road :
Sounds of Subway Promo | 2006 :
Darren Campbell - For Lost Friends (Everybody Be Somebody) :
Sounds of Subway Promo | 2006 :
Mario - Let Me Love You (Darren Campbell Remix) :
White Label Promo | 2005 :
Masterbuilders Recordings | 2005 :
DJs Unite - Loving The Party (Darren Campbell's Oldskool Mix) :
White Label Promo | 2005 :
Baby Face - For The Lover In You (Darren Campbell's Searchin For a Lover Mix) :
White Label Promo | 2005 :
Download all Darren's latest mixtapes exclusively at www.mixthegroove.co.uk