D Double E
D Double E in 2010
D Double E in 2010
Background information
Birth nameDarren Jason Dixon[1]
Also known asDJ Dan
Born (1980-01-19) 19 January 1980 (age 44)
OriginForest Gate, London, England
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • MC
  • DJ
  • record producer
Years active1990s–present
Labels

Darren Jason Dixon (born 19 January 1980), known professionally as D Double E, is a British grime MC, DJ and record producer from Forest Gate, East London.[2] He performs both as a solo artist and as a member of the grime duo Newham Generals.[3]

Career

D Double E has been active for over 20 years, beginning his career in jungle and UK garage music.[4] In the mid-1990s, he was a DJ and went by the name DJ Dan. D Double was at the time in a crew called Bass Inject, alongside Terror Danjah and DJ Tempo.[5] In 1998, Terror and D Double E went on to form the drum and bass collective the Reckless Crew which played sets on Rinse FM.[6] RWD,[7][8][9] He was a member of the early grime collective N.A.S.T.Y Crew, until leaving after a dispute in December 2003.[10] He then founded the group Newham Generals together with Monkstar and Footsie.[11][additional citation(s) needed] The group remains active as a duo consisting of D Double E and Footsie.[12][13] He and the Newham Generals signed to Dizzee Rascal's Dirtee Stank label.

As a solo artist, D Double E's releases include "Street Fighter Riddim", "Bluku, Bluku", "Bad 2 tha Bone", "Lovely Jubbly", and "Wolly".[12] He is known for using vocalisations such as "bud-a-bup-bup" and "it's mree, mree".[14] Fellow MC Skepta once named him as the "greatest of all time", and Dizzee Rascal said he was one of the artists who inspired him to start MCing.[15][12]

IKEA invited D Double E to create a special soundtrack for a Christmas 2019 campaign,[16] marking the first time the grime music genre was used in seasonal advertising.[17]

Personal life

D Double E is of Jamaican descent.[18]

Discography

Studio albums

List of albums, with selected chart positions
Title Album details Peak chart positions
UK
[19]
Bluku Bluku -
Jackuum! 61
Double or Nothing –
Bluku Bluku 2
  • Released: 1 July 2022
  • Label: Bluku Music
 -

Charted singles

Year Title Peak chart positions
UK
2004 "Pow! (Forward)"
(Lethal Bizzle featuring Fumin, D Double E, Napper, Jamakabi, Neeko, Flowdan, Ozzie B, Forcer, and Demon) 		11
2010 "Street Fighter Riddim" 145[21]
2016 "Ladies Hit Squad"
(Skepta featuring D Double E and ASAP Nast) 		89

References

  1. ^ "BAD TO THE BONE". ASCAP. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved 1 May 2023.
  2. ^ Savage, Mark (5 September 2018). "Grime pioneer D Double E finally gets his moment". BBC News. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  3. ^ "D Double E - Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  4. ^ Collins, Hattie (18 November 2014). "the records that changed d double e's life". i-D. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  5. ^ Collins, Hattie (2016). This Is Grime. Hodder & Stoughton. p. 9. ISBN 9781473639270. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 19 September 2020.
  6. ^ D Double E: History - From 1996 Onwards On Pirate Radio [1] Archived 26 September 2020 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ "D Double E - RWD". Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  8. ^ "D Double E - Complex UK". Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  9. ^ Joshi, Tara (15 September 2016). "This is Grime – book review: A behind-the-scenes look at the musical revolution that defines a generation". Archived from the original on 18 January 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  10. ^ "Tales From The Grime Generation: D Double E Interviewed". 26 November 2014. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  11. ^ "D Double E announces new project, 'D.O.N.', shares single with Kano". DJ Mag. 3 September 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  12. ^ a b c MacPherson, Frederick (20 November 2014). "Your Favourite MC's Favourite MC: D Double E". Noisey. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  13. ^ "Then And Now: Newham Generals' Footsie Interviewed". Clash. 1 September 2016. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  14. ^ Martin, Felicity (18 January 2019). "D Double E cemented his legacy as your favourite MC's favourite MC at XOYO last night". Dummy Magazine. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  15. ^ Hancox, Dan (10 September 2018). "D Double E, grime's nearly man: 'I haven't been able to prove myself'". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  16. ^ Somos, Christy (8 November 2019). "Here's why Ikea and a grime music star are trending in the U.K." CTV News. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  17. ^ Bruce-Jones, Henry (8 November 2019). "D Double E is the unlikely star of the IKEA Christmas advert". Fact. Archived from the original on 8 November 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  18. ^ "D Double E: The grime pioneer who inspired Skepta finally gets his moment". BBC. 5 September 2018. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  19. ^ "D DOUBLE e | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Official Charts. Archived from the original on 23 September 2018. Retrieved 22 September 2018.
  20. ^ Murray, Robin (3 September 2020). "D Double E, Kano Spit Pure Fire On New Single 'Tell Me A Ting'". Clash. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
  21. ^ "Chart Log UK: Asher D - Dyverse". zobbel.de.

External links

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