Darren Emerson (born 30 April 1971, Hornchurch, Greater London, England) is a dance music DJ, and former member of the UK electronic music outfit, Underworld.
Emerson began mixing Hip-Hop records at the age of 14, and by 16 was DJing regularly at local venues. He began to explore House Music and quickly acquired a reputation as one of the top British DJs, and demand for his services saw him playing at top clubs such as The Milk Bar, Limelights, and Venus. Darren has garnered several accolades such as "DJ of the Month" in The Face magazine, and also i-D magazine.
In 1990, Martin Prudence, brother-in-law of Rick Smith, introduced him and Karl Hyde invited him to become the third member of techno band Underworld. 1993's dubnobasswithmyheadman was their commercial breakthrough onto the then burgeoning British electronica scene. While working on their second album, 1996's Second Toughest in the Infants, they released the single "Born Slippy .NUXX", which was an instant hit following its inclusion on the soundtrack to the movie, Trainspotting.
During his time with Underworld, Darren also founded his record label, "Underwater" in 1994. It was initially an output for himself and the artists he met along his travels, but it grew to become one of the most influential dance labels of the early noughties. Underwater began as a deep techno label, but when Darren's taste shifted from techno to a more house/progressive house style, the label followed suit. It's sixth 12" release (Life's Little Pleasures/Mr.Sonic) came from an artist listed only as 'Ned Flanders', but is rumored to have been Emerson himself.
Emerson also emerged as a much sought-after remix talent, with remixes for such diverse acts as The Chemical Brothers, and Björk.
Darren parted ways with Underworld in 2000 and then concentrated more on his solo career as a DJ and remixer, and also a label owner. "Global Underground: Uruguay" (2000) and "Global Underground: Singapore" (2001) soon followed on the Global Underground label, with "Episode 1" on his new Underwater label following in 2002. He continued to release tracks by himself and new artists on the Underwater records label and eventually gained its own night at super club Pacha, Ibiza alongside fellow DJ Erick Morillo, to hold a joint Underwater/Subliminal Records night. During its second summer at Pacha, his Underwater Records night won 'House Event' of the summer at the DJ Magazine awards. After its success, Darren Emerson decided to host its own full night at Pacha, Ibiza which became an extremely popular night on the island.
Over the past few years, Emerson has been busy touring the world whilst preparing for his own solo debut album. He rarely plays in the UK apart from his previous bi-monthly resident slot at London club The End (a venue which closed down in January 2009). In 2007 he performed at Sensation White in the Amsterdam Arena.
Since 2004, Emerson had been dating British TV presenter, Kate Thornton, but on the 3rd of February 2011, Kate announced that they had split up. They have one son named Ben, born in May 2008.
In 2009 he released a third compilation for Global Underground - 'Bogota' and in 2010 he launched a new label, DETONE, on which he has so far released the club tracks Gracelands, Decisions, Hard For Slow and Au Go Go, featuring the vocals of the lead singer from Empire Of The Sun. Meanwhile, he continues his relentless globe trotting DJ schedule and in the past year, Darren has also begun hosting DETONE club nights at East Village in London.