Darude

Darude had been interested in music since childhood, but did not seem to find his niche in the industry until his attendance at the multidisciplinary college Turku University of Applied Sciences. While there he honed in on his DJ techniques and also developed acute production skills, composing music through his PC’s tracker software. Around his enrollment in college, he took up the name “the Rude” a name his friends gave him based off his incessant playing of Leila K’s Swedish rap single “Rude Boy”. He eventually morphed da rude into one name and has since been known as Darude.

In 1997 Darude completely immersed himself in music production and composition. Some of his early tracks were aired on various radio stations and were released free for download on the website MP3.com.

Although Darude had been recording and releasing material since the mid 90s his first “official” single is considered to be 1999s “Sandstorm”. He composed the song with Jaakko Salovaara (a music producer better known as JS 16 and the founder for the independent label 16 inch). “Sandstorm” circulated wildly throughout the internet particularly on the site MP3 and garnered Darude with a worldwide fan base. The single reached No.1 on Norway’s single chart and has since been certified gold in the US. This recording has also been featured in numerous sporting events as well as in films like “Fun with Dick and Jane”, “Filth”, and “Under the Skin”.

The success of “Sandstorm” acted as a grand introduction to Darude’s studio debut “Before the Storm”. The album debuted at No.1 on the Finish Album charts and was awarded three Finnish Grammy Awards. His 2nd single “Feel the Beat” was included on the album and like its predecessor proved to be a hit, topping the Finish Single charts for 2 weeks and peaking to No. 5 on the UK Singles Chart.

Following the release of his studio album, Darude went on a lengthy tour, which saw him traveling through Australia, United States and Eastern Europe. His 2nd studio album “Rush” was issued in 2003 and in addition to the highly acclaimed self-titled track it contained the singles “Music” and “Next to You”. It was not until four years later that Darude put out his 3rd studio album “Label This!”. The US edition of this album features American Idol Star Blake Lewis on the single “I Ran (So Far Away)”.

Since this album’s release Darude has been formulating DJ mix compilations such as “Salmiakki Sessions Vo.1”. He has also received national recognition for his influence on DJ culture from publications such as the DJ List and the DJ Mag.