Darren Bennett

This October, top UK DJ Darren Bennett takes over the This Is Trojan spotify playlist, with a selection of his ska and reggae favourites added every Friday.

Whether performing alone, on the same bill as long-term partner Madam Scorcher, or supporting  legendary UK ska band, Madness, Darren’s deep knowledge of vintage Jamaican music and insistence of only playing original pressings has established him as one of the UK’s top ska and reggae reggae DJs, regularly entertaining audiences around the country and abroad.

We asked Darren to tell us a little more about himself and his love of vintage Jamaican music…

“I wasn’t interested in music at all until 2Tone came along in 1979, when it was just “WOW…. I like this!”

After playing the records to death, I remember my dad saying that what the bands were playing was actually some old ska/reggae tunes, like ‘One Step Beyond’, ‘Too Hot’, ‘Rudy, Message To You’.

My dad then gave me a few LPs he owned, such as ‘This Is Desmond Dekker’, ‘Tighten Up’ and ‘Prince Buster’s Fabulous Hits’, and I then also played those to death. I couldn’t get enough of it!

In fact it became an obsession and I started buying reggae singles from our local market for literally pence, and since then, it’s never stopped.

I can’t remember when I first started to DJ – maybe it was school parties? – but I do recall that I just wanted to play reggae out loud to people, in pubs, scooter rallies, club nights – anywhere you could play records to an audience.

Eventually it landed me the superb job as the tour DJ for Madness… where you will always hear me playing many a classic and rare Trojan release…”

So to discover just why Darren is today respected by so many in the business, check out the This Is Trojanspotify playlist every Friday morning throughout October – we guarantee that you won’t be disappointed!