About/Bio
Darius Jamal VanSluytman is a musician, writer, actor and arts & entertainment professional born of NYC's underground indie scene. He started his career in the arts as an undergrad at Columbia University, writing a regular op-ed column for The Columbia Spectator, and eventually performing spoken word in the late 90s.
By the early 2000s, he was a freelance music and culture writer for The Source, and (fondly remembered) alternative NYC weekly, The New York Press, and his hometown paper The Virgin Islands Daily News. He also worked behind in the scenes in consumer marketing for publishing companies, including a 4 year stint as a Director for Complex Magazine (now Complex Media).
Late nights, he was promoting and performing shows with alt-rap/electronic band, No Surrender, an early band on a certain alt-black music scene with a trademarked name. After a few DIY releases, the band released their 2011 opus Medicine Babies produced by former Tricky singer/musician Costanza Francavilla. The record received nods worldwide from SPIN, MTV.com, Pitchfork, Time Out London, Rolling Stone (Italy), and Vogue (Italy). The band appeared at Afropunk, SONAR Festival (Barcelona), legendary electronic club Social Club in Paris, Rough Trade (London) and iconic Lower East Side and Williamsburg venues.
He was also a member of The Infesticons and Majesticons (Ninja Tune/Big Dada) Featured very prominently on the band's 2010 album, Bedford Park, which would go on to receive mentions outlets like Mojo and Pitchfork.
By the late 00s, Darius had appeared on stage as a performer in Raz Mesinai's avant garde opera Myth of Nations which staged at The Kitchen and Il Teatro San Giorgi in Catania, Sicily. He also performed in Mike Ladd's Domestica at The Kitchen, as well as with Ladd and Vijay Iyer for a rare performance of the duo's Negrophilia project in Milan. He also appeared at The Whitney Museum with VisionIntoArt. He also appears in a principle role in the 2011 feature film Lifted.
From 2013-2018, he helped manage independent music licensing firm Soundtaxi.com. Today, continues to work as a consultant, writer, producer and performer in and for NYC groups including synthwave duo Low Wave, Trip-Hop legend Jason Furlow (of Gee Street/Island Records artists New Kingdom fame), and his own electronic project Radius. He recently completed the score to art-house film Legs starring his No Surrender bandmate Eddie Steeples (My Name Is Earl, The Guestbook), and co-produced the debut EP of Brooklyn synth-noir duo Death By Piano.
He was published in an Post Modern, a poetry anthology POSTmortem from Mad Gleam Press, and unveils original music inspired by award-winning sculptor, Afruz Amighi at The Frist Museum in Nashville in July of 2018. In the summer of 2019, he and his father Bernard VanSluytman, published a collection of poetry and short stories, inspired by life in the Virgin Islands entitled, Father & Sun (link in the work/discography tab).
By the early 2000s, he was a freelance music and culture writer for The Source, and (fondly remembered) alternative NYC weekly, The New York Press, and his hometown paper The Virgin Islands Daily News. He also worked behind in the scenes in consumer marketing for publishing companies, including a 4 year stint as a Director for Complex Magazine (now Complex Media).
Late nights, he was promoting and performing shows with alt-rap/electronic band, No Surrender, an early band on a certain alt-black music scene with a trademarked name. After a few DIY releases, the band released their 2011 opus Medicine Babies produced by former Tricky singer/musician Costanza Francavilla. The record received nods worldwide from SPIN, MTV.com, Pitchfork, Time Out London, Rolling Stone (Italy), and Vogue (Italy). The band appeared at Afropunk, SONAR Festival (Barcelona), legendary electronic club Social Club in Paris, Rough Trade (London) and iconic Lower East Side and Williamsburg venues.
He was also a member of The Infesticons and Majesticons (Ninja Tune/Big Dada) Featured very prominently on the band's 2010 album, Bedford Park, which would go on to receive mentions outlets like Mojo and Pitchfork.
By the late 00s, Darius had appeared on stage as a performer in Raz Mesinai's avant garde opera Myth of Nations which staged at The Kitchen and Il Teatro San Giorgi in Catania, Sicily. He also performed in Mike Ladd's Domestica at The Kitchen, as well as with Ladd and Vijay Iyer for a rare performance of the duo's Negrophilia project in Milan. He also appeared at The Whitney Museum with VisionIntoArt. He also appears in a principle role in the 2011 feature film Lifted.
From 2013-2018, he helped manage independent music licensing firm Soundtaxi.com. Today, continues to work as a consultant, writer, producer and performer in and for NYC groups including synthwave duo Low Wave, Trip-Hop legend Jason Furlow (of Gee Street/Island Records artists New Kingdom fame), and his own electronic project Radius. He recently completed the score to art-house film Legs starring his No Surrender bandmate Eddie Steeples (My Name Is Earl, The Guestbook), and co-produced the debut EP of Brooklyn synth-noir duo Death By Piano.
He was published in an Post Modern, a poetry anthology POSTmortem from Mad Gleam Press, and unveils original music inspired by award-winning sculptor, Afruz Amighi at The Frist Museum in Nashville in July of 2018. In the summer of 2019, he and his father Bernard VanSluytman, published a collection of poetry and short stories, inspired by life in the Virgin Islands entitled, Father & Sun (link in the work/discography tab).