Words: James Keith

Since starting out in the early 2000s, Benny Page has been right at the heart of the UK’s D&B scene. Though his productions have evolved and matured dramatically in the near two decades that he’s been releasing music, his creations typically combine bouncy, rolling drum & bass with a strong dose of reggae and dancehall.

Nowadays it’s become commonplace to describe a young artist’s rise to stardom as “meteoric”, because that’s simply the nature of the internet. Although Benny Page’s ascension wasn’t exactly pre-internet, it was definitely a few years before social media became as dominant as it is today and that made Page’s rise to the top all the more impressive.

One of his first ever releases—“Sneaker Pimp” back in 2004—caught the attention of the late great John Peel, and with that cosign behind him so early in his career the sky was the limit from that point. His first forray into producing and releasing music came in around 2000 after taking a two-year production course at college. Then, in 2002, the London-based Cutterz Choice label noticed his talent and label boss Spoona quickly snapped up a remix of Aphrodite’s “Stalker” and the aforementioned anthem “Sneaker Pimp”.

Having weathered some of D&B’s quieter moments (in particular, the dubstep explosion of the mid-late 2000s), Benny Page has long since earned his status as a D&B legend. At this point, it’s fair to say drum & bass has survived—and will continue to survive—whatever trends and changes may come. Now, with a constant stream of exciting new releases and countless D&B raves up and down the country, there’s never been a better time to reacquaint yourself with one of the scene’s heroes.

Here are 20 reasons to love Benny Page.