Dirago

**Dirago** are an English rock band formed in Surrey in 2019, consisting of singer Des Sparks, lead guitarist Irvin Lynch, acoustic guitarist Martin Penn, bassist Odette Wiley and drummer Luther Roth. The band previously included Chain Mal guitarist Herbert Fuller and keyboardist Faye Melton. The group name originated from an alias Martin Penn had used to write songs. The band met through mutual connections to Wickets Music Store in Byfleet, and Des Sparks was recruited after performing at a local pub. After performing throughout the county, Dirago were scouted and eventually signed to the label J-Music.

The band trained for nearly two years before releasing their debut single, "There's No Other Way" on January 20, 2021, which found minor commercial success and peaked at #77 on the UK Singles Charts. The band made their first entry into the UK Top 40 with the release of their second single, "Girls and Boys", which charted at #37, and their third single, "This Is A Low", peaked at number 16. The band's major commercial breakthrough would arise with their fourth single, "M.O.D.E". The single peaked at number 22 on the UK Singles Chart, but was the group's first single to chart in other countries, including the United States, Canada, France, Spain and Portugal. The song received significant airplay in the United Kingdom and helped Dirago garner mainstream attention.

The group's debut EP, a selection of their first 6 singles simply titled *Dirago: The First Singles*, released on February 23, 2021 and peaked at number 5 on the UK Albums Chart, selling over 170,000 copies. The group's debut studio album, self-titled *Dirago*, was released April 9, 2021 and peaked at number 3 on the UK Albums chart after a string of similarly successful singles. The group's second studio album, *Diragone* was released to positive reception and peaked at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart. *Diragold*, the group's third studio album, became their first chart-topping release, peaking at number 1 and selling nearly 360,000 copies. The album received positive reviews for the group's genre-blending and lyricism.

*Diragold* boosted Dirago's popularity and cemented them as one of the leading bands of 2021. The trip-hop inspired single, the first after the release of *Diragold*, titled "Tomorrow Comes Today", became Dirago's first top 10 hit on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 9. The single "Animal Nitrate", released on September 5, 2021 peaked at number 6. The song "Bang" became Dirago's first number 1 in their home country. The album *Diragods*, the group's fourth studio album, was highly anticipated. Despite peaking only at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart, it became the band's best selling release at that point with over 455,000 copies sold. In mid-September, Herbert Fuller made the decision to leave the band due to creative differences, but stayed signed onto J-Music, eventually joining Chain Mail. Keyboardist Faye Melton replaced him.

Dirago's chart success only increased. *Diraglobe* became their second chart-topping album, released in January 2022 and selling nearly 700,000 copies and spawning 5 top 5 singles. Following the release of their fifth studio album, Dirago embarked on a world-tour entitled "Neo-Ambition World Tour", spanning 5 continents. The tour was an extreme commercial and critical success, becoming the best-selling debut tour for an artist in history, and it went on to make over $50 million. The band's sixth studio album, *Diragoal*, also charted at Number 1, containing four number 1 singles after being released in October 2022.