Derek has always had a love and a talent for music, with a career spanning over 3 decades. Originally starting in his late teens with the band Clear Blue Skies (previously Silent Rage) as singer and lyricist, the band toured on and off for many years. Eventually in 2007 after their popularity had grown, the band appeared on Channel 4 after winning a competition and performing on their music show ‘Popworld’. Despite their newfound success, it was not meant to be and the band split soon after. this left Derek with a decision to make, he still had a passion for music but with no band he had to find a new path. At this point he decided to create Acoustic Magic, with the vision to bring artists together to play live music. This ranged from performers just starting out to some big names including Miles Hunt of the Wonderstuff, Chris Helme of The Seahorses, Rod Clemments and Steve Daggett of Lindisfarne, Hayseed Dixie, Adam Bomb and many more household names. With Acoustic Magic, a whole musical family was created, Derek’s daughters Ellie and Rebecca grew up amongst the incredible atmosphere and as the project gained popularity, his wife Mel joined the team as sound engineer and event booker. This venture also led him to start his next musical endeavour with partner Shaggy and eventually his latest project with his old bandmate Gareth from Clear Blue Skies. Alongside all of this, Derek has also had his solo career, mainly releasing Christmas songs as this is something he loves.