We Help You Hire, Book and Produce a Duran Duran Performance
Hire Duran Duran for Your Event
Celebrity Direct Inc. will help you select, book and hire Duran Duran to perform at your corporate event, non-profit event or private performance.
We are always uniquely positioned as your advocate throughout the hiring process and we won’t let you overpay.
Contact us for availability, price and other production details at:
212-521-4115 Tell Us About Your Event
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Duran Duran Songs
- “The Wild Boys”
- “Ordinary World”
- “Come Undone”
- “Hungry Life The Wolf”
- “Girls On Film”
- “Notorious”
- “Planet Earth”
- “New Moon On Monday”
- “All She Wants Is”
- “The Reflex”
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Duran Duran Bio
Duran Duran personified New Wave for much of the mainstream audience. And for good reason, too. Their reputation was built through music videos, which accentuated their fashion-model looks and glamourous sense of style. Without music videos, it is likely that the band’s pop-funk — described by the group as the Sex Pistols meets Chic — would never have made the group international pop stars. While Duran Duran did have sharper pop sensibilities than their New Romantic contemporaries like Spandau Ballet and Ultravox, none of their peers exploited MTV and music video like the Birmingham-based quintet. Each video the group made was distinctive, incorporatin a number of cinematic styles to showcase the band as either part of the jet-setting elite (“Rio”) or as worldly adventurers (“Hungry Like the Wolf”).
While early videos like “Girls on Film” and “The Chaffeur” sparked controversy in England over their sexual content, their best-known clips were often based on hit contemporary movies. “Hungry Like the Wolf” uncannily recalled Raiders of the Lost Ark, while “Union of the Snake” and “The Wild Boys” brought to mind The Road Warrior.
The clever videos helped make Duran Duran’s rise to popularity remarkably swift. Between 1982 and 1984, they rocketed from underground British post-punk sensations to teen idols. But their fall from grace was equally fast. By the late ’80s, the group’s lineup had fragmented, and the remaining members had trouble landing hist singles. Nevertheless, the group pulled off a surprising, if short-lived, comeback in the early ’90s as a sophisticated soft-rock trio.
Inspired by David Bowie and Roxy Music, as well as post-punk and disco, schoolmates Nick Rhodes (keyboards) and John Taylor (guitar) formed Duran Duran in 1978 with their friends Simon Colley (bass, clarinet) and Stephen Duffy (vocals). Taking their name from a character in Roger Vadim’s psychedelic sci-fi film Barbarella, the group began playin gigs in the Birmingham club Barbarella, supported by a drum machine. Within a year, Duffy and Colley both left the group — Duffy would later form the Lilac Time — and were replaced by former TV Eye vocalist Andy Wickett and drummer Roger Taylor. After recording a demo, John Taylor switched to bass and guitarist John Curtis joined the band, only to leave within a matter of months.
The group placed an ad in Melody Maker, which drew the attention of Andy Taylor, who became their guitarist, but Duran Duran were still having trouble finding a vocalist. Following Wickett’s departure in 1979, a pair of singers passed through the group before Simon LeBon, a former member of the punk band Dog Days and a drama student at Birmingham University, joined in early 1980.
By the end of 1980, Duran Duran had become popular within the burgeoning New Romantic circuit in England and had secured a record contract with EMI. “Planet Earth,” the band’s first single, quickly rose to number 12 upon its spring 1981 release. Immediately, Duran Duran became the leaders of the New Romantic movement, becoming media sensation in the British music and mainstream press. The group’s popualrity increased through their cutting-edge music videos, especially the bizarre, racy clip for “Girls On Film.” Although the BBC banned the Godley & Creme-directed video, the single became the group’s first Top 10 hit, setting the stage for the fall release of their eponymous debut album.
Duran Duran reached number three upon its release and stayed in the charts for 118 weeks. The band quickly followed the album with Rio in the spring of 1982. Rio entered the charts at number two, and its singles — “Hungry Like the Wolf” and “Save a Prayer” — became Top 10 hits. By the November release of the US-only remix EP Carnival, the band were superstars in Europe, but only just beginning to make headway in America. Their exposure in the US was helped greatly by the emergence of MTV, who put the group’s stylish videos into heavy rotation. MTV’s constant playing of the videos paid off, and “Hungry Like the Wolf” became a Top 10 hit early in 1983. Rio followed the single into the Top 10, eventually selling over two million copies.
Duran Duran-mania was in full-swing across America, with “Is There Something I Should Know” reaching the Top 10 — it became the group’s first English number one that summer — and the group’s first album climbing its way to number 10. Duran Duran capitalized on their popularity by releasing Seven and the Ragged Tiger in time for 1983’s holiday season. The record hit number one in the UK and number eight in the US, spawning the hit singles “Union of the Snake” and “The Reflex,” their first number one US hit and their second British chart-topper. The band took an extended break after completing their year-and-a-half long international tour in the spring of 1984. In November, they released the non-LP single “Wild Boys,” which reached number two in the UK and the US, where it was added to the live album Arena.
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Contact Duran Duran Manager or Agent | You May Ask?
How can I hire Duran Duran for a corporate event, non-profit or charity event or private performance? How much does Duran Duran cost for a performance, a song, an appearance at an event, party or convention ending gala? What kind of budget would I need for a Duran Duran performance at our event? How can I find out if Duran Duran is available for our event date? How do I contact Duran Duran’s manager? How do I contact Duran Duran’s’ agent?
We can answer all your questions.
Contact our National Booking Office at 212 521-4115 or send us your questions via email to hire Duran Duran.
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Why Celebrity Direct Inc.
Direct Source for Celebrity Performers We are the industry leader in celebrity talent buying and production for corporate events. We work on your behalf to hire the best possible celebrity for your budget and we are uniquely positioned as your advocate in the booking process so you never overpay.
Corporate & Non-Profit Events and Private Performances We are dedicated to private performances, not publicly ticketed events, and we are the experts in this highly specialized entertainment market.
Complete Turn-Key Production Nationwide Event planners work with us in several ways, either choosing from a menu of our services or asking us to produce a show delivered completely turn-key at your event nationwide.
