Darrell Louis Morgan was Born in San Antonio, Texas. He was drawn to the drums at an early age and would beat on boxes and cans and any solid object at his disposal.
On Christmas morning, at age 12, Darrell received his first drum set, purchased by his parents from Montgomery Wards and soon after, started taking formal lessons.
Spending countless hours in the school library, Morgan found his muse among the jazz greats, reading books about the lives of Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, Count Basie and many others. His fascination with jazz only grew from there. “My dad would tell me stories about the Big Bands that would play for the dances,” Morgan recounts.
While in middle school, he joined the school band, and also formed a band of his own with fellow students. By the time Morgan entered high school, he was already playing with local blues singers.
In the 9th grade, he took a road trip to a small country town in Texas where he performed his first professional gig. Morgan expanded his musical range throughout high school Jr. College, and then moved to Houston , Texas to attend Texas Southern University as a Music Major.
While in Houston he performed at numerous clubs and festival events, recorded with the People’s Workshop under the direction of Howard Harris, wrote and directed the music for the national/international touring theatre production of “The Diary of Black Men.”
To further his music career, Morgan moved to Los Angeles where he performs in clubs, festivals, and private events. Throughout his career, Morgan has performed on festival billings with musicians such as Gerald Albright, Poncho Sanchez, Jack Dejohnette, The Average White Band, and has accompanied Linda Hopkins, Arnette Cobb, Kirk Whalum , Frank Lacey, David Scott, George Harper, Louie Spears to name a few.
Morgan recently produced another recording called “The Arrival” and is currently booking hotels, festivals, club engagements and completing a concert to benefit the homeless.
