Darren Stanley Hayes (born May 8, 1972) is an Australian singer-songwriter. Hayes debuted in 1996 as the frontman and singer of the pop duo Savage Garden, whose 1997 album Savage Garden propelled them to stardom. It spawned the singles "I Want You", "To the Moon and Back", and the airplay number-one "Truly Madly Deeply". The duo followed the success of their debut album with Affirmation (1999), which also produced several hits such as "I Knew I Loved You" and "The Animal Song". Savage Garden sold more than 23 million albums worldwide before parting ways in 2001.
Hayes released his first solo album Spin in 2002. The album sold two million copies worldwide, debuted at #2 in the UK album charts and spawned the hit single "Insatiable". The album was supposed to continue the success of Savage Garden and make Hayes an even bigger star, but it failed to meet the expectations of Hayes' record company at the time, although it did sell a couple of million copies worldwide. Hayes' second solo album The Tension and the Spark marked a big change of direction for the singer-songwriter, showing him experimenting with electronica and dark, depressing lyrics. This ultimately became the reason why Hayes and his record label parted ways in 2006. Hayes then started his own independent record label Powdered Sugar, from which he would release his third solo album This Delicate Thing We've Made (2007). Including his work with Savage Garden, Hayes has sold more than 25 million albums worldwide.
