David Burkeman, known as DJ DB and DB Burkeman, was born in London and moved to New York in 1989. A British-born jungle and drum-and-bass DJ, he helped introduce the music to the United States as the scene took shape there. In New York, Burkeman founded the NASA club night, an early showcase for breakbeat and jungle and drum and bass.
In 1993, Burkeman became A&R director at sm:)e Communications. He left the company in 1998 and founded the F-111 label. In 1996, he and DJ Dara co-founded Breakbeat Science, establishing both a New York record store and a label devoted to drum and bass. Burkeman’s work with Gary Pini included producing Air Liquide for Smile Communications. He also produced 13 mix CDs during his DJ career, a body of work that includes the mix albums Shades of Technology (1999) and The Secret Art of Science (2001). In 1995, he released the album Acid Resistant on Smile Communications. A 2004 album, Breakbeat Science Exercise 004, came out on Breakbeat Science. In 2017, he released the single Groupies with Stakka on Breakbeat Science.
In a 2011 interview, Burkeman spoke about exploring creative work beyond a long career as a DJ. He was developing a book and an art-gallery project centred on stickers. A 2026 interview revisited his place in New York’s early rave scene, the history of Breakbeat Science and his efforts to bring UK drum and bass to the United States.