DJ Shadow (born Josh Davis) is widely credited as a key figure in developing the experimental instrumental hip-hop style associated with the London-based Mo' Wax label.

Shadow's first full-length, ‘Endtroducing...’, was released in late 1996 to immense critical acclaim in Britain and America. ‘Preemptive Strike’ - a compilation of early singles - followed in early 1998. Later that year, Shadow produced tracks for the debut album by U.N.K.L.E., a long-time Mo' Wax production team that gained superstar guests including Radiohead’s Thom Yorke , The Verve’s Richard Ashcroft and The Beastie Boys’ Mike D.

His next project came in 1999, with the transformation of Solesides into a new label, Quannum Projects. In 2006 he released another long awaited full-length album ‘The Outsider’ which featured rising Bay Area Hyphy rappers including Keak Da Sneak and  E-40, plus a single with Q-Tip (of A Tribe Called Quest).

In the midst of all of these solo projects, DJ Shadow collaborated with fellow hip-hop DJ Cut Chemist. Together they created a series of mixes that fused soul, funk, and rock, in the framework of a cohesive concept involving using only 45 rpm records.

2009 saw the announcement of Shadow's involvement with DJ Hero, an Activision video game which features Shadow as a playable character within the game. Shadow also contributed several mixes to the game. 2012 saw the release of a retrospective album: ‘Reconstructed: The Best of DJ Shadow.’