Denis Stoff
Denis Alexandrovich Shaforostov, also known by his stage name Denis Stoff, is a Ukrainian musician best known for his work as a guitarist and vocalist of the Ukrainian metalcore group Make Me Famous and as the ex-lead vocalist of the British rock band Asking Alexandria during original singer Danny Worsnop's 18-month hiatus from the band.
Shaforostov showcased an early interest in music through his YouTube channel "above92" which contains vocal and guitar covers of his favorite songs dating back to as far as 2008. He furthered the momentum of his YouTube popularity through the formation of Make Me Famous. After Make Me Famous broke up, he founded Down & Dirty but shortly left that band in the wake of his involvement with Asking Alexandria. However, Stoff parted ways with Asking Alexandria in 2016 when the band reunited with Danny Worsnop. He is currently the lead vocalist for the band Drag Me Out.
Music career
2009–2010
Stoff experimented in electronic music with a short lived project called Cat!Cow!MilkyWay!. He also played as guitarist in the Russian post-hardcore/emo band Origami.2010–2012: Make Me Famous
The first major project Stoff involved himself in was metalcore act Make Me Famous which he helped form in 2010 with members Serj Kravchenko on unclean vocals, Sergei Hohlov on bass, Dusty Boles on drums and Igor Yestrebov on guitar. The band gained recognition on the video sharing website YouTube, where Stoff previously released covers of songs and would eventually gain members after contacting each musician after gaining a following. The band released their debut album "It's Now or Never" in March 2012 via Sumerian Records and successfully charted in the US top 200, peaking at 151.In late 2012, Stoff had announced that he had quit the band, which itself had announced to be disbanded after their final headlining tour that same year, officially disbanding in early 2013.
2012–2015: Down & Dirty
After the news arose that Make Me Famous had broken up, Stoff quickly announced a new band named Down & Dirty. The band was officially announced under the Sumerian label like his last project, and released their first single and music video in December 2013 titled "Move It". The band also released a second single and music video in December 2014 titled "I Will Never Lose My Way". After these songs, Stoff later announced he would be joining Asking Alexandria, which was followed by Down & Dirty confirming he was no longer a part of the group. Down & Dirty continued with a new lead vocalist, Ezekiel Pierson, and released a new single "Heaven Sent" in February 2017. In February 2018 the band "Heaven Sent" was re-released now as an EP. However, shortly after that, frontman Ezekiel Pierson left the band.2015–2016: Asking Alexandria
On 22 January 2015, lead singer Danny Worsnop announced his departure from Asking Alexandria to focus on his new band We Are Harlot, of which it was quickly stated that his replacement was already found. On 26 May 2015, Stoff was officially announced as the new lead vocalist when they released their first single together titled "I Won't Give In" on 27 May. Speculation regarding Stoff's involvement started shortly after Worsnop's departure due to similarities between Asking Alexandria and Make Me Famous ; the fact that they were label mates would have made the transition easy for Stoff to make, and on his personal YouTube account he had covered multiple Asking Alexandria songs. Ben Bruce was asked if he considered anyone else for the role and he stated that "it has to be Denis" before praising his vocal ability. When Shaforostov himself was asked how he would distinguish himself from Worsnop, he stated he would not make any comparison since he is a completely different person.In October 2016, Ben Bruce announced that Stoff left the band. In December 2017, Rock Sound interviewed Denis. Denis explained that his home country, Ukraine, is like a warzone now. He said there was stress for him and his family, and he had to stop touring to focus on family.
2017–present: Drag Me Out
Stoff posted on Twitter on 27 September 2017 "New album and new band... so worth every minute of the work and da wait we've already invested in this. Be ready for something new and FRESH."Stoff with his new band Drag Me Out released their first single, titled I'm Sorry, on 15 January 2019. An accompanying music video was also released. On 1 February 2019, the band surprise dropped their debut album Pressure. Shortly after the album's release, connections were made between Drag Me Out's "Hollow" and Asking Alexandria's "Alone in a Room" sounding similar in terms of instruments and the bridge section of the song, afterwards the bands label Sumerian Records took down the song from their official YouTube channel.
Discography
Albums
| Title | Year | Band | Type |
| Keep This in Your Music Player | 2011 | Make Me Famous | EP |
| It's Now or Never | 2012 | Make Me Famous | Studio album |
| The Black | 2016 | Asking Alexandria | Studio album |
| Pressure | 2019 | Drag Me Out | Studio album |
Singles
| Title | Year | Band |
| "We Know It's Real" | 2011 | Make Me Famous |
| "Move It" | 2013 | Down & Dirty |
| "I Will Never Lose My Way" | 2015 | Down & Dirty |
| "I Won't Give In" | 2015 | Asking Alexandria |
| "Undivided" | 2015 | Asking Alexandria |
| "The Black" | 2016 | Asking Alexandria |
| "Let It Sleep" | 2016 | Asking Alexandria |
| "Here I Am" | 2016 | Asking Alexandria |
| "I'm Sorry" | 2019 | Drag Me Out |
Collaborations
| Song | Year | Album | Artist |
| "Limitless" | 2011 | Limitless | Crown the Empire |
| "#OIMATEWTF" | 2012 | Til Death | Capture the Crown |
| "Once Upon a Life" | 2012 | Fear Is What You Call I | Hide & Dream |
| "10,000 Miles" | 2012 | rowspan=3 | At the Ruins |
| "Just Another Night" | 2012 | Skarlett | - |
| "Valde Tribuo" | 2013 | Of Sun & Seed | - |
| "C.O.D.Y. | 2013 | Ocean Inside Me | A Reason to Breathe |
| "Sink Your Teeth Into This" | 2015 | Conquer Divide | Conquer Divide |
| "Lucid Dreams" | 2015 | Divide to Unite | Forever in Combat |
| "Hale's Own" | 2015 | Polarity' |