Bio: 18 YEARS WITH DJ JAZZY D

I too, faced the difficulties of growing up as a youth being tempted by the forbidden, drugs, alcohol, smoking and generally trying to hustle everyday to make an extra buck, however, I had my eye on a goal and that was to make a success - one day. I also did not understand how "school" was going to help me achieve my goal - after a good education was not going to help me become a better DJ. I was forced to stay in school by my parents and today I can say that it was the best decision that was made for me. You always need an education to fall back on no matter what career path you have in mind. Many of you will not agree with me but this will only become a reality once you are older.

Let me take you back to what i said initially about my goal - that was the turning point in my life. It was not always smooth sailing. I started off helping my uncle at Club Bel Air and becoming a DJ was a far off dream. I started watching him play since i was 7 years old and mentally took note of what he did and knew that one day i would be able to apply this skill. That one day came and i never looked back. That was 18 years ago where I was given a chance to DJ at the kids matinee session at Bel Air. I knew that I had to constantly improve my skill to stay in the game and as the years went by my skills improved, my confidence level was higher and my experience of good and bad played a major role. Certain doors started opening up for me and I began DJ'ing at different house parties, weddings, clubs, street parties and later festivals,Even with all this happening, I knew that I had not reached the pinnacle of where i wanted to be.

After I had mastered the basic skills of DJ'ing, my next move was to learn the different styles of music, that being understanding a black, indian, coloured and white crowd, each one having a different taste of music, i moved on slowly and mastered the south african dance floor, the next step to DJ'ing was to start creating my own music. I started off with a keyboard and computer and focused on the type of music that I thought people would want to dance to. I created a few songs but was young and naive and trusted people too easily. I got ripped off on my first production,by one of SA's leading artists known as Arthur who was then the biggest star with the black market. This was a scarey introduction to the cut throat music business and it frightened me but i knew that one day i would produce successful songs again.
this time I would do things differently.

DJ JAZZY D (THE PRODUCER)

My big break came when coca cola hosted a show called coca cola pop stars and the executive producer of the winning group gave me an opportunity to produce 2 songs for a group that later became known as Jamali. I was fortunate that their album went platinum in SA which is 50 000 units.

The confidence in my production proved my ability to create hits and i was given songs by Kabelo from tkzee fame, Dr victor, TK aka the black butterfly, Glen lewis (metro fm) and denim, Chris Gelakis executive producer and ceo of Electromode music offered me a recording contract to "release my own CD - which was later self titled DJ Jazzy D - Another story. The CD was a huge hit throughout the country and featured 4 songs that hit the playlist on top radio stations throughout the country. This is unusual as in SA only 1 song from a local artists CD will make the playlist at any point. One song in particular "Lady Soul" became the biggest cross over song in SA history, making no1 on 30 radio stations and also becoming the 1st local song to make the no1 spot on 94.7s Take 40 chart since the inception of the radio station.
I started becoming a household name and travelled throughout the country and later visited Swaziland and Namibia playing at vip venues,
every club in the country wanted a piece of dj jazzy d as I was reelling in my success until tragedy struck.

TRAGEDY STRUCKS

On the fatal night of the 06 Jan 2006, i did a fund raising event in Lenasia and after the gig my best friend and i were involved in a major car accident.
He never survived , I remember the frustration and hurt i experienced as i found out after 3 days that my friend had died in the accident, it was a very difficult thing to hear, as i knew he had a wife and two kids which he loved tremendously.
I was left with a broken femur bone that pierced into my inner thigh after breaking, 3 cracked ribs, broken right hand in 2 places, broken collar bone and an internal injury affecting my hearing.
Doctors were not sure if i was going to walk again as my injury reports were not good.
It was obvious that my injuries would affect my career as a professional disc jockey.
I started off with my wheel chair and gained strength by wheeling my self around the house, the yard, and eventualy around the block.From 1 block to 2 blocks and later 3 blocks. I knew my arms were getting strong enough to carry me , I started assisting myself with crutches and learning to walk with these - first short distances and then longer distances.
After few weeks of physio theraphy i was frustrated as doctors explained to me that my body does not know how to walk and i have to start from scratch just like a baby, this never discourage me and the 1st day that i achieved taking my 1st 2 steps without assistance set tears in my eye and jubilation in my family its than that i understood that God gave me the strength and restored all my broken bones. On that day that i took my 1st steps i recieved a phone call that TK was found dead in a hotel in jhb, depression and frustration was starting to get the better of me as Tk played a major role in my career and the 2 of us had big plans for our future.
I was a miserable person and my girlfriend taught that i should started DJing again (even if it meant getting to a club with crutches and a wheel chair) whilst my girlf she sleeps in the car waiting for me. My courage and confidence improved with every gig i did and it never stopped until i was almost completely healed.
After 4 months without any production , along came 3 boys from Soweto known as Denim. I produced 5 songs on their album and our number 1 hit - cant take my eyes off from you - confirmed that my previous productions were no fluke. The song went on to be no1 on 10 radio stations and is still being playlisted by major radio stations in SA. The guys had major success with the album performing the songs in dubai and brazil and it was a major boost to my confidence to completing a 2nd album.


GIVING UP ALL MY HARD WORK ON MY DEBUT ALBUM

My relationship with my record label was not a great one, i was not happy with the royalty statements and i knew my future with them was bleek,
after having a meeting with them trying to put the past behind and work on the future, i proposed an album budget and they were not willing to outlay the budget , they later offerred me free clearance meaning they want to release me from my contract but with one vital stipulation that i was not allowed to claim any royalties from my debut album and it made me think that all the hard work that i had put in the album, starting 80% of the production and now just to give it all up and not recieve anything, My agent adviced me not to sign it and after 3months lawyers were confident we can win the case but it would take time. I came to one conclusion, i phoned my record label and set up a meeting and signed the dreadfull form they offered 3 months back.

STARTING ALL OVER AGAIN ON MY OWN

Now im free, free and not owned by any record company , i have started working on my new album and will release it under my own record label
jazzy d entertainment. i have also obtained a sponsorship from italian clothing brand Diadora.
Im hopeful to release the album in august 2008 and will be relying on my fans to support me back to the top.

In closing, my words of wisdom to you -
when i started dreaming i was all alone in my room
and the world was not with me
i believed i was and will be good enough for the world.
so i leave you with this dont ever think u cant be better or good enough than beyonce or michael jackson
dream big, just like i did. you are the master of your own destiny.

keep on dreaming and you will achieve
thank you.