New York based DJ & MC:
Mr. Dee
Reggae legend Anthony B alongside Mr.
Dee
| Mr. Dee's charismatic vocal delivery
has been a fixture at the Sunday evening African and Reggae nights at the
Lions Den, a fantastic weekly event produced by both Kiki Kwesi Morris and
Salvatore Principato. AfricaSounds was fascinated to meet up with
Mr. Dee to learn more about his fascinating past as one of Ghana's top
radio personalities. We invite you to read on to learn more about
the man who backs dj Soul Selector each Sunday night.
Mr. Dee started out being a DJ in
1989. "Around that time, there was this local club back in Ghana, and
the DJ over there actually tried me on a show as they were having a rap
contest, and so I gave it a try and the result was fantastic. Out of that
event came an offer to work at the club. So I started working in that club
in 1989, and then one day in 1990, I was there working one night when Joe
Mensa, one of the leading musicians in Ghana, walked up to me and asked me
if I would like to perform on the big stage… they were hosting the Pan
African Music Festival in 1990, which is commonly known as PANFAM’90,
and I was to be the MC for that big event. That was really how it all
started."
"The initial response was tremendous.
Everyone said – who is this guy? That event is what really got me out on
stage. And after that, I started getting a lot of offers for TV and radio
commercials within Ghana. Although I was going to school for public
relations at that time, I was also getting a lot of publicity for my
commercial voice-overs."
"And in 1992, they hosted the PANAFEST event
in Ghana, which was another musical festival which was billed as "The
Re-emergence of African Civilization," and it brought Africans from
the Diaspora back home to see where slavery really started. I was on the
same bill because I had produced a song with a computer genius in the UK,
and our song had been awarded by the PANAFEST committee so that we could
go on stage. My first thought was, wow! That is one big stage. We would be
sharing it with Germane Jackson and Public Enemy and a whole bunch of
other international artists on the same bill. So again, that was some
great exposure for me. |
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Mr. Dee at the WLIB radio studios
during his appearance with Kola Nut
| At the same time, I was still involved
with the club circuit, and so things were coming at me from all angles. In
those days, the entertainment industry in Ghana wasn’t really developed
to the point where we would have personal managers, so I was doing
everything by myself. Around that time, I was asked by a friend to do a
commercial for a private clothing company. I agreed, and two weeks later
that friend told me that his friend was starting the first private radio
station in Ghana. I was invited to audition - there were 28 of us that
day, and everyone got their chance to audition by doing a mock radio
announcement. Upon completion of my audition, the manager invited me to
begin working for the station the very next morning! This was the first
private radio station and was called JOY FM. The actual date for the
launch was May 5, 1995. I began by running a radio request program,
interspersing it with comedy on the radio. My goal was to make people
laugh!
I would say that it was really tough for me in
the beginning, but by 1996 I became the most popular radio presenter in
Ghana. I was on every TV show, and I was doing commercials that were rated
the best commercials in Ghana for two straight years. If I was asked to
reflect on that success, I would tell you that its because of my very
strong voice and presence. I also worked as an MC for artists such as
Freddie Meiway, Lucky Dube, Mahotela Queens from South Africa, and even
Yellowman. I also promoted and brought Buju Banton to Ghana for his first
show in 1999, the crowd was over 30,000 people.
For DJs and MCs, it’s all about style. I first
visited the US in August of 1996, but initially it was a back and forth
thing between the two countries. At the time, I was going back and forth
because I was still in a contract with JOY FM. In 1998, I joined VIBE FM,
another station in Ghana. Right now there are about 13 radio stations in
Ghana. Recently, I was offered the largest single contract in Ghanian
Broadcasting Corporation’s history but after much reflection, I decided
to turn it down. Even though it was good money back home, I was determined
to make it in New York. Everyone knows me in Ghana, so from a goal
standpoint it wasn’t as big of a deal. Instead, I want the challenge of
making it over here in the USA.
I’ve mainly been in New York although I did a
stint in Seattle as well. While there I was working for a nightclub called
the Bohemia. I was there from March of 2000 until last December. During
that time I was the official MC for SummerJam 2000 in Seattle. But again I
found myself back in New York, which is a better fit for me. I knew the
Soul Selector who was doing the gig at the Lions Den, and so it made sense
for us to collaborate. So now we are there, every Sunday doing our thing.
I’ve also got a project or two that I am
working on right now. Most immediate is a project called "Politically
Insane" which is basically a spoof on African governments. We’re in
the studio right now finishing up that one, I’m aiming for it to be out
in the next three months. |
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Mr. Dee at the WLIB radio station
prior to his appearance with Kola Nut
| Again, I’d have to stress my
versatility with music. I listen and play most any type of music, but one
of my true favorites is Reggae, which I’ve been listening to since I was
five or six years old in Ghana. A lot of my friends are from Jamaica, and
I’ve got that accent as well when I want it, so that is the reason why a
lot of people get confused, thinking I’m from there. But no, I’m from
Ghana. Even Jamaicans get confused – I have to tell them that I’m not
a yardie!
My role model is David Ruddigan in London. His
style is really speaking with the British accent, which I can do as well.
But I just love the way that he presents his program. Yet I developed my
own style, which is versatility, I am able to switch from one style of
talking to another style of talking. If you put me on a set, and give me
African music, I talk totally different. Likewise, if you give me hip-hop
and R&B, I talk totally different. Or if you put me on a set with
Reggae, I talk different. It’s all about versatility.
I am also putting a group together now as well,
we are trying to fuse African music to R&B. The group is actually in
existence, but I am trying to get them together to try something new. The
name of the group is Adehye Dance Company. It’s a dance company that
performs over 45 dances. So keep your eyes out for that one as well.
It is just a matter of time. Initially when you
get to another society, people try to scare you and say, "hey, you
can’t make it here." But I know that it is not a big deal,
everywhere I go, and hold up a microphone, I get the attention. I know
whatever it’s going to take, that I am going to make it."
Mr. Dee |
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