Monday, 11 November 2013

On The Ones & Twos With Dj Smoove!!!

“Scratch, scratch! Hit it!” And the party starts. We all love dancing, we all love partying and nothing gets the mood going at a party than good music being mixed by a professional disc jockey. Last Friday we had The Big Chill and one of the highlights was the star studded line-up of dee-jays which included arguably one of the best to ever come out of Zimbabwe, The Infamous Dj Smoove who was on fire as usual.

Born Deon Fulton in Harare, he is the first in a family of four children. His parents were avid music collectors and that definitely played a massive part in his journey to become the world class dj he is today. "My mom and dad were music collectors so I grew up around lots of records," he said in a chilled down tone which would make you think he was not the same guy who on stage is the Zimbabwean version of Fatman Scoop.
At only 12 years, Dj Smoove got noticed as he displayed some tight skills at a party and soon he became a resident dj at an afternoon joint. He started getting called up to do his thing at different places and the rest, as the cliché goes, is history. Most parents would not tolerate their young teen frequenting clubs and parties but his parents decided to give it a chance. "As long as I did well in school, I was allowed to do my thing. It was school first always and I did well academically so I never had problems with them”.

One of the most travelled entertainers, Dj Smoove has played all over the globe including in London, Germany, the Scandinavia region, Switzerland, Ghana, Kenya, Seychelles and South Africa just to name but a few. "I feel so blessed and lucky to have played at various places worldwide .The reception has been great especially in Africa, right now Botswana is high on the agenda.”
Many have wondered what the difference really is between a club dj and a radio dj so we asked Dj Smoove to shed some light. "A club dj makes people have fun. The music played in a club is not necessarily radio friendly. The radio guys are more of presenters and they are there to keep you company. Being a dj is all about your personality. You have to have a passion for music and you have to love what you do”.

Just like wine which gets better with time, Dj Smoove's skills continue to advance and now he has branched into music production. He is working with artistes like Ammara Brown and Rassie Ai on some projects. Currently he is getting ready to release a new project titled Dj Chronicles Vol.1 which promises to be a bomb as it will include artistes like Australian based Zimbabwean songstress, Gianna, Rassie Ai ,Joy Rocks and many more surprises.

As someone who has been in the game for a span now, the man famous for his trademark scratch believes that most local djs have dropped a standard or two technically. He is however impressed by their music selection. "Most of these guys have not been exposed to the right dee-jaying culture so technically it's still lacking." He is inspired by legends in the game including George Munetsi, Darlington Masenda, Harry Muvhuti, Otis Fraser, Kimble Rogers, Funkmaster Flexx and obviously Fatman Scoop. Amazingly, this dj does not prepare for his shows. "I just let the mood control the flow, the atmosphere guides the whole show".
For a guy who has performed round the globe, Dj Smoove is satisfied with the pay check at the end of the day. He is a proud dad to one-year old Brooklyn (perhaps the next Dj Smoove). As for all the ladies wondering if he is still on the market, he just said, "Let's keep them guessing". Guess we just have to scratch that part of the record for now....

Catch Dj Smoove on Star Fm's 'The Breeze' every Wednesday @ 1120hrs.You can also catch him @ club H2O every weekend...
Facebook: Dj Smoove

The writer Eddie Love Jones Biriyati is the Entertainment reporter for True African Woman Magazine. He is also an events dee-jay.

 

 

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