About Me
WWW.GEENALEE.COM
Growing up on the beautiful island of Jamaica; the birthplace of reggae, my appreciation for music came naturally. That admiration turned into ambition one summer while visiting family friends in the Bronx, New York. It was the early 1980s, and hip-hop was still in its infancy. I remember watching older kids break-dancing on the sidewalks, spinning on mats of cardboard, men strutting with huge boom boxes on their shoulders; blaring music. It was colourful and gritty, loud and exciting. Seeing how music drew people together; evoking passion and delight, I felt a calling that I couldn’t quite articulate at that young age. I was about 8 years old, and was listening to a local radio station; the music was infectious. It made me feel so alive. I started fiddling with the equalizer and various buttons on the stereo, altering the sound, bringing up the bass, lowering the treble, playing with the volume…and it flowed through me like quicksilver…this feeling, this joy, this music, THIS was for me. I couldn’t put it to words, so I put it in my heart.
My first DJ experience came after relocating to Toronto, Canada. In high school, whenever there’d be a class party, I’d bring the music, and take great pleasure out of seeing my classmates dancing and digging my selections. I also had a ‘mini morning show’ using the school’s PA system. Every weekday morning I'd play music for the incoming student body, give the daily school announcements, and end with an uplifting quote, poem, or words of wisdom. I’d get stopped in the hallway by students and teachers who’d tell me they really liked listening to what I had to say and the music I played, one teacher even sought me out so he could shake my hand, telling me that he saw a star in me. It was this encouragement and love that helped me to define the desire I had in my heart: to be in radio.
That opportunity came the summer of 1995; when a few months past my 17th birthday, I was hired as a News Producer at CHRY 105.5FM. It was at this station that I gained various skills in radio. Not only did I have my own weekly show, I also did every job there was; from Spoken Word Coordinator to Technical Production Manager and Music Director. I lived and breathed radio! I also freelanced as a DJ for weddings and hosted concerts and events. In 2001, a year after receiving my Bachelor’s degree from Ryerson’s Radio & Television Arts program, I was hired as an on-air personality for Canada’s first urban radio station, FLOW 93.5FM, where I hosted the nightly slow jam show, The Lovezone. After leaving FLOW in 2003 due to programming changes (if you work in the industry you know how volatile it can be!) I got into voiceover acting, doing everything from film narrations to radio and tv commercials. It's fun, but not as exciting as DJing!
In the fall of 2005 I was starting to get bored and frankly, depressed. Was this it for me? Surely there had to be more to life. So I started putting out my feelers, expanding my thoughts and looking outside of the box. I felt a major change coming in my life and I decided to get light, literally. I moved to a smaller (cheaper) apartment, threw A LOT of stuff away, and just started looking for opportunities outside of Canada. I just kept feeling that urge to GO. Didn't have a clue where, but I knew I needed to leave. I shared my thoughts with my friends and put the word out there, because you gotta let the universe know what you want so you can attract it to yourself. I got job offers at radio stations in the States and the Caribbean, but they didn't pan out for some reason or another; it's tricky negotiating a job from overseas, you're the one taking the gamble and you gotta be sure of what you're getting into. I'll never forget the craziest radio gig I was offered: a midday show that included the duty of being a bartender for the station owner's restaurant. Ummm, no thanks. But even these wack offers were signs that there was something out there for me. If anything they helped me to just get in the mindframe of uprooting myself. It's not an easy process to just jump into the unknown. Who knew that jump would land me in Asia.
It was through one of those 'what am I going to do with my life' conversations with a friend that I got the idea. I reconnected with singer/MC True Daley , who I had met years before at FLOW when she was working in the news department there. She had moved to Taiwan and encouraged me to join her there to check out the opportunities. So I decided why not? And started to make my plans to leave. The year 2006 came and through a curriculum proposal I had submitted a year prior, partnering with veteran DJ DTS of the Masterplan show (CIUT 89.5FM), I taught a course at Ryerson University's Continuing Education School called "DJ'ing for Clubs & Radio", the first of its kind in the school's history. In the summer of that same year I relocated to Taiwan, where I'm now an on-air personality for the country's only English radio station, ICRT FM , where I produce and host the weekday program The Zone. Also in partnership with True, I'm the DJ half of our musical entertainment duo JAHMECCA SOUND. I find that taking one daring step makes you braver, and I've grown and learnt so much about myself and the world by being willing to explore it, net removed, balancing on faith and determination only. The journey continues...
Check out my artist interviews at:
GEENALEE.MYPODCAST.COM
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