DJ EJ

Introduced to the underground scene back in 1994 by a friend (DJ Mistify aka LAS), EJ started his music career as a Jungle MC on a pirate radio station called Midlands Underground 107FM and was known as MC Elegal (Illegal) or the Ele-gyalist. During latter part of his MCing career he noticed the Jungle scene slowly becoming more dark and moody and the club scene being spoilt by crews and gangs, which then led to a start of a new music scene called Garage. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- In 1996 EJ decided to buy a few Speed Garage & 2 step vynils and give the DJing a go. With the help of DJ Mistify (aka LAS), EJ rapidly learnt how to mix and started making mixtapes. Within months EJ started to build a fan-base and had a very big following from regularly playing at house and blues parties, pubs and function rooms. By 1997 he had enough confidence to DJ on a pirate radio station called Frontline 106.3FM. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- With EJ being para and nervous about being on pirate radio and getting raided, he asked a friend (MC XRG now known as DJ M da Flex) to assist and host his radio shows, this was the start of a new phenomenon with UK Garage being new and the hottest music genre at the time. Within a few more months EJ decided to bring in more friends such as MC Bubbla (now DJ Bubbla), MC Kruga (now reppin Brickhouse Onslaught) and Bellus we then called ourselves the Goodfellaz crew (named by M da Flex since this was and still is his favourite film!). ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- By 1998 EJ became a resident DJ at Wolverhamptons biggest nightclub (at the time) Picassos (formerly Decadence and Sugar Bar), this led to more local residencies in clubs such as The Beach, Viper Bar, Atlantis, Adastra, Ricos, Club Orange, Kipps, City Bar, The Planet, Revolution bar, WV1 (plus many more) therefore with EJ being impossible to ignore, promoters from around the UK started hearing about him and his talent. This led to EJ becoming a resident DJ for bigger promotions and being booked for bigger events internationally such as Garage Nation, Harmony, Ascension, Sun City, Garage Fever, Garage Sweetness, License to Rave, Urban Music Showcase, Get a Grip, Pure Silk, Purely Magic, Casino, Sidewinder, Garage Uncovered, Totty, plus many many more including his own promotion called Pure Elegance. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- During this time EJ had made his 1st ever dubplate (unreleased production), Dead Prez Hip Hop this dubplate was one of the biggest tunes to ever come from the West Midlands and gave EJ the confidence to make more such as EJ vs Busta Rhymes & Selina Johnson tonight Im gonna, EJ vs Bassman Sweet Bass, EJ vs Lady Saw Bump & Grind, plus many many more dubplates and with the support from major record labels such as Soul 2 Streets, Bingo, DFL, JBR, AIM records, etc. adding him to their mailing lists EJ became known for his freshness of tunes and exclusives and had a large number of mix cds on road. By this time EJ earned the respect from top DJs, MCs, Producers, Record labels and fans but at the same time was overly hated on by a handful of up n coming DJs (mainly from Wolves) which led to a lot of tension, bad-mind activity, back-stabbing, shit stirring and people trying to flop him they all failed, therefore, thriving off all the hatred EJ still continued to put in 110% effort into his work and still remained one of the best DJs in Wolves (if not the best). ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- Around 2001/2 the UK garage scene unfortunately began to go down the same path as the Jungle scene did and became dark and moody which then led to the end since club managers and promoters werent prepared to have their nights and clubs ruined by crews and gangs. This also led to the breakup of the Goodfellaz Crew with each member going on to do their own thing whilst still remaining close friends even to this very day. EJ then returned to Midlands Underground 107FM and became part of an Internet radio station called RUSH FM playing old school Garage and Jungle but after a few months or so EJ felt like he werent getting anywhere and was just wasting his time. Whilst being stressed out with normal life and personal issues thats when he thought to himself F*ck this sh*t! EJ decided to give the DJing a rest since the scene wasnt healthy and the clubs werent allowing Garage (meaning he wasnt making much money anymore) this resulted to a Full-time 9-5 employment which obviously made his haters very happy as they thought that this was the end of the road for EJ. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- 2002/3 saw the birth of Grime and by this time a circuit of new DJs began to form in Wolverhampton with DJ Apostle being the best (in EJs opinion) with Dirty Era & Higher Stakes being the best crews continuing to keep Wolves on the map. After a lot of positive motivation from real friends & family, EJ was determined not to be beaten by the system and fade away therefore, EJ then decided to invest in EDGE Productions studio and take the music production very seriously whilst aiming to make professional releases and not just dubplates. After a lot of trial and error, positive criticism and hard work, EJ managed to get his productions (mainly Grime since this was the new in-thing) to a professional level and sent demos of his work to other DJs around the UK. DJs were feeling his productions and wanted more from him, his tunes were being played regularly on different radio stations internationally and at big raves such as Sidewinder and Eskimo dance by the top DJs. Major record labels then began to show interest, the main label being the London based A.R.M.Y. records (owned and run by the award winning Rossi B & Luca). EJs name was back but it didnt stop there ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- 2004 saw his 1st release on ARMY records, this was the big LAS VIP which also featured Vibes and EJs 4x4 remix which went to number 1 in the Radio 1xtra UKG chart! EJ was soon signed to ARMY records as an artist/producer along with other carefully chosen producers throughout the UK such as Virgo, 2ndIInone, Mr Slash and Dr Venom. During this time EJ started buying vinyls again and gradually got back into the DJing playing UKG, soulful/funky house and a touch of grime. EJ then returned to Midlands Underground 107FM and shortly became a resident for a new promotion which went by the name of Memory which catered for the old school garage ravers. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- In 2005 EJ was in the January Issue of RWD magazine as part of the It aint a London thing Article. This was a multi page write up which included interviews and pictures of EJ and other Artists(es) who were contributing to the music industry in a big way. This was an eye-opener for other labels, producers, etc which continually led to more and more interest being shown. Later on into the year, the UK saw EJs 2nd release which came out on A.R.M.Y. Bullet, this was the mighty remix of IMP Batch Fusion which also featured the original mix from FT and a 4x4 remix by Rossi B & Luca, this also made it to number 1 one in the Radio 1xtra charts! ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- December 21st 2005 was the big ARMY records showcase on Radio 1xtra where each of the ARMY members showcased there future releases and were interviewed by Richee Vibe Vee on The Blueprint. The Awesome EJ Soldierz EP was soon to be released which featured collaborations with some of the biggest MCs in the whole Grime scene such as B-live (The Committee), Riko (Roll Deep), Sier (Roll Deep), Faction G (The Committee) & Royal (Aftershock crew)! This was one of the biggest highlights in EJs music life since the love shown during and after the showcase was phenomenal and confirmed that it really aint just a London thing. By then more and more producers, DJ and especially MCs wanted to work with EJ. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- 2006 so far has seen the release of the EJ Soldierz e.p. on ARMY records and a rapid increase in DJing residences for many promotions including, Memory, Funky Thursdays, Pure Elegance, Four Four, D-Day, Illusions, Off da Hook plus more and with the 4x4 and speed garage scene rapidly growing, 2006 has also seen big forthcoming More2daFloor releases such as EJ vs Elephant man haters wanna war, EJ vs Sean Paul Temperature, EJ vs Mylo drop the pressure plus more to be announced. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- Now known to some as Sir EJ, Da Farda or even the Hulk Hogan of garage in Wolverhampton, (not forgetting him also being known for still saying his old school garage catchphrase but in the meantime! when on the mic), EJ (now signed to both ARMY & More2daFloor recordings) still continues to DJ & Produce at high quality whilst gaining maximum respect and love from the majority of the whole Garage scene whether its UKG, Grime, 4x4 and Speed. Whether you like it/him or not EJ is now way too big to ignore and without a doubt the biggest thing to come out of Wolves so far (and possibly the Whole of West Midlands) with regards to UKG, Grime & 4x4 . To be continued. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------------------- Don't forget to catch EJ on Midlands Underground 107FM (wwww.midlandsunderground.com for live stream) 4x4 & Speed Garage show Every sunday 4pm-6pm GMT. Studio number 07722 082 377. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ----------Also, a big shout to those that are feeling EJs EJucation 4x4/speed garage mix cds not forgetting a very big shout to the DJ's, Producers, record labels, etc. for the exclusives and unreleased tracks... really apreciated (keep them coming)!! ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- Watch out for future productions forthcoming on More2daFloor and Suited and Booted recording labels, also remixes for Sticky, Paleface & Rosie Gains and collaborations with the likes of Platnum and more big MCs on the Grime side of things. watch this space ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ---------------------------------------------------------- For those who would like their tracks showcased and promoted in the West Midlands and more via my mix cd's, nightclub promotions, residencies, radio and the internet then please feel free to email me... [email protected]. ------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------------------ ----------------------------------------------------------