THE PAST

 

DJ BFG started DJ'ing at the grand old age of fourteen, playing at house parties, at his local youth club in Hackney and anywhere else that would have him. He started to make a name for himself when he started his radio shows on Fresh F.M London a local pirate station based in East London. He carved out a reputation for himself playing a mixture of "gansta" rap, swing beat and ragga. He later moved onto Kick FM which had a much larger audience base, covering North and East London. It was at Kick FM that he met his first partner in crime Nore. He played mainly East Coast rap and Miami Bass, between the two of them they had it just about covered or so they thought!

 

It wasn't long before their listeners were asking where they could hear them playing out and they realised that they needed to form a sound system. The first and only name for their sound was "The Unusual Suspects". They were joined by Running Man, Playboy and Krafty MC and were soon holding their first raves "Visions" on Hackney Road. As their reputation increased, so did their fan base and sound system. The Unusual Suspects then gained even more MC's and DJ's including the infamous "Bury Crew" and "Mud Fam".

From 1996 BFG helped to form the real 'Unusual Suspects' and the 'Bury Crew'. Both were made up of Dj's, producers, rappers, singers and promoters who all had the aim of promoting and legitimising British Hip- hop. As a result of their collaboration, artists from all over the UK and France came together to perform, promote, produce and publish their own work. Other outputs were monthly club nights showcasing new talent, radio shows, under 18's weekly events, UK vs French events, UK tours, company sponsorship and partnership working with other promoters. BFG is proud to say that many British hip- hop artists featured in the charts today first appeared in front of a crowd at their events.

A DJ can only hide behind MC's and other peoples egos for so long. BFG had supported Phoebe One, Iceberg Slim, Roots Manuva, Fallacy and other UK performers whilst others had stood in the shadows, but still felt that he could be doing more. He became restless and after some time working with the Sony Street Team, Booyah (Germany) promoting their European artists and supporting the Afro Hair and Beauty Show, and decided that he needed to move on. It was a sad day that he left the Unusual Suspects, but can honestly say that he's never looked back since. He still maintains links with the London hip hop scene and can still be found "head bobbing with fools" at any UK event in the Midlands we need to support British talent in any form!

BFG moved to Derby to manage the Gatehouse in late1999.Yes, it was a culture shock. In Hackney everyone is a bedroom DJ or MC, in Derby you see the same heads in different disguises running so many events! Big up to the "Spacebass", "Off the Hook", "Soul Syndicate", "Technique" and "Interface" for keeping the torch burning and welcoming BFG with an open mind and open arms. The guys helped him to carve out his place here and see that although Derby may be smaller than London there is still live shit worth going too. Managing the Gatehouse proved to be a hard task for someone like BFG with no experience of drinking a real pint, never mind pulling one! He grafted, sweated buckets and nearly lost his mind in those early days, but it paid off and the Gatehouse is now on the map.

Being at the Gatehouse gave BFG the opportunity to work with who he wanted to work with. Artists such as So Solid Crew, Shola Ama, Fallacy, Firing Squad, Task Force and DJ Spooney were all there in the early days. He tried out new nights, new tunes and new ideas until he was weary. The Gatehouse was then put on the market, sold and taken over by new management - "Blended Leisure" and "Blend" was born. Nights like Technique, Blend and Interface gave BFG the opportunity to play at his full range, from dancehall to hip hop, to R'n'B. He has been privileged to be able to evolve as a DJ dependent upon the night and the crowd we're talking pure open minds here, new tunes, old tunes and off key tunes, he's been able to play them all!

Not many DJ's can say that they can cross boundaries - BFG can!

 

THE PRESENT

 

BFG can play to a thugged out crowd of pure hip hop lovers, or a rave full of rare groove heads and still have the dance floor rammed. In the last 12 months he's left the Gatehouse as Manager and worked alongside Westwood, Cash Money, DJ Skully, Shortee Blitz, Ruff Endz, Blak Twang, Rodney P, Fallacy, DJ Format and Jeru the Damaja to name a few.

In recent times BFG has been working on a number of pipeline projects.

The first is his own series of mixtapes. To date BFG has released five mixtapes (all available to purchase via this site). His latest collaboration with DJ Fever, is a intense party mixtape featuring classics from Busta Rhymes, Pitch Black, Tony Yayo and the Game to name but a few.

BFG has also recently linked up with Derby MC Alex Blood, as his stage show hype man and support. BFG adds an awesome presence on the stage and has plenty of experience as compere/hype man.

BFG has also featured in some of the UK's hottest music videos. From roles in Blade's forthcoming video 'Four Walls', to Mpho Skeef's current hot track 'Holla'.

Also look out for other DJ and MC mixtapes from BFG's giant land and the On the One family for sale on this site.

You can currently hear him at various venues across the Midlands and sometimes he even takes a trip back to Hackney Check out the rest of the site for more information.

 

THE FUTURE

 

MORE MIXTAPES

MORE SHOWS