David Rodigan
| Sir David Rodigan | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Roddy, Ram Jam |
| Born | 24 June 1951 |
| Origin | England |
| Genres | Reggae, dancehall |
| Occupations | Actor/DJ |
David Michael Rodigan MBE (born 24 June 1951 on a military base in Hanover, Germany[1]) is a British radio DJ who also performs as a selector for his sound system. Known for his selections of reggae and dancehall music, he has played on stations including Radio London, Capital 95.8, Kiss 100 and BFBS Radio 1.
He has stated that his passion for Jamaican music was initiated by watching Millie Small perform her 1964 hit My Boy Lollipop at the Ready Steady Go! TV show as a school boy.[2] By the age of 15, David Rodigan was DJing at school dances and youth clubs. Leaving school in 1970, he spent a year studying economics before leaving to study drama. Despite pursuing an acting career, Rodigan kept his passion for music alive, selling records in Oxford then Putney, before obtaining a job on Radio London in 1978 to alternate with Tony Williams on the Reggae Rockers programme. A year later he was offered a permanent slot at Capital Radio to present Roots Rockers, which ran for 11 years. In 1990 a change in management and music policy at the station lead to David leaving to start a new show for Kiss FM when it relaunched that September as London's first legal 24-hour dance music station. He currently hosts the Sunday night slot from 11pm till 1am.
Rodigan has clashed established soundsystems like Bodyguard, Killamanjaro (selected by Ricky Trooper),[3] Stone Love, Barry G[4] and Bass Odyssey.[5]
He has acted as tour DJ for reggae and dancehall artists including Shinehead.
During the 1970s and 1980s, Rodigan also worked as an actor and appeared in a variety of TV programmes, including a part in the Doctor Who serial, The Mysterious Planet.
In 2006, Rodigan was added to the Radio Academy hall of fame.[2][6]
He attended Gosford Hill School, Kidlington.[7]
Vocal samples of Rodigan can be found on the dubstep track "Together" by Breakage,[8] on the introductory track of Caspa's 2009 Album Everybody's Talking, Nobody's Listening, and on the intro to Alborosie's debut album "Soul Pirate", and the main vocal of Sukh Knight's "Ganja",[9] plus countless other jungle/drum & bass tracks. Ad-Rock mentions Rodigan by name on the 2011 Beastie Boys track 'Say It'.[10]
He is the DJ for RamJam FM in Grand Theft Auto: Episodes From Liberty City.
Rodigan was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2012 New Year Honours for services to broadcasting.[11]
[edit] References
- ^ David Rodigan BFBS portrait
- ^ a b David Rodigan Biography at the Radio Academy web site
- ^ Interviews - David Rodigan
- ^ Article : David Rodigan in Antwerp on Saturday 19 February, 2000
- ^ Köhlings, Ellen; Pete Lilly (January 2007). "Riddim Soundclash - All About The Music". Riddim. http://www.riddim.de/feature.php?id=583. Retrieved 22 January 2012.
- ^ [1]
- ^ Namesco. A World Apart
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxQV0gU4HKg
- ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NTJpQO_ato
- ^ http://soundcloud.com/beastieboys/say-it
- ^ London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 60009. p. 21. 31 December 2011.
[edit] External links
- David Rodigan on Kiss 100
- David Rodigan discography at Discogs
- David Rodigan at the Internet Movie Database
- David Rodigan on Myspace
- Nazma Muller: David Rodigan - the Gentleman Rude Bwoy
