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DJ Grooverider

One of the most highly respected icons of dance music worldwide for more than two decades, Grooverider has never stopped pushing innovation in Drum & Bass music. He pulled apart the elements of acid house in the late 80's and helped reform them into what became known as Jungle, then progressed into Drum and Bass

As one of the figures synonymous with the origins of drum & bass, Grooverider has become a cipher for the sound of a generation.  In the close- knit social circles of drum & bass, the mention of his name, which reads like a definition of the art of djing, inspires nothing but the utmost respect and admiration due to the fact that he has held the torch aloft for this music for so many years.

DJ Grooverider Biography

Groove has been riding the rhythm for over ten years.  In the mid-eighties having decided he wanted to be a DJ, Grooverider, along with some friends, formed a sound system called Global Rhythm, playing hip hop, rare groove and funk at house parties.  Next came a slot on a local South London pirate station, Phaze One, which proved to be a defining time.  Swept up in the summer of love, Grooverider used to frequent West End clubs such as Land of Oz and Spectrum.  Grooverider then met his partner Fabio and formed what would come to be the dream team of drum & bass.  '"When acid house came in ‘87, it took me and I haven't looked back since." enthuses Grooverider, "Fabio was the only other person on the radio station playing house music, so we just hooked up.  We have always worked well together, we play the same music and on the same wavelength."

The first club they ran together was a tiny venue in Brixton called Mendoza’s, which soon became the after-party spot rammed with clubbers returning from the West End on Thursday nights.  They used the club as a base to further their reputations and started to get bookings as a team.  "It got to the stage where one of us would be there and the other was somewhere else," recalls Groove, "you can't do a whole country together - you have to split up and do the same job.  But to this day, if we get the opportunity to play together then we do.  The importance of playing out together when we were younger was that we learnt from each other, and we still do.  You never stop learning."

A DJ's work is never done.  Like a force of nature, the DJ directs the unending flow of fresh sounds.  It's a job that takes a total commitment to learning the music.  "You've got to do research.  You've got to know what's going on all the time.  People think you just go into a record shop, buy some music and play it.  It's not like that.  As a proper DJ, you have to do research.  Find out why people are dancing and what's making them dance.  You’re got to do your homework by watching other people and hearing the music."

Groove contends that one of the most important factors to insure a steady stream of bookings in consistency, "Do your job to the best of your ability, all the time, and every time.  It's not how good you play in one place; it's about how you play everywhere."