DJ EZ (pronounced "DJ ee zed") is a

UK garage UK garage, abbreviated as UKG, is a genre of electronic dance music which originated in England in the early to mid-1990s. The genre was most clearly inspired by garage house, but also incorporates elements from dance-pop, R&B, and jungle. It ...

DJ from

Tottenham Tottenham () is a town in North London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, bordering Edmonton to the north, Waltham ...

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nort ...

. He was one of the earliest proponents of UK garage music, hosting a long-running

Kiss 100 Kiss is a British digital radio station owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Kiss Network. It is primarily aimed at the 15-34 age group and broadcasts nationally to the UK on DAB Digital Radio, as well as on FM in London, Bristol an ...

radio show and mixing the ''

Pure Garage ''Pure Garage'' is a successful series of UK garage compilation albums. Nearly all of them are mixed by DJ EZ. In January 2000, Warner Music chose Kiss 100's DJ EZ to mix ''Pure Garage'', a new garage compilation CD. ''Pure Garage'' went on to ...

'' series of compilations.

Biography

DJ EZ was born in London and raised in

, North London. His early discovery and love of

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

, hip hop and electro led to listening to

pirate radio Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially w ...

and recording early mixes in the hope to land a show on them. He is a supporter of

Tottenham Hotspur F.C. Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

Radio

DJ EZ first started DJing on the

station Dance 93FM, playing

house music House is a music genre characterized by a repetitive Four on the floor (music), four-on-the-floor beat and a typical tempo of 120 beats per minute. It was created by Disc jockey, DJs and music producers from Chicago metropolitan area, Chicago' ...

. At this time, he was known as Easy O. When the station was shutdown, EZ set up his own station based in North London called Dimension FM, which was short-lived. In 1994, EZ submitted a demo tape to then leading London house and garage

station Freek FM 101.8, which led to him hosting a 4-hour Saturday and Sunday mornings. It was also at this time that he changed his DJ name to EZ. EZ's first appearances on

commercial radio Commercial broadcasting (also called private broadcasting) is the broadcasting of television programs and radio programming by privately owned corporate media, as opposed to state sponsorship. It was the United States′ first model of radio (an ...

were to cover for Steve Jackson and Bobby & Steve's shows on

. He was then asked to cover for

Tuff Jam Tuff Jam are a British DJ, music production and remixing duo consisting of Karl 'Tuff Enuff' Brown and Matt 'Jam' Lamont. They began working together in 1993, and were instrumental in developing the UK garage sound. They presented a radio sho ...

when they were unable to make their show, and in November 1999, this led to Kiss offering a permanent show on Tuesday mornings 2-4am. Shortly after, he was given a primetime show on Saturday nights 7-9pm called "Saturday Satisfaction", and then another show on Friday nights 10-11pm called "The Hour of Power". The Friday night show would then become called "Destination Weekend" from 10pm-12am, and in 2002, the Saturday show moved to 5-7pm. From March to November 2008, EZ hosted a Saturday show called "The Bassline Mix" from 10-11pm across the

Kiss Network The Kiss Network is a network of radio stations in the United Kingdom, owned by Bauer Media Audio UK, focusing on the 15-34 age group. According to RAJAR, the network broadcasts to a combined weekly audience of 4.2 million with a listening sha ...

. The show featured

and

bassline Bassline (also known as a bass line or bass part) is the term used in many styles of music, such as blues, jazz, funk, Dub music, dub and electronic music, electronic, traditional music, traditional, or classical music for the low-pitched Part ( ...

anthems in the mix. From March to September 2014, EZ hosted a 3-hour Thursday night show from 9pm-12am. On 4 September 2014, he announced that his Kiss radio show had finally come to an end after 14 years on air. EZ is currently the host of Nuvolve Radio, a syndicated radio show heard in more than 30 countries that is named after the record label he founded in 2020 with his manager.

Club career and awards

DJ EZ started his own weekly

club night Club may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Club'' (magazine) * Club, a ''Yie Ar Kung-Fu'' character * Clubs (suit), a suit of playing cards * Club music * "Club", by Kelsea Ballerini from the album ''kelsea'' Brands and enterprises ...

called Club Z at the Gass Club in

Leicester Square Leicester Square ( ) is a pedestrianised square in the West End of London, England. It was laid out in 1670 as Leicester Fields, which was named after the recently built Leicester House, itself named after Robert Sidney, 2nd Earl of Leicester ...

. As the UK garage scene broke mainstream, he has been synonymous with raves and nights such as Exposure, Twice As Nice, Garage Nation, Pure Silk, Sun City, Frisky and Club Sidewinder. EZ has won many awards over the years, including 'Club DJ of the Year' at the 1998 Underground Garage Awards, 'Best DJ' at the 2000 and 2002 UK Garage Awards, and 'Best DJ', 'Best Old School DJ' and 'Best Radio Show' at the 2004 People's Choice Music Awards in London.

24-hour charity set

On 10 February 2016, DJ EZ announced that he would be playing a 24-hour set, with all proceeds going to

Cancer Research UK Cancer Research UK (CRUK) is the world's largest independent cancer research organization. It is registered as a charity in the United Kingdom and Isle of Man, and was formed on 4 February 2002 by the merger of The Cancer Research Campaign and t ...

. This took place on 27–28 February 2016, and was live streamed on his website and Boiler Room.

Production

DJ EZ has released a number of his own productions, and is especially known for his remix of the

B-15 Project B-15 Project are a UK garage duo, originally consisting of members Angus Campbell and Ian Wallman. They are best known for the hit song " Girls Like Us" which peaked at number 7 on the UK Singles Chart in June 2000. DJ/producer Danny Wynn worked ...

track "Feels So Good". He is also well known for compiling and mixing the long-running ''

'' mixed compilation series.

Discography

Singles and EPs

* ''4 Track E.P.'' (Undercover Kutz, 1998) * ''The Next Chapter EP'' (Z Records, 2002) * ''One for All EP'' (One Recordings, 2002) * "Just Turn It Up"/"The Overground" (One Recordings, 2003)

Remixes

(featuring

Shola Ama Shola Ama (born 8 March 1979) is a British singer from London, who scored her biggest hits with "You Might Need Somebody" (1997), a cover of Randy Crawford's 1981 hit, " You're the One I Love" and "Still Believe" (1999) which was one of the fi ...

and

Ms Dynamite Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley (born 26 April 1981), better known as Ms. Dynamite, is a British singer and rapper. She is the recipient of the Mercury Music Prize, two Brit Awards and three MOBO Awards. Early years She was born Niomi Arleen Mc ...

) - "Feels So Good" (

Relentless Relentless may refer to: Film * ''Relentless'' (1948 film), an American film directed by George Sherman * ''Relentless'', a 1977 American television film starring Will Sampson * ''Relentless'' (1989 film), an American crime film starring Jud ...

, 2001)

Mixes/compilations

* ''Pure Garage I/II/III'' (Warner, 2000) * ''Pure Garage IV/V'' (Warner, 2001) * ''Pure Garage Presents Bass Breaks & Beats'' (Warner, 2001) * ''Pure Garage Platinum The Very Best of...'' (Warner, 2002) * ''Bass Breaks & Beats 2003'' (Warner, 2002) * ''Pure Garage Classics'' (Warner, 2003) * ''Pure Garage Presents Four to the Floor'' (Warner, 2003) * ''Pure Garage Presents The Main Room Sessions'' (Warner, 2005) * ''Pure Garage Rewind Back to the Old Skool'' (Warner, 2007) * ''Pure Garage Presents Pure Bassline'' (Warner, 2008) * ''Ministry of Sound Presents DJ EZ - Essential Garage Collection'' (

Ministry of Sound Ministry of Sound or Ministry of Sound Group is a multimedia entertainment business based in London with a nightclub, shared workspace and private members' club, worldwide events operation, music publishing business and fitness studio. James ...

, 2009) * ''

FabricLive.71 ''FabricLive.71'' is a DJ mix album by English DJ, DJ EZ. The album was released as part of the FabricLive Mix Series. Track listing References External links *FabricLive.71at Fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various ...

'' (

Fabric Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...

, 2013)

References

External links

DJ EZ's official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ez, Dj Black British DJs UK garage musicians Club DJs DJs from London English record producers Living people Kiss Network Electronic dance music DJs Year of birth missing (living people)