Nelson J. Chu (September 16, 1976 – August 14, 2016), known professionally as DJ Official, was an American

Christian hip hop Christian hip hop (originally gospel rap, also known as Christian rap, gospel hip hop or holy hip hop) is a subgenre of contemporary Christian music and hip hop music. It emerged from urban contemporary music and Christian media in the United S ...

DJ. He was a member of the Christian hip hop collectives

116 Clique The 116, formerly 116 Clique (pronounced one-one-six click), is an American Southern Christian hip hop collective originally from Dallas, Texas signed to the Atlanta-based Reach Records. The group performs a wide variety of contemporary hip hop ...

and

The Cross Movement The Cross Movement was a Christian hip hop group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Members The Cross Movement (CM) which were composed of several rappers: The Ambassador (William Branch), The Tonic (John Wells), Phanatik (Brady Goodwin), an ...

Early life

DJ Official was born Nelson J. Chu, in

The Bronx The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...

, on September 16, 1976. He lived in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

during his childhood and later in Amityville, Long Island.

Personal life

DJ Official was married to Teresa Chu (née Belvisi), and together they had two daughters, Isabella and Sophia. They resided together in Lancaster, OH. He had a long-term battle with several health problems, On August 14, 2016, Chu died of complications following a double lung transplant.

Music career

DJ Official was a mentee of Hip hop artist

Cipha Sounds Cipha Sounds (born Luis Diaz; on April 19, 1976) is an American DJ, comedian, and radio and television personality of Puerto Rican descent. He is mostly known for his work as a DJ, a VJ for MTV and as a comedian. Biography Radio career In 19 ...

in the mid-1990s, when both got out of high school. He was a member in the

collective

. He released ''Entermission'' on December 29, 2009. It allowed him to crack the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' charts with his first album.

Cross Rhythms Cross Rhythms is a Christian media organisation based in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It operates an FM and online radio station, produces radio shows sent internationally, and its website has resources about contemporary Christian music. Hi ...

rated the album a nine out of ten, and

Rapzilla Rapzilla is a Christian hip hop online magazine. The website contains many sections such as latest news, album reviews, articles, interviews, music downloads, videos, release dates, and columns. Rapzilla is known for its up-to-date news. The we ...

said "With Entermission DJ Official did much more than cement his legacy as a producer." DJ Official was also a part of American-based Christian Hip Hop rap group The Cross Movement and collaborated with many other Cross Movement Records artist such as, Da TRUTH and Flame to name a few. He served (Cross Movement) faithfully as their DJ for eight years in the mid 1990s into early 2000s and has been a long time friend thereafter.

Discography

Studio albums

Extended plays

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Official, DJ 1976 births 2016 deaths American rappers American performers of Christian music Performers of Christian hip hop music Rappers from New York (state) Rappers from Philadelphia Rappers from the Bronx Reach Records artists