Steve "Smooth" Sutherland was a British DJ. He produced music in various genres, including R&B Hip Hop, 2 step vocals,

4x4 Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...

, and grime.

DJ career and radio shows

Sutherland was a club DJ, radio presenter, voiceover artist, and

television presenter A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for ...

. He has done much work in clubs and radio shows within the Urban genre. He has released 12 'live' studio albums, seven of which have reached the Top 40 compilation charts in the UK. Sutherland has won four MOBO Awards. Sutherland got his first break in radio via an introduction from the then- BBC Radio 1 producer Ivor Etienne, (who dubbed him 'Steve 'Smooth' Sutherland'), to the then-controller of Radio 1, Matthew Bannister, to host a four-hour radio show encompassing Hip Hop, R&B, Soul, UK Garage,

Dancehall Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially, dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s.Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) "The Rou ...

and

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 ...

. He enlisted Seamus Haji, and after that brief foray, did various radio mixes for Kiss 100, before London's Choice FM approached him in 2000. He then brought co-host Asha on board; the duo had one of the most successful shows on Choices' new sister station Choice 107.1, with two shows during the week. Sutherland quickly picked up on the craft of running a successful radio program and went on to guest-host other shows on Choice FM 96.9. After only five months at Choice FM, he won his 1st best DJ award at the MOBO Awards ceremony, where he was approached by various radio stations. He left Choice FM to host a networked Sunday show on

Galaxy FM Galaxy was a radio network owned by Global Radio and broadcast across the British Isles on FM in regional areas of England and Scotland, through the digital platform with Sky and DAB and online respectively. Stations included stations: Galaxy Bi ...

and was offered the 9pm1am time slot, following the stations headlining talent Hed Kandi. The popularity of his radio show quickly began to overtake competitive shows on other stations (in the Rajarratings), where he quickly gained a large fan base. The Steve Sutherland Show broadcast every Saturday and Sunday night on the entire Galaxy Network (

Galaxy Birmingham Capital Birmingham is a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Capital radio network. It broadcasts to Birmingham from studios at Brindleyplace in Birmingham City Centre. In April 2019, Capital Birmingham was merg ...

, Galaxy Manchester,

Galaxy North East Capital North East is a regional radio station owned and operated by Global as part of the Capital network. It broadcasts to North East England from studios in Newcastle upon Tyne. The station launched on 1 June 1999 as Galaxy 105–106, ren ...

Galaxy Scotland Capital Scotland (formerly known as Beat 106, XFM Scotland, and later Galaxy Scotland) is a regional radio station owned by Communicorp UK and operated by Global. It broadcasts to Scotland's Central Belt, an area surrounding the two cities o ...

, Galaxy South Coast,

Galaxy Yorkshire Capital Yorkshire is a regional radio station owned by Global as part of the Capital network. It broadcasts to South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, the East Riding of Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire from studios in Leeds, West Yorkshire, Englan ...

and

Galaxy Digital Galaxy Digital was a radio station broadcasting through the digital platform across the United Kingdom and was owned by Global Radio. It primarily broadcast in areas where Galaxy was not represented on FM, such as London, Leicester, Nottingham, ...

). On 1 December 2008,

Global Radio Global Media & Entertainment Limited, trading as Global, is a British media company formed in 2007. It is the owner of the largest commercial radio company in Europe having expanded through a number of historical acquisitions, including Chrysa ...

, owners of

Galaxy Radio Galaxy was a radio network owned by Global Radio and broadcast across the British Isles on FM in regional areas of England and Scotland, through the digital platform with Sky and DAB and online respectively. Stations included stations: Galaxy ...

, suspended Sutherland along with his producer, after a number of listeners complained about offensive lyrics on a song played on his Saturday night show at 9:58pm on 29 November 2008. The song was

Arab Money "Arab Money" is a song by American hip hop recording artist Busta Rhymes, released as the lead single from his eighth studio album '' Back on My B.S.'' (2009). The song features production and vocals by fellow New York City-based rapper Ron Brow ...

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver ...

. Following a one-week suspension and a full investigation, Ofcom, the independent regulator and competition authority for the UK communications industries, deemed that Sutherland and Galaxy Radio were not in breach of industry codes or regulations. The report concluded that "the programme was not in breach of Rule 2.3" and "noted that the practice of sampling content from a diverse range of sources is common in this genre of music." Sutherland's weekly shows on 'Galaxy FM' continued until the station network was rebranded Capital FM in 2011. A founding DJ of urban club brand Twice As Nice, he held residencies at Pacha Ibiza,

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 ...

, Gatecrasher and Cookies and Cream London.

Death

Sutherland died on 10 July 2020, just a few days before his birthday (15 July).DJ Steve Sutherland dies
''Birminghammail.co.uk'' Retrieved 12 July 2020.

Awards

* 2000: Sutherland was voted winner of the "Best Club DJ" at the MOBO Awards in London. * 2002: Steve Sutherland was voted winner of the "Best Club & Radio DJ" at the MOBO Awards * 2004: Sutherland was voted winner of the "Best Club DJ" at the MOBO Awards * 2006: Sutherland was voted winner of the "Best Club & Radio DJ" at the MOBO Awards

References

External links

Official site of Steve Sutherland

Steve Sutherland MySpace profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sutherland, Steve British DJs Place of birth missing Year of birth missing 2020 deaths Place of death missing