Justin Vee
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Biografía
- Justin Vee recalls the moment when house music stole his soul. Inspired by anthems like Josh Wink’s “A Higher State of Consciousness”, B-Code’s “Feel Good” & Paula Abdul’s “My Love Is For Real” (MK’s Dub) his love affair with electronic music began on..As a teenager, parties held by his friends became the informal training ground to Justin’s early DJ endeavours. Years later, the desire to be heard stronger than ever, Justin was fortunate enough to be taken under the wing of three of SA’s top DJ’s at the time, Paul Almeida, Mario Viegas & DJ Spiro. Under the watchful gaze and careful direction of his newfound mentors, Justin was able to take the final leap from dedicated dance floor punter to professional DJ ‘playa’. He burst onto the party scene in 1996 at Johannesburg’s legendary Sunday playground, ESP. Justin’s fine-tuned funky house skills left clubbers in complete awe and made an immediate and indelible impact. His popularity and profile soared instantly. In the space of only 8 months, Justin had moved swiftly through the ranks, cemented his status and landed residencies at mega-clubs ESP, Nexus and for party brand, Slippery ‘n’ Wet, followed by Exodus, Gates & The Workshop Concurrent to his burgeoning progress behind the decks, it seemed almost pre ordained when Justin joined the BMG Record family and workforce, following in the footsteps of his patriarch and siblings. In his capacity as sound engineer for BMG Studios South Africa, Justin went on to record many of SA’s finest artists including; Just Jinjer, Watershed, Amersham, Louise Carver, Arno Castens, Gift Gwe, Judith Sephuma, Jody, Vusi Mahlaselha, Heinz Winkler, the Soweto String Quartet, Idols & Project Fame contestants, Grannysmith, Loyiso Bala, and many others. He also worked closely with TKZee on three of the band’s most successful albums, stayed and still working for BMG right through into their merger to become Sony BMG now Sony Music Entertainment . For the last 15 years, music became Justin’s life, quite literally, 24-7. And he loved it! Immersing himself in studio during down time and at home, Justin also composes original dance music as well as material suitable for radio and TV ads for the French and South African markets. Continuously evolving with the music, Justin’s accomplished productions are inspiring contributions to the world of house music, which always elevate his audience. He cites the success of “Get Together”, his collaboration with Adrian Shannon of Grannysmith, as the most memorable moment of his production career. The track charted in the Top 10 on every major radio station in SA, reached the No. 1 position twice on 94.7 Highveld Stereo’s Homebrew and was featured on “The Hits 15” and “Club Anthems 2006” albums which had combined sales of over 60 000 units. Other noteworthy singles include; “Enjoy This Feeling” featuring vocals from Veronique a.k.a .“V” of Idols fame; “Sunrise” featuring vocals by Alicia which charted in the Top 10 across various radio stations and was named one of the Top 40 songs of 2007 by 94.7 Highveld Stereo; Idols runner up Gift Gwe’s, “Back To You” co-written by Justin Vee and title to his debut album; Idols winner, Jody “Never Knew Love Like This Before” and during 2009 Louise Carver’s “Time Is A Healer” which was remixed by Justin Vee and charted on Top 100 nationwide airplay charts climbing as high as No. 3 on Take 40 SA during June of 2009, the track cracked the nod to appear on the well known compilation, ”The Hits 21”. Whilst still gigging at ESP, Justin’s first foray into the retail music environment ensued when he was asked to mix one of a series of ten limited edition EPs. He subsequently mixed other commercial releases including Funky House Vol. 1; Clubland SA, a CD compilation between himself and Manuel Oettl; Serious Beats Vol. 2 and Just Funky and Just Too Funky, consisting of seriously, super-funky beats courtesy of Justin Vee and friends. Then in 2007 Justin was invited to come aboard what is, without doubt, one of the most successful, quality dance compilation brands of the last decade, House Anthems. The brainchild of Kevin Grenfell (of 5FM’s Vinyl Frontier fame) & Ricardo Da Costa (Soul Candi), House Anthems has built a reputation on raising the roof and pleasing the masses by time and again delivering the freshest, fiery staples of hits and club anthems. House Anthems 5 mixed by Kevin Grenfell and Justin Vee exceeded sales of 10 000 copies within the first 30 days of release! Sticking with this winning formula, the 6th installment released in early 2008 was filled true to form, ‘wall-to-wall’ with some of the biggest and best anthems of the moment! In 2008 the massively successful dance franchise returned in its 7th incantation after undergoing major renovations and extension. For the first time ever a triple disc monster, the album featured 3 of SA’s most applauded DJ’s, series initiator Kevin Grenfell, Dean FUEL and Justin Vee once more. And in 2009, House Anthems 8 saw the return of Kevin Grenfell and Justin alongside Roger D’lux to whip your Friday night into a right royal frenzy. Kevin’s contribution all adventurous, Justin the party starter par excellence and Roger the scratch master and technical whiz kid, they once again did not fail to impress. 2010 saw the return of yet another heart stopping, party popping release of House Anthems 9 with the usual suspects, Kevin Grenfell, Justin Vee and Roger D’lux. Over the course of Justin’s illustrious career he has played alongside some of the biggest names in the global industry including Layo & Bushwacka, Shapeshifters, Hoxton Whores, Sharam Jay, Style of Eye, Chris Lake, Cosmic Gate, Eddie Halliwell, Paul van Dyk and Fatboy Slim amongst many others too numerous to mention. It’s been a steady rise from the infamous raves of the early 90s, to his legendary residencies at ESP, Nexus, and Sutra and for Africa’s biggest dance event, H2O. Anyone drafting an ‘A-list’ of SA’s most in-demand DJs will not only find the name “Justin Vee” nearest the top, but discover that few, if any, have played the gig circuit for as long and as consistently as this legend has. Over the years Justin has remained loyal to a sound underpinned by seriously infectious baselines, funk-infused rhythm and that always-hypnotic groove. With an unbiased fascination for all good electronic music and the recognition that the key to stirring excitement and compelling a crowd to move lies the baseline, Justin has developed a style which draws from all genres of house from the tech tinged and funk edged to twisted electro house. And his distinctive drum driven, energy fuelled style renders him accessible to almost any dance floor. Today, with no less than three massive radio hits, seven Top 40 singles and eleven DJ mixed albums to his name, record industry producer and chart topping songwriter Justin Vee attributes his many achievements to his deeply rooted musical background. And it is that, coupled with an engaging personality, natural exuberance and his infectious enthusiasm for the music he produces and plays which easily rubs off on and enthralls every crowd Justin Vee performs to. It is no surprise then that Justin Vee’s star remains firmly in the ascendant and his, is a future that shines bright. Plans for 2011 include 2 more DJ mixed albums under the House Anthems brand and the introduction of an as yet untitled Justin Vee solo album compilation series. On a production front, Justin will also be dedicating his time to the production of some brand new radio releases. As one of the hardest working names in the local industry, Justin Vee is the definitive DJ and producer, renowned for his ability to spot a hit record a mile off and a technical proficiency second to none. Justin has never taken the easy path to success. A DJ whose passion for house music overthrows the boundaries of merely playing records and truly sets him apart from his peers! more: The DJ List | TDJL http://thedjlist.com/djs/JUSTIN_VEE/bio/#ixzz14oNnuhJn̸ESP EP 7 mixed by Justin Vee [Gallo] (1997) Funky House mixed by Justin Vee & Lalicia [USM] (1999) Clubland SA mixed by Justin Vee & Manual Oettl [DGR) (2001) Serious Beats Vol 2 mixed by Justin Vee & Heat seeker [BMG] (2002) Just Funky mixed by Justin Vee [BMG] (2003) Just Too Funky mixed by Justin Vee [Sony BMG] (2004) House Anthems Vol. 5 mixed by Kevin Grenfell & Justin Vee [EMI] (2007) House Anthems Vol. 6 mixed by Kevin Grenfell & Justin Vee [EMI] (2008) House Anthems Vol. 7 mixed by Kevin Grenfell & Justin Vee & Dean Fuel (2008) House Anthems Vol. 8 mixed by Kevin Grenfell, Justin Vee & Roger D’lux (2009) House Anthems Vol. 9 [mixed by Kevin Grenfell, Justin Vee & Roger D’lux (2010) House Anthems Vol. X [mixed by Kevin Grenfell & Justin Vee (2011) House Anthems Vol. 11 [mixed by Kevin Grenfell, Justin Vee & G-Funk (2012)
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