The Big Dawg

Was it a big move for you to join Radio 1 back in 1994?

My DJ career was in London and I was on Capital for seven years. I never listened to Radio 1 – I didn’t know where it was on the dial – so when they originally asked me to go there I was interested, I wasn’t paying it attention. My whole life was in London so I didn’t really know about getting out there… I went there as an independent production company, which meant I was set up as myself, employing my own people. I had a lot of good people around me and suddenly I could give them jobs. When I joined Radio 1 with my independent production company, within a year I got the reggae show on there with Chris Goldfinger and some other shows came off the back of that. So it was a big difference and it’s what really changed my life.

You mostly specialise in hip hop, so what do you think of the criticisms levelled at hip hop, that is promotes violence and drug culture?

I think what you’ve got to understand about hip hop, is that it really is reflecting what’s going on out there. It’s the last voice of some inner-city communities, so they’re reflecting what’s happening in their lives. And just like movies or video games, certain things are glamorised, but if you’re telling your life story from your perspective you might want to glamorise it – you don’t want to say, I’ve got little opportunity, I ain’t got a girl, I ain’t having a good time out there… And it is entertainment.  But where hip hop is right now, is it’s about partying and having a good time and being up in the club. Big artists like Nicki Minaj, Drake, Lil Wayne, they’re rhyming about having a good time and things that young people are going through.

With UK hip hop and grime, you definitely have a lot more black anger in the music, but that’s from people in hardship, in situations with little opportunity, little way out, and so it’s right that they have a way to vent their voice and express their frustration. It’s far too easy to blame music, which is really a reflection of life, for causing problems. There are far bigger problems for young people than the music they listen to – things like their families, their upbringing, their housing conditions, their job opportunities… I think blaming music is really a short cut and you’re not addressing the real issues. Economic and social disadvantage – they’re the issues which are creating problems and are reflected in music like grime.

Why do you think your show is so popular in prisons?

I think [prisoners] can really relate to the music – it’s as simple as that… Nearly every event I do, someone will come up to me and say that they rode their whole jail sentence listening to me on a Saturday night. I think in a lot of ways, if my radio show can be some release from the hardship and boredom of jail on a Saturday night, and give an outlet to release some of that tension… I think it’s important to show some love. I’m not involved in any sort of punishment – that’s done by the judicial system – so me just doing some shout outs from people at home sending shout outs for their loved ones, well we’ve always thought that’s just a cool thing to do for them.

Is connecting with prisoners through radio something you’ve always wanted to do?

I think I’ve been so blessed in life. I’ve achieved so much and I’ve been given so much. And I think you have a moral obligation to give back. One of the things I can give back is my time and commitment, so there are certain things that I really believe in supporting. I also feel for young people. The difference between being in jail or not can just be one mistake, and one mistake that anybody could make. I have a lot of time to give to prisoners – they’ve always supported me and enjoyed the show.

National Prison Radio is available in 65 prisons across England and Wales.
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