Dexter Jones

🎧 WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A DJ WITH DECADES OF EXPERIENCE TAKES THE GAMBLE OF PUTTING ON HIS OWN EVENT?

In this episode of The Dexter Jones Podcast, Birmingham DJ and producer Rue Jay returns for another fascinating conversation about the realities of the DJ industry, overcoming self-doubt, knowing your worth and rediscovering your passion for music.

Despite years of experience behind the decks, Rue Jay admits he was absolutely terrified when his agent encouraged him to launch his own event, RUE'D, at the legendary Rainbow in Birmingham.

Would anyone actually turn up?

With only around 50 initial sign-ups, his confidence wasn't exactly flying. But what happened next took him completely by surprise.

🔥 THE EVENT SOLD OUT IN JUST 48 HOURS, WITHOUT EVEN REACHING GENERAL SALE!

Rue Jay opens up about the emotions behind that incredible achievement, the importance of believing in yourself and why putting on your own events can completely change how promoters and agents value you.

We also get into some of the less glamorous realities of the electronic music industry, including booking fees, industry politics, egos, social media negativity and the challenges of building a sustainable career.

Chapters:

00:00 Introduction: It's So F***ing Scary!

🎙️ IN THIS EPISODE, WE DISCUSS:

• The fear of launching his own event and why he nearly talked himself out of it

• How his first RUE'D sold out in just 48 hours

• The emotional Birmingham homecoming at The Rainbow

• Why some DJs struggle to negotiate better booking fees

• The problem with accepting £150 gigs and then trying to increase your value

• The importance of good agents and management

• DJ egos, jealousy and negativity on social media

• Rediscovering his passion for music production

• Working with established artists and achieving Beatport success

• Balancing DJing, family life and running three tattoo studios

• Plans for more RUDE events, including Birmingham and potentially London

• Why proving you can sell tickets can be a game changer for your career

💬 It's an honest, entertaining conversation about the highs and lows of working in dance music, and a reminder that even the most experienced artists can struggle with confidence and self-belief.

Rue Jay's previous appearance, featuring the incredible story of Carl Cox playing his music at UNVRS Ibiza, is also available on the channel.

🎧 WATCH PART 1: https://youtu.be/Tu9uf6GAt3g

If you enjoy conversations about Ibiza, house music, UK club culture, DJ careers and the people behind electronic music, please subscribe to The Dexter Jones Podcast.

👇 And as always, I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments.

Would YOU have the confidence to put on an event under your own name?

Carl Cox closed the historic opening of UNVRS Ibiza with Rue Jay's track, and Rue had absolutely no idea it was going to happen!

This wasn't just another night in Ibiza. It was the very first night of UNVRS, the spectacular new superclub created following the takeover and transformation of the legendary Privilege Ibiza, once the world's largest nightclub.

And as Carl Cox brought his extended opening set to a close, with the sun rising over Ibiza, he chose to finish with a track by Birmingham DJ and producer Rue Jay.

The incredible part? Rue hadn't even sent Carl Cox the track!

In Part 1 of the Dexter Jones Podcast, Rue tells me the extraordinary story of how he discovered what had happened, and why that moment meant so much after years away from the music industry.

We also travel back through Birmingham's legendary clubbing history, from Godskitchen and Sundissential to The Steering Wheel, the Rainbow and RocknRolla.

Rue shares his journey from carrying boxes of vinyl around Birmingham hoping for a DJing opportunity to promoting hugely successful club nights, taking RocknRolla to Ibiza and eventually stepping away from music to build his Vivid Ink tattoo business.

We discuss the changing music industry, working with Premier League footballers, the pressures of running events and the moment Rue rediscovered his love of DJing.

It's a fascinating journey through British dance music history, entrepreneurship, Ibiza and the extraordinary moments that remind us why we fell in love with this music in the first place.

Chapters: 

00:00 Introduction: Carl Cox, UNVRS and Rue Jay's Comeback

This is Part 1 of my conversation with Rue Jay. Part 2 is coming next week!

If you enjoy genuine conversations about Ibiza, dance music, clubbing history and the people behind the scene, please subscribe to the Dexter Jones Podcast.

Question for the comments: Were you at Privilege Ibiza back in the day, or have you experienced the new UNVRS? I'd love to hear your memories!

Thanks for watching!

Dexter 💛

What really happened the day the legendary Space Ibiza terrace came to life? And what made the great clubs of the 1990s and 2000s so extraordinary?

In the third and final part of my conversation with Dave Beer, the legendary founder of Back to Basics, we explore some fascinating stories from the history of British and Ibiza clubbing.

Dave shares an incredible first-hand account of being at Space Ibiza when Brandon, Alex, Mitch and the team decided to carry the club's only set of DJ decks outside, one at a time, and set them up on the terrace bar. A simple decision that helped create one of the most iconic dancefloors in clubbing history.

We also revisit the extraordinary world of Manumission, where music, theatre, lighting and outrageous performances combined to create something completely different from anything else on the island.

But this conversation goes much further than Ibiza.

Dave talks about the evolution of Back to Basics, his initial reluctance to embrace daytime clubbing, and the incredible response when people returned to the dancefloor after 10, 15 or even 20 years away.

We explore his approach to nightclub design, the influence of New York's legendary Sound Factory, the importance of sound and lighting, and why creating the perfect atmosphere involves far more than simply booking a great DJ.

There's also a fascinating conversation about Dave's music production, his album released through Steve Mac's label, his connection with Irvine Welsh, and how his experiences with Buddhism, spirituality and travelling in the Amazon have shaped his outlook on life.

From the madness of Manumission to the magic of the Space terrace, this is a conversation about music, creativity, friendship, personal growth and a lifetime spent bringing people together.

Chapters: 

00:00 The Birth of the Legendary Space Ibiza Terrace

In this episode:

- The incredible story behind the beginnings of the Space Ibiza terrace

A huge thank you to Dave for sharing his stories so openly across this three-part series. It's been an absolute pleasure.

DAVE BEER | BACK TO BASICS | Episode 2

What happens when the party becomes bigger than anyone ever imagined? And what happens when the man behind it all finds himself facing some of life's darkest moments?

In Part 2 of my conversation with legendary Back to Basics founder Dave Beer, we explore the extraordinary highs, devastating lows and unforgettable characters behind one of Britain's most influential club nights.

Dave speaks openly and emotionally about losing his close friend and business partner Ali, the difficult years that followed, and how grief led him down a path of reckless behaviour and self-destruction.

But this is also a story of resilience, friendship and the incredible community that grew around Back to Basics.

From three generations sharing the same dance floor to couples meeting, falling in love and starting families, Dave reflects on how a nightclub became something far greater than just a place to dance.

We also discuss the philosophy that made Back to Basics different, its uncompromising attitude and why Dave still believes they did things better than anybody else.

Chapters:

Welcome to Part One of my special mini-series with Dave Beer, the legendary co-founder of Back to Basics and one of the most recognisable characters in UK club culture.

In this opening episode, Dave takes us right back to the beginning.

We talk about discovering house music in America, walking through those famous plastic sheets at The Haçienda, and the inspiration that eventually led to the birth of Back to Basics.

What started with around 80 people grew week after week, becoming one of Europe’s longest-running weekly club nights, with Dave at the helm every Saturday for 20 years.

Dave also tells the brilliant story of how, before business cards and booking agents, he would write his phone number on a $50 bill, pass it across the DJ booth and tell the DJ: 

“That’s your deposit.”

But this conversation goes much deeper than clubbing.

Dave opens up about the four-and-a-half centimetre tumour that came frighteningly close to his spine, as well as the horrific road accident in which he says he died before being brought back.

This is the story of Dave Beer and Back to Basics, but it’s also the story of an extraordinary life lived well outside the ordinary.

And this is only Part One.

Part Two coming soon.

If you enjoy the episode, please subscribe to the Dexter Jones Podcast, drop a comment below and let me know your memories of Back to Basics.

Chapters: 

00:00 Coming Up

DJ Rap is synonymous with jungle and drum & bass, but that’s only part of her story.

00:00 They Wanted Me to Go Pop

In this episode of the Dexter Jones Podcast, I sit down with Jon X Crosse for a journey back into the golden age of 90s trance and electronic music.

Jon’s story is absolutely fascinating. From working with some of the earliest MIDI technology and experimenting with synthesizers in the 1980s, to creating Crescendo – Are You Out There? and becoming part of The Morrighan, this episode takes us right inside the making of some truly special records.

We get into the remarkable story behind Crescendo, a track whose musical foundations Jon says began when he was just 12 or 13 years old and were partly inspired by Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata.

Jon also tells the incredible story of booking Sasha & John Digweed at Heaven in the early 90s, recording their sets onto DAT and studying the way they built their musical journeys. Those recordings would go on to have a major influence on the way he approached the production of Crescendo.

Then we get into Lange featuring The Morrighan – Follow Me, how Cecily wrote those unforgettable lyrics, how the record came together with Lange, and why more than two decades later it can still create incredibly emotional moments on the dancefloor at Amnesia Ibiza.

We also talk Judge Jules, Pete Tong, Paul Oakenfold, Guru Josh, Radio 1, Heaven, the early days of music production and plenty more stories from an extraordinary period in British dance music.

If you lived through this era, there are some serious memories in this one. And if you didn’t, this is a brilliant insight into how some of the records that helped define it were actually made.

Jon X Crosse: Inside the Golden Age of 90s Trance Anthems.

00:00 Intro

Contact Jon:

www.morrighan.com 

DJ Rap joins the Dexter Jones Podcast for a journey back to the 1990s, when rave culture, pirate radio and a new underground sound were changing British music forever.

Long before jungle and drum & bass became global movements, Rap was living and breathing the rave scene. She talks about discovering acid house, spending everything she had on records, living in squats, learning to DJ and breaking through on pirate stations including Rave FM and Fantasy FM.

Rap also opens up about the much deeper role music played in her life. After an incredibly difficult childhood, she found freedom, friendship and a new family through rave culture.

We hear how she became one of the first women to break onto the main stages of the UK rave scene, demanded the same money as the men, and then lost every London booking following an extraordinary and tragic coincidence at Telepathy involving “Mr Kirk, Your Son Is Dead.”

Rap eventually headed north, before discovering AWOL and a new sound that would completely change her direction as a producer: jungle.

She remembers studying DJs including Kenny Ken and the late Randall, watching the emerging generation around her, including Andy C, and taking that inspiration back into the studio. That journey ultimately helped produce records including Spiritual Aura and launched another chapter of her career.

This is the story of DJ Rap, pirate radio, rave culture and the birth of jungle, told by someone who was right there in the middle of it.

🎧 DJ Rap: From Raves and Pirate Radio to the Birth of Jungle

If you lived through the 1990s rave scene, let me know in the comments: where did you rave, and which DJ defined that era for you?

Subscribe to the Dexter Jones Podcast for more conversations with the DJs, producers, promoters and characters who helped shape dance music culture.

Chapters:

00:00 The Story That Nearly Ended DJ Rap’s Career

This week on the Dexter Jones Podcast, I sit down with one of the defining DJs of the golden era of UK and Ibiza clubbing, Lottie.

From discovering acid house and finding her people at The Haçienda, to learning her craft behind a pair of Technics, becoming a resident at The Gallery at Turnmills, recording her breakthrough BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix, and eventually playing some of the greatest clubs in the world.

We go deep into Lottie’s incredible years in Ibiza, including playing Space, DC10, Circoloco, Pacha, Amnesia and Manumission, closing Space and the unforgettable moment Pepe Roselló introduced her to the crowd.

We also revisit her famous appearance on Channel 4’s Faking It, where Lottie was given the seemingly impossible task of turning a classical cellist into a convincing club DJ. She reveals what really happened behind the scenes and how the programme suddenly made her recognisable far beyond the dancefloor.

Lottie also talks candidly about motherhood, stepping away from the relentless touring lifestyle, the incredibly difficult circumstances that changed her family life, and why returning to DJing and discovering new music has become so important to her again.

There’s also plenty of discussion about how DJ culture has changed, the lost art of the warm-up DJ, learning your craft through residencies, phones on dancefloors, modern Ibiza and why Space remains her favourite club of all time.

This is a proper journey through more than three decades of house music, club culture and Ibiza with someone who was right there in the middle of it.

If you lived through this era, I think you’re going to absolutely love this one. And if you didn’t, here’s your chance to find out what all the fuss was about.

🎙️ Lottie: Turnmills, Space Ibiza, ‘Faking It’ & the Golden Age of Clubbing

Chapters:

00:00 Coming Up

Ibiza in the 2000s was like nowhere else.

In Part 2 of my conversation with Carrie, we go deeper into what life was really like working behind the scenes during one of Ibiza’s most unforgettable eras.

From dancing in the island’s superclubs and the madness of Judgement Sundays, to worker life, nights becoming days, barely seeing the beach and the characters who made Ibiza what it was, this is the side of the island most holidaymakers never got to see.

Carrie also tells the story behind the incredible underwater Judge Jules photoshoot, recalls some of the situations that got completely out of control, and explains what it was really like being part of the Ibiza worker generation.

No smartphones. No social media documenting every moment. Just a completely different way of living, working and partying.

If you worked in Ibiza during the 2000s, I’d love to hear your memories in the comments.

Was Ibiza in the 2000s the greatest era the island has ever seen?

🎧 Subscribe to the Dexter Jones Podcast for more untold stories from Ibiza, club culture and the people who lived it.