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Norman Jay

 
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Norman Jay MBE is an innovative and pioneering British DJ
Deejay

A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and Toasting to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with DJs from other music genres like Hip-Hop, where they select and play music....
. He first came to prominence playing unlicensed or 'warehouse' parties in the early 1980s, such as Shake 'n' Fingerpop. His diverse and deep musical knowledge and his refusal to be restricted to playing from any single genre distinguishes him from his peers. He is commonly attributed to coining the phrase 'rare groove'.

Born in Notting Hill
Notting Hill

Notting Hill is an area in West London, England close to the north-western corner of Hyde Park, London, and lying within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea....
, London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
, Jay established himself through the London pirate radio station Kiss FM
Kiss 100 London

Kiss 100 is a radio station broadcasting to London on 100.0 MHz FM specialising in hip hop music, R&B, Mainstream Urban and dance music. It also broadcasts on Digital radio in the United Kingdom in other parts of the UK on Digital audio broadcasting and nationally on Freeview , Sky Digital and Tiscali TV....
, which he co-managed alongside Gordon Mac and George Power.






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Norman Jay MBE is an innovative and pioneering British DJ
Deejay

A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and Toasting to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with DJs from other music genres like Hip-Hop, where they select and play music....
. He first came to prominence playing unlicensed or 'warehouse' parties in the early 1980s, such as Shake 'n' Fingerpop. His diverse and deep musical knowledge and his refusal to be restricted to playing from any single genre distinguishes him from his peers. He is commonly attributed to coining the phrase 'rare groove'.

Born in Notting Hill
Notting Hill

Notting Hill is an area in West London, England close to the north-western corner of Hyde Park, London, and lying within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea....
, London
London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
, Jay established himself through the London pirate radio station Kiss FM
Kiss 100 London

Kiss 100 is a radio station broadcasting to London on 100.0 MHz FM specialising in hip hop music, R&B, Mainstream Urban and dance music. It also broadcasts on Digital radio in the United Kingdom in other parts of the UK on Digital audio broadcasting and nationally on Freeview , Sky Digital and Tiscali TV....
, which he co-managed alongside Gordon Mac and George Power. Kiss 100
Kiss 100 London

Kiss 100 is a radio station broadcasting to London on 100.0 MHz FM specialising in hip hop music, R&B, Mainstream Urban and dance music. It also broadcasts on Digital radio in the United Kingdom in other parts of the UK on Digital audio broadcasting and nationally on Freeview , Sky Digital and Tiscali TV....
 was launched legally in September 1990 and Norman hosted the first of what became his legendary 'Musiquarium' shows. Shortly after he joined Gilles Peterson
Gilles Peterson

Gilles Peterson is a DJ, Record_collecting#Notable_record_collectors and record label owner from London, United Kingdom.Through his labels Acid Jazz Records, Talkin' Loud, and latterly Brownswood Recordings, he has been associated with the careers of countless well-known artists of the 1990s such as Erykah Badu and Tony Rich plus Jamiroqu...
 at his newly created and highly influential label Talkin' Loud
Talkin' Loud

Talkin' Loud is a record label started by Gilles Peterson at Phonogram in 1990 after he left Acid Jazz. The label name is based on Peterson's club night "Talkin' Loud And Sayin' Something."...
.

After a long involvement with Kiss, Norman joined BBC London
BBC London

BBC London is the BBC English Regions producing local radio, television, teletext and online services in London and parts of the surrounding area....
 in April 1997, where his 'Giant 45' show gained a loyal following across the globe up until February 2008 .

His Good Times Sound System, which he started with his brother Joey, is a major attraction to many music fans who attend the two day August bank holiday Notting Hill Carnival
Notting Hill Carnival

Notting Hill Carnival is an annual event which takes place on the streets of Notting Hill, London, UK each August, over two days , since 1965.It is led by members of the Caribbean population, many of whom have lived in the area since the 1950s....
 . Good Times now attracts an estimated 3,000 revellers a day during the carnival. Good Times has also extended into a series of compilation CDs.

Jay describes himself as a primarily house music
House music

House music is a style of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, USA in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discoth?ques catering to the African-American, Latino, and gay communities, first in Chicago, then in New York City and Detroit....
 DJ, but the Good Times sound includes classic 70s and 80s funk
Funk

Funk is an United States Music genre that originated in the mid- to late-1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, soul jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music....
, soul
Soul

In many religions and parts of philosophy, the soul is the immaterial part of a person. It is usually thought to consist of one's thoughts and Personality psychology, and can be synonymous with the spirit, mind or self....
 and Jazz-funk
Jazz-funk

Jazz-funk is a sub-genre of jazz music characterized by a strong back beat , electrified sounds, and often, the presence of the first electronic analog synthesizers....
, previous carnival tracks have typically included Estelle's
Estelle (singer)

Estelle Fanta Swaray commonly known as Estelle, and formerly as Est'elle, is an English people, Grammy Award- winning contemporary R&B singing, rapping, and hip hop production....
 1980; and tracks featured in recent radio shows have included Billy Griffin
Billy Griffin

Billy Griffin is an United States singer and songwriter. He is best known in the United States for replacing Smokey Robinson as lead singer of The Miracles....
's Hold Me Tighter In The Rain and more contemporary tracks in the form of Heavy's track Wonderlove.

On BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2

BBC Radio 2 is one of the BBC's national radio radio station and the List of most-listened-to radio programs in the United Kingdom. Much of its daytime playlist-based programming is best described as Adult contemporary music or Album-orientated rock, although the station is also noted for its specialist broadcasting of other musical genres....
, he presents the Funk Factory which goes out every 6 weeks of the year. In addition to this, Norman was one of 20 DJs who played one track each at the 2005 BBC Worldwide Awards which produced three specials for BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1

BBC Radio 1 is a United Kingdom international radio station operated by the BBC, specialising in current popular music throughout the day, with a slight bias to Rock music & Independent music music....
 over Christmas and New Year, hosted by Gilles Peterson
Gilles Peterson

Gilles Peterson is a DJ, Record_collecting#Notable_record_collectors and record label owner from London, United Kingdom.Through his labels Acid Jazz Records, Talkin' Loud, and latterly Brownswood Recordings, he has been associated with the careers of countless well-known artists of the 1990s such as Erykah Badu and Tony Rich plus Jamiroqu...
.

He is an established regular at the Big Chill festival
The Big Chill (music festival)

The Big Chill is an England festival of alternative and chill-out music, started in 1994....
, where his Sunday afternoon slot on the main stage is widely regarded as one of the highlights of the weekend.

Norman Jay is also a dedicated Tottenham Hotspur football supporter and was awarded the MBE
Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a United Kingdom order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom....
 for services to music in 2002 .

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