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finish my studies. At the time I was listening
to a lot of pop music, usually chart stuff, and
a lot of music coming out of Europe.”
Born in Bombay, in India’s largest Catholic
community, Pereira came from a moderately
strict background. However, despite this, he
started his DJ career in 1993, “It all started
in my school with this guy named Gerrad
aka Popsy who played at the local school
functions and brought in his own sound
system. So one day, I decided to approach
him while he was setting up and said; ‘I would
really like to work with you?’ He then said
‘Hey! You’re still in school but come and see
me once you finish.’” Keeping this in mind,
Pereira approached Popsy again as soon as
he finished his studies. His first job in his new
vocation was to carry the speaker boxes
and this went on for three months until he
got his first gig. “I remember him calling me
saying, ‘It’s a long drive, be at mine for 3am
in the morning.’ I was so excited that I still
remember the date - February 13th, 1993. I
went to see him and he explained the ins and
outs of sound system and that was the start
of my DJ music career to the present day.”
Jez Pereira who, today, can be described
as a man-eater of beats is rapidly becoming
D
J Jez Pereira’s
career began in
Mumbai’s private
members
club
Piano Bar and
China
Garden
in India which
birthed
his
signature freestyle
sound. Soon after
moving to London, his skills, enthusiasm
and ability to source an endless supply of
dance floor smash hits immediately raised
his profile. This fast-moving talented DJ
has graced some of the most high profile
global events and award-winning clubs in the
business including John Digweed’s infamous
‘Bedrock’ where he opened for X-Press
2, Paul van Dyke’s 2008 album launch,
The Gallery at Ministry of Sound, Pacha in
Moscow, Russia, Erick Morillo and Prince
Harry’s private events at London’s most
exclusive members club Maddox, UEFA Cup
parties, and Sunburn, India’s biggest dance
festival. Today, DJ Jez Pereira plays regularly
at The W Hotel, The Sanderson, Home
House, Cirque du Soir and most recently, ME
London Hotel.
Seated in relaxed and comfortable
surroundings at his new residency, Radio
Bar on the 10th floor of ME London Hotel
in Aldwych, DJ Jez Pereira and I met up to
chat about his career. From the roof terrace,
you get sublime views of London from all
directions and it’s easy to find yourself just
sitting there and gazing at the amazing beauty
of London, sighting such landmarks as Tower
Bridge, The Shard, St. Paul’s Cathedral, and
the River Thames. Coming back to reality, DJ
Jez Pereira begins by giving me an insight into
how it all began,“My journey started back in
India and very early on I felt drawn to music.
However, I was young and made a promise to
one of Europe’s finest DJs within the genre
of electro and deep house. He describes his
early days as a DJ in relation to his religion,
“I remember everything feeling quite
westernised, especially the music because it
was a very important part of our culture, as
with fanfares and weddings, and as a Catholic
the dances were very much around the
Waltz, Foxtrot and Rock and Roll.” Pereira
went on to explain that 80,000 of them
were living in Orlem in Bombay, the highest
Catholic population in India. “Every function
was music infused with all the elements of
that period including 80s disco, groups like
Boney M was huge, Eddie Grant and Abba
was another one. I grew up listening to all of
that. That’s how it all got to me and when I
joined Popsy, that’s his pet name, but we call
him Gerrad.’ As he remembers his mentor,
Pereira breaks out into a grin as if Popsy is
standing right before our eyes. “But his real
name was Gerrad, Gerrad Pereira; there
were a few of us.”
To say that the young Jez Pereira was
lucky enough to be propelled to the upper
echelons of the Mumbai music scene would
be a lie, because it wasn’t pure luck that he
got to where he is today, it was through
talent and his determination to make music
flow like it does when he spins those decks.
Having just played for three months, Pereira
was approached by a man who complimented
him on his skills while playing out one night
during Easter.“He said that his cousin owned
night clubs so he asked me to call him the
following week.” It turned out that this man’s
cousin was Daryus Panthakey who ran a
company called Esoterics and ran the biggest
clubs in Bombay. Looking to expand their
business, they set up a meeting with Pereira
to discuss his past experiences working as a
DJ and the possibility of working with them,
“I made an effort of wearing a shirt and tie
DAYLE BEST
SPEAKS
TO JEZ PEREIRA,THE
PHENOMENAL DJ THAT
HAS TAKEN EUROPE
AND BEYOND BY STORM
WITH HIS SIGNATURE
FREESTYLE SOUND,ABOUT
HIS EARLY DAYS AS A DJ
AND HIS ASCENSION INTO
DELIVERINGWHAT THE
CROWDWANTS THROUGH
HIS MASTERY OF ELECTRO
AND DEEP HOUSE MUSIC.
bite
night
out