INTERVIEW: Get to know the wedding Pro | Young Roge {DJ & MC}
Get to know the wedding Pro!
Every week, we shine the spot light on our Bride Club ME vendor club members, allowing our readers to get up close and personal with some of the best wedding suppliers in town. Here, you can learn more about the people behind some of the businesses you hire to make your wedding day perfect!
This week we have the privilege of showcasing, Young Roge, Dubai’s well known MC & DJ. Young Roge provides us with exclusive insight into being a wedding DJ and MC, and shares with us what he loves most about his job.
- Tell us a little bit about yourself. Why did you become a DJ/Master of ceremonies?
I grew up in Exmouth Devon with 4 older sisters, all lawyers, who had a love of music, all different to each other. Each week, with their pocket money, they used to buy 7 inch records. I used to listen to these tracks all the time, when they weren’t looking. I loved music from a very early and impressionable age.
When I was in my early teens I use to be a huge fan of BBC Radio 1 and at night, Radio Luxembourg. In those days there were only 3 TV channels in the UK, and in Exmouth there was very little else to do in the dark winter months except listen to the Radio. I remember that each of the BBC Radio 1 DJs had enormous radio audiences in the early 1970s, of circa 24 million people per daytime show.
All the DJs were household names and gods. I used to tape the records played on these shows using my cassette recorder, recording the hit songs at the time and the stations jingles. Then I used to set up a show in the dining room and pretend to be a DJ to my mum and sisters. I used a hair brush as a microphone. They all used to laugh and with the exception of my Mum, they hated these shows that I put on. Little did they know that their little brother was going to be one of the youngest ever DJs on the Radio, and resident DJ at 15 in the local nightclub on a Saturday night!!
My real break came when another mobile DJ in Exmouth wanted a DJ on a Saturday night at the local dance hall, as he was double booked. That was the start, and the other local nightclub poached me after 1 year to be their resident DJ. I did know that I didn’t want to be a corporate lawyer, which ran in my family and knew what I wanted to do which was to be a DJ on the Radio.
I hired a studio in Kew Gardens in London for the day and put together a 4 minute demo tape, then sent it to every Radio station in the UK. I was mainly told ‘no thanks your too young!!’ I got a lot of rejection at first, which at 18/19 was ok to deal with, as I knew this was what I wanted to do. Then one day my mum shouted to me when I was washing my car, that there was a phone call from the local radio station. I started the following week and then went onto present many shows.
The next thing I knew, after sending another tape to Radio Luxembourg I received an invitation from the programme controller to ‘dry run’ a programme as a guest DJ on Saturday nights. They then hired me to present many programmes.
Well, the rest is history. From there I worked for some big stations both in the UAE and UK, namely Capital Radio, GWR Radio and the BBC then back aboard to more recently in 2002 onto Radio 2 – 99.3 and 106 where I presented ‘Drive Time’ and the weekend brunch shows for seven years until 2009.
Landing the New Years Eve MC & DJ role at The Burj Al Arab in Dubai for the past 9 years, is so rewarding. As we know they only select the best, and I am both flattered and honoured to be repeatedly hired year after year.
- What do you love most about your work?
I just love music and having fun, I get a real buzz from filing a dance floor and keeping it full for hours and and hours. I also love communicating and as MC and DJ this achieves both of these passions of mine.
- What sets you apart from other DJ’s in the UAE
I think its a combination of four vital elements. Firstly, my mobile roadshow is a proper show and not a pair of CD players, computer and mixer on a table cloth with lots of bare wires and cables. My show is full on and looks like a proper mobile roadshow.
Secondly, my personality is, so I’m told by my clients, both great fun and ‘addictive’. I am a personality DJ, not a mix DJ. I view being a DJ as an entertainer. Yes the music is important, but so is motivating a crowd and engaging with a live audience. Yes I can mix, but its ok for a few tracks, then Ill see some faces in the crowd that needs to be cheered up and off I go, I do take my humour to the edge, so im told!!
The third element is the music I play, not only when the dancing starts but also the dinner / reception music. I receive so many compliments on my music choice as it literally spans 5 decades from the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s and today’s popular commercial dance floor hits. Having learnt about music from a very early age, this has given me a huge knowledge of what track goes well with another track from a different decade.
My dinner / reception music is also another element of my success. I do my home work before, finding out about the type / style of event the ages of those attending. I pride myself on creating a new dinner play list for every new client, as everyone is different. The final point is that at all my live events I put the Young Roge request cards on all the tables so I get instant feedback on the type and style of music that the audience requests, again simple but so effective.
- For those who do not know what it entails, please explain the role of a wedding MC?
The MC at any wedding, or event is your insurance policy and your safe pair of hands. The MC is the link man, he’s the person that’s keeps the event going, not only by informing the guests on what’s coming up during the event and keeping the interest alive. The MC is also the person that will introduce the speakers, relax the speakers and if emotions run high, as they do at weddings, step in and support the previous speaker so there’s no prolonged embarrassing pauses.
I was recently emcee for the founder of Bride Club ME’s wedding, Rhiannon. I presided over all MC announcements during the day and linked the various venues / events together. In addition, I generally kept all the acts and events moving by keeping all Rhiannon’s guests informed of what was occurring and when. I also introduced all the main speakers and was on hand just in case emotions ran high.
Having been the MC at so many weddings, I am amazed at the positive feedback I receive, both in terms of some wonderful comments. I also hear of other weddings where there’s been no MC and the event has not been a success. I am not surprised at as the MC is the person that lets the bride and groom relax and enjoy the big day.
- Where is your favourite outdoor wedding venue in the UAE
There are so so many. I do like working with the Jumeirah Group and the Fairmont hotels in both Abu Dhabi and Dubai, they are really nice people to work with, and remember me.
- What’s your favourite & least favourite song to play at a wedding?
I could make two lists a mile long. I think in terms of the brides and groom first dance my favourite is ‘We have all the time in the world’ by Louise Armstrong. Such fantastic lyrics of love and commitment, what a wedding is all about.
I don’t like some of the modern songs such as ‘I’m yours’ by Jason Mraz, it’s so hard to dance to as a first dance.
For dancing it’s got to be ‘Dancing Queen’ by Abba, it’s an instant floor filler. Least favourite is the ‘Birdie Song’ by the Tweets, it’s a dreadful record.
- What are some things couples should look for when hiring a wedding DJ?
I think its got to be a combination of experience and chemistry between you and the DJ, price should not enter into any decision. This is the second most important element of any wedding. The DJ must also have an in depth knowledge and understanding of the venue, good sound equipment and more importantly music matched to the audience attending. Its no good having an Indie or house / garage DJ for an audience where the average age range is +40, that’s a car crash waiting to happen.
- If you could give one piece of wedding advice to engaged couples, what would it be?
Plan well ahead, one year to book a popular DJ/ MC is not a long time, put a deposit down and lock them into your event, just an email is not enough these days for either party. Other than that, I would say, think and plan for the worst and the best will happen, don’t do it the other way around!!
- Lastly, why did you choose to list with www.brideclubme.com?
I only start relationships with quality providers and suppliers, Bride Club ME the best at what they do in the region, so it’s a great fit for them and for me.
Thanks Young Roge! For more on hiring Young Roge to MC or DJ at your wedding, check out his Bride Club ME Vendor listing, or head straight to his website. You can see Young Roge in action below, as DJ and MC for a recent wedding in Abu Dhabi.
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