Dj Sly... The genesis
Source : Kutlwano
Author : Baleseng Batlotleng
Location : Gaborone
Event : Interview
The greatest gift God has given him is the ability to understand that the best currency in life is not necessarily what you have materially but how you make people feel. But how do people, especially his hordes of listeners feel about him? Just one word - the talkative Dj Sly, he tells Kutlwano in an interview.
“I’m different, I am totally different when I am off air, I am a very quiet person ebile I think I am boring when I am not in studio. Ke na le character tse pedi. Ko lapeng ke Phenyo and mo radiong ke Dj Sly (I have two characters; at home I am Phenyo, on air I am Dj Sly). And that is what I know very well,” so he says. During the hour-long interview, I notice that most of the time Dj Sly is looking out through the massive window of one of the carefully furnished and air-conditioned conference rooms of the Mass Media Complex, where RB2 is housed. Only twice did the Dj manage eye contact.
Stroking his clean shaven head, he concedes that the talkative element of his life is only for three hours in the show he hosts on RB2 during weekdays, dubbed ‘Rush Hour Experience.’ Otherwise, for the rest of the time he is just an ordinary citizen and a father to his bubbly three –year-old son, Phenyo Junior. That the Dj is an ordinary individual off air is not surprising given his sustained reluctance to grant this interview, which took enduring days of courting to nail. At one point he called in the dead of the night to cancel a proposed meeting but as the nature of the journalism profession dictates, I remained patient, and that paid.
THE ROAD TO FAME
Dj Sly’s road to fame began the moment his aunty, Violet Ntshinogang, bought him an old fashioned Tempest radio receiver at Goo Motlhala ward in Kanye. This gesture was to become a great step towards what the Dj considers his second best option for a career.
“If I remember well, my career took off in 1986 when I was still a student at Maisantwa Primary School in Kanye,” he says. However, he quickly emphasises the fact that he is driven by the strength of being fearless and versatile; “fearless because I know I have to go for everything I do. The best way to conquer failure is to lose fear for it. I am always willing to reinvent myself,” he says.
And that form of reinvention was a result of many hours spent listening to the voices of Chris Motshabi of Radio Mmabatho and Radio Bophuthatswana’s Tich Mataz and Bob Mabena. Locally he could not turn his radio off before Phillip ‘Mokgankgara’ Moshotle took to the air waves. Moshotle was arguably the most talented presenter with an unrivaled gift of the gab in his generation of Radio Botswana presenters. Dj Sly would venture into radio deejaying during his varsity days at University of Cape Town (UCT) where he was on government scholarship to study sound recording engineering for radio and television. He cut his teeth on air in Cape Town after one Robin Chivaze lured him into the profession.
Chivaze then relocated to Botswana and would be known as Dj Robbie Rob; he popularised one of the most prominent youthful radio stations - Yarona FM. Dj Sly says the entertainment business has always been in his blood. During his hey days at Seepapitso Senior Secondary School, where he completed his O’Levels, he was appointed entertainment prefect by one Collie Monkge, known today as Dr Monkge, current Botswana’s Vision 2016 coordinator. That fuelled his interest in entertainment and he remembers that when he went for the national service (Tirelo Sechaba), he was charged with overseeing entertainment matters at Mater Spei College in Francistown.
Dj Sly says he refined his skills during his time in Cape Town where he was a radio jockey for UCT radio. He pays tribute to one of South Africa’s club deejays, Dj Reddy, who used to host a show on Dstv’s Channel O music show. Significantly, it was Dj Sly’s own defining and assured musical prowess that caught the attention of some powerhouses in the industry. “I still regard the late Dj Bass as my mentor because he was one gentleman who did not get weary to teach me the skills of mixing. I also like to pay homage to my brother, DJ Cosmo, as he played a significant part in my deejaying career.
I used to go to his house, get some of his mixes and listen to them,” he says. In 2005, Dj Sly’s career reached a new peak when he became the first radio Dj to cut a House compilation dubbed “Ola Dintswa Volume 1”. The effort to put together the album is mainly attributed to Botswana Premier League chief executive officer, Bennett Mamelodi, who identified the potential in Dj Sly.
The album enjoyed massive airplay in neighbouring South Africa and before very long Dj Sly was invited to perform at the most memorable event of his career. He impressed former South African President, Thabo Mbeki, so much that the latter sent for him to perform at his December Christmas party. Recording with so many talented and renowned musicians such as Mono T, Mbuso and Duda, amongst others, was such an amazing experience, and the end result was an album infused with all the best flavours of House music.
It was the perfect tailoring of his maiden album that attracted powerhouses in the industry. Two years down the line Sly met Seabelo Modibe of Lekoko Entertainment, and this led to his second album “House is my Life”, paying tribute to the music that has seen him rise through the ranks. His latest offering includes the household tune ‘Neria’, a remix of Zimbabwean hit song by Oliver Mtukudzi.
Though his name is synonymous with House music and with the parties and club culture that bring that music to life, Sly thinks he has other options for careers outside deejaying. He studied sound recording engineering which he says encompasses many skills for one to become either a programmes manager or radio manager. Glen Lewis, who was influential in the rise of House music in South Africa, remains Sly’s greatest mentor as he still listens to his music up to date. He firmly believes that for the past 12 years he has learnt a lot from both his colleagues and family. His status as a role model and family man has been impeccable since joining RB2 in 2000.
Despite his self-acclaimed status as hosting the biggest afternoon drive show, Sly has an impressive career highlight including winning Botswana Music Union award and an international tour to Malaysia. Despite his insatiable appetite for the airwaves, none of his family members is into radio. His brother is former Botswana Football Association CEO, Thabo Styles Ntshinogang.
Marriage life? This is the topic that cuts short a lively conversation. Although initially I hesitated to throw him the question, I pull my guts and ask: “A o nyetse?” (Are you married?) “Eo ke tla a tla ke e akanya, fa o lebetse sengwe o tla nteletsa,” is all he can say before he jumps out of the room to prepare for his show which is starting in 30 minutes. ENDS
Teaser:
Passion is a tag that perhaps best defines Phenyo Sylvester Ntshinogang’s life – one of the most popular Djs to ever grace our shores. Simply put, Phenyo is passionate about just every little thing in life; his family, friends, and just about everything he does for a living...
