Lil Wayne
Representing young money. He is Lil Wayne’s official tour DJ and he will be playing at the Buzz Teeniez Awards at Kati Kati tomorrow. Edgar R. Batte had an e-mail chat with him.
Where do you get the name 4our 5ive?
My original name was DJ K La Boss when I worked with the rap duo EPMD but I wanted to change it to something new. I got my name from the rpm’s (Revolutions Per Minute) on a turntable. If you look at a turntable, it has two speeds, 33 rpm’s which is the slower speed and 45 rpm’s being the faster speed. I’m fast with my hands, so I went with that. But people kept calling me DJ Forty Five and I wanted to be called DJ Four Five, so a friend of mine Jose Lopez was like, it would be hot if you replaced the F’s with numbers. Then people would call you DJ 4our 5ive. So I went with that and it worked.
What exactly do you do for Lil Wayne?
I am the DJ for Lil Wayne on his tours. Sometime he will have a spot date or two and they call me but for the most part I’m his tour DJ.
What is it like working with Li Wayne?
It’s amazing. I have learned so much in the past four years I have worked with him. Touring with him really made me realise how huge hip hop has become.
Tell us about the Lil Wayne we don’t know …
He works even harder than you can imagine and his memory is unbelievable.
Have you been to Africa before?
Yes. I was in Cape Town with Diddy several years ago. I also went to Angola with Fabolous. Then I returned to Cape Town again with Lil Wayne and we also went to Johannesburg and Durban.
Before Buzz Teeniez Awards (BTA) contacted you, had you heard about Uganda?
Yes. History. I know that a lot of people died for freedom here.
What should the teenagers coming down for the BTAs expect from you?
A great party, a lot of energy and good music. It will be a great time.
Being part of YMCMB, I am sure you have interacted with Lil Wayne’s protégé Nicki Minaj … is she as eccentric as she portrays herself in her music?
Oh Nicki Minaj is a beast. She knew she was a star before she became this mega star that she is today.
How long have you been a deejay?
I have been deejaying since I was 12, doing parties at 14, touring the world at 19 and I’m still going strong.
What have been your big highlights as a deejay?
Spinning for the rap pioneers EPMD. That was my first tour, The Run’s House Tour with Run DMC, Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince and Public Enemy, which was an amazing experience for a kid in his teens. Working with Diddy and The Notorious B.I.G was insane. I learned a lot from Puff and I’m so happy to have known BIG as a person. He was and still is amazing as his music lives on. Being able to work with incredible artistes like Jay-Z, Fabolous, Young Jeezy and now Lil Wayne is more than I ever imagined.
Have you heard of any music from Uganda?
I have not heard any music as of yet but I am looking forward to hearing the music and seeing the sights and learn more about Uganda in my time there.
