DJ Roxxi

DJ Roxxi (born Deshnie Govender on April 5, 1985) is a South African DJ, who gained recognition from 2006 onwards as the only Indian female club dj in South Africa.

Early life and education

Roxxi was born in Isipingo, Durban, South Africa. She is the daughter of Ruth Govender and Vassie Mottai Govender, who died in 2002. She has a younger sister Michelle Govender. Roxxi attended Holy Family College for a short while and thereafter Isipingo Primary School. She completed high school at Kingsway High School in Amanzimtoti. In 2002 Roxxi lost her father to a heart attack during the final examination of high school; despite this traum, she graduated from high school with excellent results. Although Roxxi anticipated embarking on a music career straight after high school, she made the difficult choice to study first as it was frowned upon in the Indian community for a young girl to become a club DJ. Roxxi enrolled in Natal University to study towards a LLB (law) Degree. Towards the end of 2003, Roxxi dropped out of her course. During this break she discovered her musical talents while working part time at her mother's night club in Amanzimtoti.

Music Career (2005-2006)

Roxxi was exposed to the music styles of various DJs at her mother's club. She taught herself how to play by researching and watching other DJs perform. From 2005 to 2006 Roxxi played at many low-key promotions at her mother's club gaining confidence and skills through each event. Very soon word got out that there was an Indian female DJ around and journalists were interested in hearing her story. The media buzz that surrounded Roxxi propelled her onto the music scene overnight. Heralded as the first and only Indian female club DJ in South Africa, Roxxi was soon asked to appear at many events and shows.

Challenges

Her hard work and determination to be seen and treated as an equal in the DJ scene saw Roxxi overcome many challenges.

"I truly believe one needs to have a thick skin in this industry to sustain yourself. It's not child's play as you are constantly having to up your game to get half as far as your male counterparts." said Roxxi.

In 2007 while overseas, Roxxi was the subject of controversy when a popular Lotus FM DJ, Deon Chetty, publicly slandered her talents on air. The unfounded comments made by this DJ sent shock waves through the community and led to his suspension from the station upon Roxxi's return.

Awards

It was this positive attitude that saw Roxxi being nominated as one of Cosmopolitan Magazine's Top 25 Awesome Women of 2006. The event held at the Park Hyatt in Johannesburg profiled and introduced all 28 finalists, including Shannon Esra, Noni Gasa and Louise Carver.

Roxxi was also selected as a rising star in the Standard Bank Salutes Women of KZN Awards in 2008.

Writing

Currently a 3rd year journalism student, Roxxi has shared her literary talents with www.jhbdesi.co.za, www.simplybhangra.com and South African lifestyle magazine Eish.

Music Career (2007-2009)

In 2007, Roxxi was selected as the only female DJ on board the AXE Jet Experience to Ibiza with top SA celebrities. This gave Roxxi the opportunity to travel to Ibiza and perform with top South African celebrity DJ's.

After completing her very own Deck-A-Dance tour, Roxxi was signed to various booking agencies including Quirky House which handles many of South Africa's top celebrities.

Having been interviewed on various radio shows, newspapers, magazines and TV shows, Roxxi has certainly created a brand that many people can relate to.

Debut Single

In 2009, DJ Roxxi decided to embark on a new venture. She teamed up with long time friend and fellow artist Nic Billington and penned a track entitled "Away". The track features Nic Billington on vocals and was produced by Craig Massiv from Flash Republic fame. Roxxi released this official press release:

Ushering in a brand new initiative that's set to take the S.A music scene by storm, two Durban natives, DJ Roxxi and Nic Billington, have combined their efforts and musical talent to launch The Project.

In an industry where collaborations are eagerly welcomed and viewed as creative works of art, DJ Roxxi and Nic Billington, were only to excited to join forces and drive full speed ahead with their creative licences.

"The Project reflects the rich mixture of cultures and sound that we individually are known for and are distinguished by", said Roxxi and Nic.

“The 2009 summer single "Away" brings a new sound and vibe together in new and creative ways that will attract fans country wide.” added Roxxi.

The single due for release in November will be produced by a top S.A DJ and will feature remixes by two well know DJs in the industry all with their own smash hits already on high rotation.

Each with their own loyal fan base and following, Roxxi and Nic, are set to combine their two styles into a funky new fresh sound that will not only please existing fans but usher in brand new ones as well.

"We're thrilled that our combined sound will be reaching out to our community of musicians and their fans ," said Nic.

"We've worked hard to identify a unique sound thats combines both Roxxi and my musical tastes together." he added.

In a world were marketing via online mediums have become commonplace the duo saw it fit to launch the project simultaneously on the net and via print media.

"Face book allows us to reach out to other artists and our fans for the fresh inspiration and creativity we need to complete this project," said roxxi. "There are major changes being born with regard to artists promoting there material via the web (sometimes out of the frustration with the current music industry) and as a collective we want to make more direct and meaningful connections with fans and other artists." "Face book and Myspace is the best way for us to do that. We can have an online presence that allows us to engage with our fan and give them samples of our music and update constantly."

The duo, managed by artist management company Brand Boutique, look forward to the release of the single as this marks a brand new chapter in both their lives.

"We are proud to have on board two of Durban's hottest artists on our books. We truly believe the sky is the limit for these two with regard to their collaboration and wish them best of luck in their musical efforts" said Ruth, MD Brand Boutique

References

• http://www.thetimes.co.za/PrintEdition/News/Article.aspx?id=865703
• http://www.quirkyhouse.co.za/dj_roxxi.php
• http://www.jhbdesi.co.za/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=46&Itemid=88&PHPSESSID=712781387e88279b86402433dc27beb6
• http://www.simplybhangra.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1549&Itemid=187
• http://www.simplybhangra.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1411&Itemid=118
• http://www.celebridex.co.za/celebrity_view.php?id=180&s=&voted=1
• http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-198115229.html
• http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-176380567.html
• http://www.nio.co.za/hot/2008/10/dj-roxxi/
• http://www.shejay.net/artistDetail.php?userID=3415
• http://www.nicbillington.com/?p=155
• http://www.bizcommunity.com/Article/196/432/33520.html

External links

• DJ Roxxi's website

Persondata
Name	Dj Roxxi
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	April 5, 1985
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death