Selectah Grego

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Selectah Grego

Freelance deejay roots reggae dub
Grego f.k.a. Greeker,
Pioneer reggae selectah of Cascais, Lisbon, P Selectah Papa Paulo was the Pioneer Of Reggae in Portugal.
(1)

How an audiophile became the first reggae DJ of Cascais, Lisbon, Portugal. Born and raised in São João do Estoril, Cascais, Lisbon, Portugal, in 1966, passionate about music since a very early age. Self taught player of blues harmonica, djembé, guitar and drums, I started collecting records as early as 4yrs old and had the first DJ-ing experience at 16, selecting and playing Hard Rock at a friend'

s party, substituting the contracted DJ that had an accident, trying to emulate the veteran DJs that played at the nationally famous rock club "2001". That inaugural session brought positive feedback and recognition from the guests which stired my desire for DJ-ing. My first contact with Reggae happened at a neighbour's pool party, mid 70s. Being British they had a larger musical culture and had Reggae blasting on UK radios on a regular basis so the party had a variety of Reggae styles and although I didn't understand anything that harmony and sincopated beat grasped my attention to the point of asking for a artist list out of the DJ, upon which I based my first collection effort. The transition from DJ-ing Rock to DJ-ing Reggae happened in the late 80's simply because of the fact that I was one of the very few DJs, in Portugal, collecting Reggae music at the time and the only one in Cascais. Based in the Algarve region Papa Paulo is a massively active collector and he was the DJ of the first Reggae radio show in Portugal in the early 80's, on a local radio station, and he is an important inspiration for many, me being one since I first heard his show while on holidays at the Algarve. At that time anyone with as few as 50 Reggae records was the biggest local reggae collector since the country had come out of a censuring dictatorship and Reggae wasn't being promoted for several reasons. The connection with w**d being the most obvious but also the political content of the lyrics. The general public only had heard about Bob Marley and The Wailers, Jimmy Cliff, Peter Tosh solo and UB40. Tunes like Boney M's 'Rivers of Babylon' or Eric Clapton's version of Bob Marley's 'I Shot The Sheriff' were interpreted as Reggae by the majority of the public and although The Eagles' 'Hotel California' had much more in common with Reggae it was perceived as Rock. Few more Reggae artists were known for lack of promotion so any unknown tune from an unknown artist was received by the avid public with cheers in a explosion of dance and laughter, which we commonly call good vibes. At the time Reggae was being brought into Portugal, by tourists, on recorded tapes more frequently than records. In 1991 I was DJ-ing Reggae and only Reggae. During a visit to London in 1988, I had the chance to enlarge my collection a bit and got the chance to witness a proper Reggae party with a famed local sound system which forever molded my playlists. Using my very own living room sound system and other borrowed equipment I was driven by the will to show the, public tunes that were unknown to them. A pleasure which I enjoyed more and more.

22/12/2023

🥂🎄
HAPPY SEASONS
TO ALL
MY

23/09/2023

The African Teacher is going to pay a visit to my friends !

01/05/2023

Listening to the great Dennis Bovell a.k.a. Black Beard 's session in tribute to Jah Shaka...

Reflecting on his time with Jah Shaka, Dennis met him in the 70s ‘’when we were both sound system operators. One of our memorable moments was on New Year’s Eve 1975 in the Metro Club, Ladbroke Grove. It was a Dub Battle. We remained friends for decades..’’

23/04/2023

The great Dennis Bovell live at Soho Radio on a session in memory of the late Jah Shaka, until 18h GMT.
❤💛💚

This show features tracks by Moses Sumney, Liv.e and Yves Tumor.

12/04/2023

Sad news about the passing of this Legend....
the man called Jah Shaka...
the King of sound system all night reggae dances...
the true Keeper of Roots since the advent of Dancehall...

So much to be said about Shaka and his contribution to Roots Reggae and Dub...

Rise In Power Shaka
Thank you for the guidance and inspiration

Heartfelt condolences to family and friends

06/02/2023

Celebrating Bob's 78th

Join us LIVE for Bob Marley's 78th Birthday Celebration on Monday, February 6, 2023, for a series of events culminating in a concert fit for the reggae legen...

08/01/2023

Wishing all out there a Happy and Prosperous 2023 !!!

13/09/2022

Yesterday marked the 45th memorial of
Bantu Stephen Biko's death, due to head injuries inflicted upon him, while in custody of the xenophobic regime that ruled South Africa implementing the nefarious apartheid until 1994.
Much to be said about this era and more about the man.
Still, Biko's life as a Freedom Activist is to be remembered more than his death.

- “It is better to die for an idea that will live, than to live for an idea that will die”.

Lest we forget ✊

👣
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=oH7vU-rYTB0
👣

02/09/2022

Yours truly birthday today
Not playing, but here's a 6h session by Grego
Blessings

Listen to Água de Malvas com Selectah Grego - 20.09.20 by Lusophonica Web Radio

21/08/2022

August 21st 2022 burningspearmusic Burning Spear dedicated session at lusophonica.com
Wah!
👣

17/08/2022

On Sunday the 14th of August, 2022, Johnny Clarke, Horace "Sleepy" Andy Official and The African Teacher burningspearmusic ignited the O2 Academy Brixton room with a wicked performance that will be imprinted in the memories of the almost five thousand strong attending.
The multiracial multi generational crowd was a sight to behold. A sight that depicted how much of a reach Reggae Music has nowadays. How inclusive it is. And this horizontal reach that sees no differences between the people made that night even more significant with Rastas mingling with Skinheads and Punks chanting along in unison with the legendary forefathers of Reggae Music performing on the stage. One rasta youth fell, unable to cope with the scorching heat inside, and instantly a punk sporting a mohican and another rasta stepped up to the rescue carrying out the fainted youth in arms. A display worthy of viral exposure to show how much love and unity is possible in simple righteousness. Then there were the numerous Rasta Elders and respective families with the ladies and some gents fully dressed in traditional african attire bringing the colours and patterns of their ancestors and a confirmation that this was not your normal music live gig. This was a truly special night.
The O2 Academy at Brixton's 211 Stockwell Road is a one of a kind venue that has been a cinema, a discotheque and more recently a concert hall. The building was made so that the spectators have a view of the stage wherever they are therefore everyone was witnessing everything. The sound was a little weird if one was too close to a speaker stack but overall perfect. A great venue. Another factor that hinted that this was a special night indeed. Not even the lack of air conditioning on a night with 32°C on an inside venue would deter us all from enjoying the performance which also carried the importance of the commemoration of 60 years of Jamaican independence.
Adding to the already indicative signs, The African Teacher burningspearmusic, hadn't played in London the last two decades a fact that by itself was a reason to attend.
I literally had tears of joy running down my smiling face upon listening the first notes of "Jah is My Driver" and "Slavery Days" for I did not expect The African Teacher to sing them.
A night that I shall remember for the rest of my life.
Thanking my good friends and for all! I shall be forever in debt...
Wah!
👣

23/07/2022

Tomorrow I shall be at Lusophonica Cafe once again for the monthly
Barraca Sessions.
This time I bring songs based on my youtube Reggae Across The Styles playlist.
A playlist made with Reggae influenced songs from world famous artists that are not reggae artists, like Eric Clapton, Willie Nelson, Led Zeppelin, Joe Cocker, The Clash, Jamiroquai or Gorillaz, to name but a few.
Artists better known for their Rock'n'Roll, Pop, Country, Soul or R&B rather than Reggae.
Starting at 10h GMT
@ lusophonica.com
Blessings
👣

10/06/2022

Água de Malvas
October 23rd
With Ijahneco

09/06/2022

DJ battle with Pedro Soares Pedro, Ijahneco, Ras Malvin R.I.P..
2013

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+351939431172

Website

https://m.youtube.com/user/surferstepper

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