Darren Ford aka 4Dee has been right at the heart of the welsh hiphop scene since
the early 1980's. His involvement the hiphop culture in the Welsh capital of Cardiff City
can be traced back to 1983 as one of the city's original b-boys.
By 1986 4Dee was Weekly at the C.C.Y.P. (City centre youth project) Locally know as grassroots,
where he
Darren Ford aka 4Dee has been right at the heart of the welsh hiphop scene since
the early 1980's. His involvement the hiphop culture in the Welsh capital of Cardiff City
can be traced back to 1983 as one of the city's original b-boys.
By 1986 4Dee was Weekly at the C.C.Y.P. (City centre youth project) Locally know as grassroots,
where he hooked up with Dj Jaffa and Mc Eric (who later went on to be the front man for the group Technotronic)
4Dee Became part of Hard Rock Concept (HRC) the first all elements crew to come out of the Capital
4Dee & Jaffa continued to keep culture alive in Cardiff By 1992 They Both - alongside with 4Dee's sister
Roberta (Berta)- had set up a Voluntary youth group known as the uderdogz empowering the young people
of east cardiff housing estate stmellons (stm) how to rap , sing, dance, Dj etc.
by 1993 saw 4Dee and 2 members of the underdogz (Naton da watcha & Spark E) alongside dyke
and Producer Greg Haver Form a Rock/Rap group Under The Gun which Penned a Publishing deal
with E.M.I. and was commissioned to write a series of tracks for a Hollywood film (The Brit Pack)
but the film was pulled at the last minute.
The Underdogz were so successful in the youth & community sector that they won The British Gas
properties and arts Council arts project which helps to build community relationships and skills award
at the turn of the millenium 4Dee Performed on the National Lottery and on Michael Barrymore show
the millenium celebrations in Cardiff infront of high profile guests as prince's Charles, William & Harry,
Later that year saw 4Dee and 7 members of the Underdogz go out to Ghana for upto 10 days to perform and run a series of workshops
During some Drum n Bass collaborations in 2001/02 4Dee met up with Joe Blow and Skamma of the Squid Ninjaz.
In 2003 4Dee the resident host for the Welsh street dance championships.
By 2005 saw 4Dee & Joe Blow were setting a bigger agenda and together with Dj Stagga from local dj outfit Optimas prime
to form a group known as Undecorated Veteranz which had its first release (shelf Shokk) on the try b4 u die E.P. on Dial up Records
then (cypher zone) on H.S.G. (Hurt So Good)E.P and in 2006 the Undecorated Veteranz released the (Music to make you Stagger e.p.)
Over the years 4Dee has Featured on Various albums including Qred's Back street Lobotomy' Album on progenetor Records 2006 and the Squid Ninjaz
'Revenge of the blowfish' album in 2009
2013 4dee & Joe Blow Feature on the very well recieved South Wales state of Mind posse cut, where they featured alongside a handful of other
local hiphop artists over the legendary nas new york state of mind beat,
in 2014 4Dee Featured on Qred's Track 'Lunar Burns' from the panic stations album, and performed at the increasingly high profile
Boom Bap festival and Nass Festival alongside squid ninjaz Joe Blow , Joe Dirt , Ral Duke & Skamma.
in 2017 4Dee featured on Joe Blows Track 'sodom'alongside Ral Duke and NewYork rapper Diabolic, For the last
few years a regular hosting slot with a widely popular circle eight events would ensure the 4Dee was never far from the mic.
2021 & Beyond
While the world ground halt with the Covid Pandemic, 4Dee was busy conspiringwith the ensemble cast he
needed to create his long awaited album,
knowing the anticipation was high and the calibre of it would therefore need to blow doors off the hinges, with a couple of warning shots early in 2021
titled 'Dragonz' & '528 Wake Up', 4Dee and his crew were doubling down on putting togethera heavyweight full length release titled 'INDELIBLE'
Joining him on this project are his earliest collaborator Dj Jaffa, His Undecorated Veteranz wingman Joe Blow, Fleapit and Dead residents mc Junior Disprol ,
fellow Cardiff stalwart and xenith Mc Dregz, Golden era Radio Show Host Dj Callie Ban, Columbian Rap Legend
Tormento of Gotas De Rap of Bogota columbia & Vocal Artist and Pharcyde and KRS One Collaborator Mr Phormula and The World Renowned Bronx Legend Alien Ness aka The Answer.
with mastering handled by Dr Moodyat the moodio studio and graphic design by DW Smith, INDELIBLE is the Full
Package- a sonically rich and evolved hiphop album by 4Dee backed by a hand picked and accomplished international crew, all of whome flawlessly deliver their contribution.
2022
VETERAN RECORDS
with his immeasurable impact on the underground scene finally getting wider recognition in 2022 with his work being presented in a series of exhibitions by the Hip Hop Historian Society.
August 2022 will see the release of 4Dee’s second album ‘Frequencies’, hot on the heels of 2021’s stunning debut ‘Indelible’. Once again 4Dee lays down authentic, consistent and eloquent lyrical themes and messages complete with that Cardiff trademark twang and positive message. There are features from Chew, Joe Blow, Emarvellous, TJ Chill, Chilly Chill, 2 Scoops, and Acko produces a track alongside the in-house Veteran Records production team.
Aware of his responsibility to set an example for future hip hop generations, 4Dee recently told ITV News “It’s the history that needs to be taught to the youngsters. There’s a lot of negativity being pumped into hip hop”. A teaser single ‘Ego’ drops in July.
In May 2022 4Dee and longtime collaborator Joe Blow started ‘Veteran Records’ giving the pair complete control over both the business, promotion and artistic direction involved in running a record label. First out of the gate was the new Joe Blow album ‘Smoke & Mirrors’ in June 2022.
HIP HOP HISTORIAN SOCIETY
In Summer 2022 it was announced that 4Dee’s contribution to hip hop culture would be recognised by the Hip Hop Historian Society, with a showcase at Leeds Museum booked for 2023.
“This is absolutely mindblowing, I never throught that this would happen” says 4Dee of this new level of recognition. ITV News recently picked up the story and ran an interview with 4Dee.
visit 4Dee's Bandcamp page :
spotify :
https://open.spotify.com/artist/00B0hbHSOgbC7y1rFswUm6?si=Z5vJ-lZ6Tyaetz-Jkk2mqQ
Joe Blow is a veteran DJ and emcee of the South Wales underground with an involvement in
the music industry that spans 3 decades.
Since his earliest bookings as resident DJ at Cardiff’s legendary Hippo club when he was 16
he has not stopped creating and making waves in the South Wales DnB, jungle and hip hop
scenes.
As well as also being a fo
Joe Blow is a veteran DJ and emcee of the South Wales underground with an involvement in
the music industry that spans 3 decades.
Since his earliest bookings as resident DJ at Cardiff’s legendary Hippo club when he was 16
he has not stopped creating and making waves in the South Wales DnB, jungle and hip hop
scenes.
As well as also being a founding member of the Barry based hip hop supergroup Squid
Ninjaz, Joe ran independent UK hip hop label Squid Ninja Records, holding down the
business side of things for the crew and occasionally mentoring younger emcees to help
them find their sound.
With a back catalogue of releases on various labels Joe has managed to effortlessly spray
his emcee talents over many genres of music. Hip hop, DnB and grime are all natural
terrains for Joe’s skillful and confident verbal sparring with every release drawing critical
acclaim and airplay from many major players on BBC Radio 1 and BBC 1Xtra such as
MistaJam, Ace & Vis, Bethan Elfyn, Jen Long & Adam Walton.
In 2014 Joe set up shop in Cardiff’s Karma nightclub and launched Circle Eight, a new DnB
brand which saw him booking and performing alongside some of the biggest names in the
game such as Jumping Jack Frost, Micky Finn, Blackmarket, Chunky Bizzle, and also
featuring DnB circuit regulars Kenny Ken, Mampi Swift, Nicky, DJ Sly, Taxman, Voltage,
Rowney & Propz, Dialogue, Total Recall, DJ Hazard, DJ Hype, Brockie, Heist, Serum,
Devilman, Ragga Twins, Harry Shotta, Fearless, Trigga, Mr Traumatik among countless
others.
Those that have seen Joe perform at events such as Boombap Festival, One Nation,
Dreamscape and Boomtown will already have witnessed his charismatic stage presence and
ability to feed off his audience and know exactly what they want to hear.
With over 30+ years experience in the music industry, Joe is guaranteed to create fire
wherever he goes, and his audiences know only too well that they are witnessing one of the
best South Wales has to offer.
Visit Joe Blows Bandcamp page:
https://joeblow1977.bandcamp.com/
spotify :
https://open.spotify.com/artist/5oVTn06kiTtMSZG56uHDqs?si=u_Kz7r9ETp-MNmndi3NqMA
Born Kimberly S. In 1983, Born and raised in Edgemere Projects In Farrockaway Queens. Versatyle started her career young. Performing at hood gatherings, talent shows and mixtapes. Versatyle first hit the scene on the. “Escape the Rock” mixtape. Her career progressed when she met Kenneth Lewis KL Kamakazee of the rap group Screwball in 20
Born Kimberly S. In 1983, Born and raised in Edgemere Projects In Farrockaway Queens. Versatyle started her career young. Performing at hood gatherings, talent shows and mixtapes. Versatyle first hit the scene on the. “Escape the Rock” mixtape. Her career progressed when she met Kenneth Lewis KL Kamakazee of the rap group Screwball in 2003. Versatyles first feature was “Fuck yal Niggaz” with KL and BlaqPoet. After being heard on the cut, Versatyle then proceeded to feature on NYG’z “Welcome to Gdom” album with the song called “broken dreams”. The name Versatyle started to wave across the world. In 2006 DJ Marley Marl introduced the remix to Keyshia Cole “love” and featured Versatyle on the track. Working with industry likes across the globe, she cohosted a show called “Hostyle Takeover” on futureflavasonline.com with KL from screwball and DJGMF from project sounds. Versatyle released the hit single “Run it Up” (scape mix) which skyrocketed the first week on independent release.
Newly released single “ Daydreamin” hit the air waves coasting across the globe coming in at #3 on the unsigned chart.
Soon to be released Ep on Veteran Records, versatyle has collaborated with the popular UK group Undecorated veterans 4Dee and Joe Blow. World renown Producers on the EP includes VacaPapi, 4Dee, DjCallieban and Acko. Word on the streets is she’s bringing raw underground hip hop back.
IG @theofficial_versatylesbe
youtube: theofficial_versatylesbe
DJ Jaffa started DJing in 1985, since then he has played every majorfestival in the UK. Internationally he has played in Germany, Spain,Belgium, Hong Kong,Italy and mainland China. He has played alongside and supported artists such as-Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash, Grandwizard Theodore, CashMoney, Snoop Dogg, The Jungle Brothers, Kool Kei
DJ Jaffa started DJing in 1985, since then he has played every majorfestival in the UK. Internationally he has played in Germany, Spain,Belgium, Hong Kong,Italy and mainland China. He has played alongside and supported artists such as-Kool Herc, Grandmaster Flash, Grandwizard Theodore, CashMoney, Snoop Dogg, The Jungle Brothers, Kool Keith, Masta Ace, BizMarkie, Ugly Duckling, Blade, Blak Twang, Public Enemy, A Skills, DjYoda, Ghostface Killah and the list goes on and on.2015 marked his 30thyear as a dj, and in December 2015 won the best dj award at the Cardiff Music Awards.Currently he has a Bi-weekly radio show on Raptz Radio broadcast out of Paris on www.raptz.com, playing underground Hip Hop.For bookings email-djjaffa2@gmail.com www.mixcloud.com/djjaffafor DJ Jaffa mixesFacebook DJ JaffaTwitter/IG @djjaffa
Emarvellous, born and raised in east London, relocated and settled in Wales over 15 years ago. musically influenced by all genres from Motown , funk, pop through to classical . A conscious storey teller through rap and hip hop, drawing from life experience as well as tackling diverse and complex subjects. A versatile artist with a prov
Emarvellous, born and raised in east London, relocated and settled in Wales over 15 years ago. musically influenced by all genres from Motown , funk, pop through to classical . A conscious storey teller through rap and hip hop, drawing from life experience as well as tackling diverse and complex subjects. A versatile artist with a proven catalogue of local, national and International collaborations with a collection of released tracks, videos and albums. E marvellous continues to write new music and experiment with new sounds and ideas with a variety of producers and artists .
https://open.spotify.com/artist/0QcpOoW7kNPnqXZX2UdY90
IG- @Emarvellous9
Twitter - @Emarvellousoh
Jamie hayez is a hip hop artist from south wales who goes under the alter ego of J HAYEZ. Starting his hip hop journey in 2017 being influenced by the likes of wu tang, mobb deep and other artists from the 90's golden era of hip hop while at the same time being inspired by local legends in his home town of Barry such as squid ninjaz. Wit
Jamie hayez is a hip hop artist from south wales who goes under the alter ego of J HAYEZ. Starting his hip hop journey in 2017 being influenced by the likes of wu tang, mobb deep and other artists from the 90's golden era of hip hop while at the same time being inspired by local legends in his home town of Barry such as squid ninjaz. With alot of his back catalogue being produced by Cardiffs late local legend Stagga, J hayez has history with all the founding members of the label, so being signed to veteran records has turned goals and aspirations into actualized manifestations. He has been honing his lyrical prowess on the drum and bass and hip hop circuit shutting down raves, shows and festivals from West Wales to cardiff and bristol to London while also making music in multiple genre's. while always keeping hop music and the whole culture which drives the movement close to his heart. You can expect great things from this extremely talented geezer now he has realized his latent potential in music production. Backed by the titans that are veteran records expect boundaries to be broken, limits to be pushed and borders to be invaded with out permission. J-HAYEZ is a name to be taken very seriously!
4Dee -Shots Fired Album
Bandcamp:
https://4dee1.bandcamp.com/album/shots-fired
All Other Platforms :
https://songwhip.com/4dee/shots-fired
Veteran Records
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