Chiefrocka

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Chiefrocka (real name David Vincent Coakley) is a British born club and radio DJ specialising in an eclectic range of electronic music performed in a block party style. Born in Wallasey near Liverpool, UK (15 February 1978). Coakley got his first professional DJ'ing gigs, not in his own hometown of Liverpool, but in the south of England playing gigs around the Essex region.

Heavily influenced at a very early age by the second U.S. Hip-Hop invasion (Run DMC, LL Cool J, BDP, et al) of the mid 80's, Coakley's earliest memories of what was to become his obsession with music are of making pause button tapes of early rap pioneers and of course, the obligatory destruction of his fathers HiFi turntable after seeing a live film featuring the late Jam Master Jay cutting & scratching.

In 2003 while at the University of Liverpool studying Sociology, he took modules in 'Music Business and Media' and 'Music Production'. This led to further studies at a local college in 'Radio Production', a media he had been fascinated with since he was a child. After being certified with qualifications in Radio Production and Presentation he began presenting an underground Hip-Hop show on a local station, 7 Waves, on F.M. radio.

The '7 Waves Hip-Hop Show' showcased up-coming UK Hip-Hop acts such as 57th Dynasty, Skinnyman, Taskforce and others, alongside contemporary U.S. Hip-Hop artists. Demo CDs and live studio sessions played included acts such as Anti-Heroes, Blood & Jonez, Caramac, Madrox, Sway DaSafo and The Shakti amongst others.

Chiefrocka is currently the presenter of the 'Illmatic' radio show on 7 Waves in Merseyside (Friday nights); the name inspired by the classic 90's Hip-Hop album of the same name, by New York rapper Nas. The show is described as "an eclectic mix of filthy, dirty, House, Hip-Hop, D'n'B and Electroboogie; heavily inspired by the block party era". Features include a live hour long mix from a guest DJ each week, as well as the shows featured tracks and 'top ten' often being mixed live in the studio by Chiefrocka.

Coakley has also guested on both BBC and comercial radio, most recently providing a mix for BBC Radio 6's '6mix', as well as being interviewed by the programes host, DJ Asha.

[edit] Nicknames

The phrase "Chiefrocka" has been in use for many years, by many individuals. It was chosen as a DJ name by Coakley in tribute to one of his favourite Hip-Hop tracks; 'Chiefrocka', by the seminal mid 90's east coast rap group the 'Lords Of The Underground'. They in turn took the nickname from some of the original famous black disk jockeys from around the way; individuals such as the "original chief rocker" Frankie Crocker (also known as 'Hollywood and 'Loverman'), Eddie O'Jay and Gary Byrd.

See Bill Brewster & Frank Broughton's definitive history book of the DJ, 'Last Night A DJ Saved My Life'.

[edit] illmatic

In 2006 Chiefrocka alongside fellow DJ's Doyle, 'Small' Ste Banks (aka Banksy), Paul Davidson (aka Solid State) and Ian Farley began a club promotion under the 'illmatic' name at the infamous Liverpool nightspot the 'Lemon Lounge'. The concept of the night was to de-separate the various genres of music the resident DJ's enjoyed and to attempt to re-create the block party vibe presented by the greats of the past whereby individuals such as Afrika Bambaataa would play an eclectic mix of Hip-Hop, Punk and New Wave to a mixed crowd.

In an interview, Chiefrocka described the concept as such: "(the name) illmatic is a tribute to the Nas album of the same name. To be honest we just liked the phonetic sound of that word....though to me 'illmatic' describes a sound and a feeling. We're hopefully playing some pretty sick, ill tunes so the name seems logical, the style is filthy f****d up basslines and automatic beats....so it's some iLLMATIC s**t!. I find it hard to describe but theres a definite philosophy at play.

Electronic stuff whether it be a Hip-Hop track or an Electroboogie joint, even some old rock tunes....(a) quite eclectic mix of hard underground music....anything from some crazy old skool Hip-Hop to Tiefschwartz, through Daft Punk and everything in between. That's basically what it is and we're blatantly trying to copy the masters. Respectfully, of course. We're trying to imagine what it must have been like in those early block partys when Bambaataa and those guys were trying to break new ground playing breaks from different genres, breaking down walls.".