As an entertainer who wears many hats, the Amsterdam born DJ & presenter to date can be considered as one of the most diverse talents in our music industry. Jyoty had her start in music after moving to London to pursue her master’s degree.- “I’ve always wanted to live in London and I needed an excuse for my parents to let me go but they couldn’t support me financially so I needed a well paying job”.
As the universe would have it, she landed a job at one of London’s hottest clubs. For some time, she was the girl outside of the party instead of inside but turns out that narrative worked in her favor networking wise. Being the hostess meant that she met a lot of artists, DJs, their managers and some noteworthy people on the entertainment scene so when an opportunity surfaced for her to co-host a radio show on Rinse Radio with a friend, she accepted.
Eventually, Jyoty was offered a specialist spot and switched to hosting the show solo while simultaneously managing the guest list at Boiler Room events in London. Once they caught wind that she was doing radio, they approached her to host some of the shows which led to her being on camera for the first time. Fast forward, Jyoty secured a role as a music producer on Mixcloud.
Jyoty has always had an interest in music and entertainment. Being born and raised in Amsterdam, she shared a love affair with Caribbean music..especially the Jamaican sounds of reggae and dancehall. The DJ’s relationship with music from the island goes way back and has definitely shaped how she goes about her creative process. Her earliest memories of dancehall stemming from after school link-ups in the surinamese communities.- “Music like bubbling, as we used to say, was just from early school days you know. I mean as kids we were all singing and dancing along to Mr.Vegas, acts like TLK, Red Rat and Vybz Kartel were always blasting through the speakers everywhere you went.” Her first point of contact for reggae was the legendary Bob Marley in her teens. She became completely engrossed by the genre- “Dennis Brown, Peter Tosh, it’s like a whole new world opened up to me of good GOOD music. Music from the soul and just kind of certain vibrations that you can’t put into words”.
From performance art to art with a cause; while Jyoty doesn’t consider herself yet an activist, she is heavily involved in movements that contribute to the overall growth and awareness of several initiatives. – “The word activist gets thrown around and to me, has just become something you put in your instagram bio”. The presenter makes it a priority for her to partake in fundraisers and mentorship programs,- “The need to foster a community is just something that makes me really happy, it gives me a sense of purpose”.
Though she loved traveling and immersing herself into different cultures and movements, she also was not completely disappointed when the pandemic hit. Though it affected her life massively, she relished in the reality that she could finally have a break from her usual hustle and bustle work life.- “Pre-covid, I was touring the world…I was seriously sleep-deprived. I’d work my 9-5 Mondays to Fridays and then fly out on Fridays/Saturdays returning on Sunday being awake maybe a week or two at a time while still doing radio shows”. Like many in the industry, she found a new routine & secured an income through other hustles and creative interests. She also discovered a new love for online streaming. Her health has always been something of a concern given her fast-paced lifestyle and ironically COVID helped her in improving that significantly,- “I’m sleeping properly, exercising on my own time and at my own pace. I’m eating good, not stressed out at all”.
Jyoty is still saddened by the lack of travel especially since she’s yet to visit the origin island of two of her favorite genres.- “I’ve always wanted to go to Jamaica, so many of my friends go with their families yearly & I’m always invited..it just never happened”. Coincidentally, one of the first places on her list of countries to visit post-covid is Jamaica. Her idea of a perfect trip would include her only interacting with locals.- “I don’t wanna go to no resort, I want to meet the JA family. I want to see some aunties and uncles, eat some good food, play with the kids and take in some music at local parties and hot spots.”
The charismatic presenter stays leaving her footprint in the industry as she continues to evolve, create and add value to her growing audience.
