8th September, 2021
By Taiwo Okanlawon
DJ (Disc Jockey) is a person who plays existing recorded music for live audiences, and sometimes, they also play their compositions or do their versions of existing songs. They usually perform at a music festival or night club or wedding function, or at some other corporate or private function that uses record players, usually turntables, to manipulate sounds on phonograph records. You also say that DJs play music for the enjoyment of the listening people.
The epitome of modern entertainment, the talented human music player, the ones that keep you jigging all night long! To think there was a time without the turntables seems absurd, but the term ‘Disc Jockey’ didn’t even come around until 1935! Let’s delve deeper into one of the Nigerian DJs, popularly known as DJ Virall
James Nwankwo (popularly known as DJ Virall) hails from Anambra State, Nigeria; he was born in Kaduna and raised in Ibadan.
DJ Virall has always had a passion for music from a tender age and has always had dreams of being an entertainer. DJ Virall was in secondary school when he developed a great interest in being a disc jockey. From listening to music and popular Nigerian radio stations, he decided to go for proper Disc Jockey tutorials and started playing as a DJ before moving to Russia in 2021.
Apart from being a disk jockey, DJ Virall is a singer who composes his own music, a very social person who loves watching movies, listening to music, meeting and making new friends, and being free to learn anything positive from anyone.
Professionally, DJ Virall has been playing for a decade and is noted as one of the best Mobile DJs in the southeastern part of Nigeria. He moved to Moscow, which is the capital of Russia in 2021, where he plays for an XXX which was then the most famous international club. With his unique style of hyping and making DJ edits, he became popular in the city and also Deejayed at a couple of other clubs.
Disc jockey (DJ) at a young age
James Nwankwo, widely known as DJ Virall, is a multi-award-winning Nigerian disc jockey (DJ) and record producer. He developed an interest in becoming a disc jockey at a young age, entertaining his friends. DJ Virall has been able to carve a niche for himself within a short period of time in the music industry while also showcasing his versatility with different musical genres. He’s become a popular figure in the Nigerian music industry and has won numerous awards and recognition.
James Chike Nwankwo got the attention of most Africans on TikTok as he dropped a session of his performance at the popular Oni of Ife House with Nigerian Dancer. In May 2021, he uploaded his first TikTok video and, after a week, had over 2 million views.
Disc Jockey (DJ) Early journey
James Chike Nwankwo first became aware of music through his father’s extensive collection of Afro-music. He had always been fascinated by how music affected individuals and the range of feelings it stirred. He was exposed to a wide range of musical genres growing up in a home with African and European influences.
DJ Virall was born James Chike Nwankwo in Orumba North, Anambra, on June 24, 1989. As a young teenager, he would listen to the radio in his home’s basement, where he pretended to be the DJ. His early influences were the DJs of his day, like Frankie Knuckles, DJ Screw, and Jocko. At the age of 12, his love for radio grew as he listened daily to DJ, Jimmy Adewale Amu, popularly called DJ Jimmy Jatt.
One week, for several days, hoping to meet Jatt, Nwankwo positioned himself near the outside studio of Rhyme 93, where Jatt did major rock & roll shows.
While hanging around outside the premises, Nwankwo was noticed and received a big break. Later, James attended the University of Ibadan in Oyo State. While going to classes at night, by day, he supported himself as a door-to-door music entertainer.
James is a lover of entertainment with various art skills. He gave 90% of his time learning songs and mixing songs together. He grew into a young, talented disc jockey and fell in love with scratch. DJ Virall is a very talented disc jockey and has fans worldwide for his good Deejaying skills.
DJ Virall is a very notable DJ that plays all genres of music, He has various music and instruments produced by him on various digital stores and is making good streams.