Roy Davis Jr.
Location: Chicago, IL
Bio: Roy describes his music as "Soul Electrica", the hybrid of soul and electronic music. Others describe it as classic R & B infused with deep, ... (more)
soulful, Chicago-style House. While spinning his own brand of floor-stomping soul for his multitude of fans, Roy Davis jr. has emerged as one of the most requested DJ’s in the world. Between flights, Roy has managed to create a musical catalog of many timeless club anthems; among them "The Believers - Who Dares to Believe in me?" and the genre-defining “Gabrielle”.
Growing up on Chicago's South Side, Davis was turned on at an early age to the sounds of house pioneers like Lil' Louis. Launching his own DJ/production career as part of the Chicago production unit Phuture, Davis began to make a name for himself with singles such as "20 Below." Then came the 90's, and Roy, keeping on point with his cutting edge sound, teamed up with Chicago vocalist Peven Everett and recorded the hit song, "Gabrielle"(Large /XL This track was met with massive radio and club play the world over and sold over 250,00 copies, and has appeared on dozens of compilations including the seminal Desert Island Mix from Gilles Peterson
(Journeys By DJ).
It was the tune that would change his musical direction, as well as take him back to his spiritual roots. As a result of not being able to find available or suitable vocalists for his more spiritual releases, Roy began singing over his productions. After a string of successful dance releases featuring Roy as a solo vocalist, and rave reviews from the press, Roy immediately took his stage show to the next
level, and formed his band, "Soldiers Of Universal Love".
Graduating from deejay to artist, this gave Roy the opportunity to perform his chart topping releases such as "Michael", and "Join His Kingdom", for his fans, and showcase his "Soul Electrica" sound on the road. The ability to perform with a band, and cause massive dance floor overloads around the world is what sets Roy apart from other Dj's and House producers. Roy and the "Soldiers of Universal Love" have performed at many renowned venues, including Club METRO in Chicago to the famous TROUBADOR in Los Angeles and Club Air in Tokyo.
During the beginning of the new Millennium, his reputation as a producer landed him work with major labels such as: Warner Brothers, Sony and MCA doing dance remixes for their top artists. Roy is diversified in the area of production with dozens of remixes including chart-toppers for Underworld, Gus Gus, Eric Benet/Faith Evans, Seal, Morcheeba and Universal's own Hip-Hop Queen, Mary J. Blige. Roy's work is also "No Stranger" to the Billboard Dance charts. His Terry Dexter remix of "Better than me" landed #3, while his most recent remix of Modjo's "Lady", soared to #1. Other honorable mentions in his catalog include "Watch Them Come" (Jazzanova
remix) and the Roule single "Rock Shock" Roy did with Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter, just prior to the label releasing their now infamous hit "Music Sounds Better."
More recently, Davis' full-length album, Traxx from the Nile (2001), stood out for its integrity and earthiness at a time when the North American dance scene was in the grips of the waning ecstasy-fueled British trance movement. The album reflected Davis' spirituality and includes not only his production but vocal work as well. The disc received rave reviews in over 30 publications including RollingStone.com, URB, Flaunt, Vibe, Mixer and many more. In Summer of 2002 Roy Davis Jr and the Soldiers of Universal Love were featured as a headlining act at Montreal's acclaimed 2002 Jazz Festival where they performed to a packed venue. "The wild
evening of entertainment provided by supercharged singer/DJ Roy Davis Jr" was proclaimed by Jazz Festival Senior President and Artistic Director André Ménard to be a highlight and a "particularly moving moment" of last years event. They performed live versions of hits such as "Gabrielle", "Watch Them Come", and several
titles from his March 2003 release on Toronto label NICE+SMOOTH entitled "WATER FOR
THIRSTY CHILDREN".
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