Trevor Ricardo Nelson, MBE (born 7 January 1964) is an English DJ and presenter.

Early life

Born in the London Borough of Hackney to a family of

St Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindia ...

n heritage, Nelson attended Central Foundation Boys' Grammar School (now known as

Central Foundation Boys' School ''(By hope, by work, by faith)'' , established = 1865 , closed = , type = Voluntary aided school , religious_affiliation = , president = , head_label = , ...

) in Cowper Street, Islington, London EC2, and Westminster Kingsway College."Trevor Nelson: My Life in Media"
''The Independent'', 8 October 2007. His first job was in a shoe shop, but his love of music meant a part-time role as a DJ. Nelson found daytime work at a record importer in 1985, and widened his DJ experience putting on "warehouse parties" at the weekends. He went on to work in A&R for record labels Cooltempo and EMI, promoting artistes such as

D'Angelo Michael Eugene Archer (born February 11, 1974), better known by his stage name D'Angelo (), is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He first garnered attention after co-producing the single "U Will Know" ...

Mica Paris Michelle Antoinette Wallen (born 27 April 1969), known professionally as Mica Paris (), is an English singer, presenter and actress. Paris was born in Islington in North London, but moved to Brockley, South London, when she was nine. She rel ...

and Lynden David Hall; while also promoting events, including "The Lick".

Radio career

As a pioneer in the

urban music Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contem ...

scene, Nelson started his broadcasting career as "Madhatter" in 1985 on

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

Kiss FM Kiss FM, Kiss Radio or variants may refer to: Asia-Oceania * Various Kiss FM-branded stations in the Philippines ** 95.1 Kiss FM, Lucena, Quezon ** 102.3 Kiss FM, Tagbilaran, Bohol * Kiss92 FM, Singapore * KISS 969, Sri Lanka * Kiss Radio Taiwan ...

, originally a

pirate radio Pirate radio or a pirate radio station is a radio station that broadcasts without a valid license. In some cases, radio stations are considered legal where the signal is transmitted, but illegal where the signals are received—especially ...

station, and after it gained a licence in 1990. Nelson was both a daytime DJ and director. Behind the decks Nelson cut his teeth as a DJ with Soul II Soul and promoted numerous club nights including ''Lick''. With a stint behind the scenes in A&R at Cooltempo, EMI, Nelson was instrumental in the careers of D’Angelo,

and Lynden David Hall. In 1996, Nelson moved to

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

to present the first ever national RNB show ''The Rhythm Nation'' and a year later began a Saturday afternoon programme which resulted in his winning a MOBO Award in 1997 as Best DJ. Nelson stayed at Radio 1 until 2013. Nelson currently broadcasts across two radio networks. He previously presented weekdays, Monday to Friday 10:00am until 13:00 show on

BBC Radio 1Xtra BBC Radio 1Xtra is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It broadcasts black music and urban music, including hip hop and R&B and is a sister station to Radio 1. Launching at 18:00 on 16 August 2002, it had been ...

, and he started presenting Rhythm Nation on Saturday evenings on

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content ...

in July 2016, replacing his Wednesday evening soul show. In November 2016 it was announced that Nelson would be leaving his weekday 10am1pm show on 1Xtra and moving to Saturday and Sundays 47pm, showcasing the best in new and old R&B music, with DJ Ace taking over his slot. He has held this slot since 2011 after leaving the 1Xtra breakfast show which he presented with

Gemma Cairney Gemma Cairney (born 19 March 1985) is an English television and radio presenter best known for her work on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6 Music. She most recently presented '' The Leisure Society'' on BBC Radio 6 Music where she interviewed cultu ...

and previously Zena McNally. In 2010 he was awarded with the special gold lifetime achievement award for his services to broadcasting, at the Sony Radio Academy Awards. Nelson continues to DJ around the UK and Europe and is now in his tenth summer residency in Global Room nightclub in Pacha, Ibiza. He has released seven compilation albums, ''INCredible Sound of Trevor Nelson'', ''The Soul Nation'' and ''Lick'' compilations. His most recent compilation album is ''The Trevor Nelson Collection''. Picking up where his ''Lick'' compilations left off, he shares his favourite R&B, Soul and Rap classics from over the decades. On 21 March 2017 he was a presenter for

Sara Cox Sara Joanne Cyzer (née Cox; born 13 December 1974) is an English broadcaster. She presented ''Radio 1 Breakfast'' on BBC Radio 1 from 3 April 2000 until 19 December 2003. Since January 2019 she now hosts the BBC Radio 2 drivetime show, Monday ...

's Red Nose Day danceathon from 2am to 5am. In August 2017, April 2018, and again in August 2018, Trevor sat in for

Ken Bruce Kenneth Robertson Bruce (born 2 February 1951) is a British broadcaster who is best known for hosting his long-running weekday mid-morning show on BBC Radio 2 from 1986 to 1990, and then again since 1992. Early life and career Bruce was born a ...

on his Radio 2 show. On 29 October 2018 it was announced

would take over drivetime on Radio 2. As a result, from January 2019 Trevor Nelson's Rhythm Nation would move to Monday-Thursday 22:00–0:00. Trevor will continue with his 1Xtra drivetime show. In the summer of 2022 Nelson hosted ''Exodus:

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...

Reimagined''; the BBC concert took place to mark the 60th anniversary of Jamaican Independence.

Television career

Nelson first appeared on television in 1998 on MTV UK and presenting ''The Lick'' on MTV Base off the back of his first RNB show on Radio 1. Nelson also appeared as a judge on the 2006 show '' Just the Two of Us'', and again in 2007. Trevor has worked on numerous BBC shows that include: "Holiday:you call the shots" / "Trevor Nelson's Urban Choice" / "The Players club" series and more recently he presented the coverage of the FIFA World Cup concert in South Africa for BBC2 in 2010. Trevor holds the distinction of being the very first black person to appear on Channel 5, appearing at 10:37pm on

The Jack Docherty Show ''The Jack Docherty Show'' was a weeknightly comedy chat show which first aired on Channel 5 in the United Kingdom between 30 March 1997 and 23 June 1999. Presented by comedian Jack Docherty, the programme was one of the first to air on the ch ...

. Nelson regularly appears as a pundit on programmes where celebrities recall their detailed memories of popular culture. He also provided commentary on the 2012 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony and 2012 Summer Olympics Closing Ceremony that was widely criticised in the media.

Personal life

Order of the British Empire (Civil) Ribbon

A single divorced father of two children and cat owner, Nelson lives in

, and is a fan of Chelsea F.C. He also has a home in

Saint Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerindi ...

. He was appointed

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(MBE) in 2002 for his contribution to the Millennium Volunteers programme. Outside of Radio programs, Nelson currently owns and promotes his touring club brands including 'Soul Nation' & Classics, which launched at Ministry of Sound.

Bibliography

* Sounds Like London: 100 Years of Black Music in the Capital, 2013. (Contributor)

References

External links

*
''Trevor Nelson's Magnificent 7''
(BBC Radio 2)
''Trevor Nelson's Rhythm Nation''
(BBC Radio 2)
''Trevor Nelson''
(BBC Radio 1Xtra) {{DEFAULTSORT:Nelson, Trevor 1964 births Living people People from Hackney Central People educated at Central Foundation Boys' School English people of Saint Lucian descent English radio DJs DJs from London Members of the Order of the British Empire Black British DJs Black British radio presenters BBC Radio 2 presenters BBC Radio 1 presenters BBC Radio 1Xtra presenters