My name is Michael aka Mike aka Slim aka Dj Slim. I'm a DJ living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). MS is A disease in which the immune system eats away at the protective covering of nerves. I’ve had a passion for music since I was a young boy. I found out about DJs and thought, “I really want to be one”. I was fascinated. I had to try but being a young youth in the late 80’s without money, what could I do? My grandma had one of those old dual cassette radios with the record on top. I’m sure some of you can remember those lol. My cousin had a Rob Base record and so we learned to manipulate it like a real turntable by using the radio, phono switches and our mixing began. Looking back in retrospect, it was horrible but we made it work and entertainment was born lol. Now with my family being from Jamaica, reggae music was a staple. I’ve always loved reggae, and then 90’ Dancehall started to boom!! Family parties, bbqs and picnics, you name it and that’s what was playing.
The beats and movements, Lord have Mercy!!! Then came the Big Sound Systems. Stone Love, Renaissance Disco, MetroMedia, Road Star and others. The artists, Shabba, NinjaMan, Bounty Killa and Beenie Man, the list can go on and on. The songs, the counter-actions, simply AMAZING! I had to be a DJ/Sound Man. Then fast forward in life, I was diagnosed with M.S. in 2008. I tried playing out and was pretty good but couldn’t last long due to the fatigue and slow body reaction due to M.S. One day, I had a flare up (as it’s called) that crippled me for 3 weeks. The entire right side of my body was basically unresponsive. After getting things somewhat under control, I got back a small fraction of my mobility. But my passion for playing and playing out didn’t diminish. I kept trying. Then one day, a friend of mine said he was working with the Great Peter Lee. I was so excited for him. We all know of Peter Lee. The Man behind the Mask for the great Sound System “Chinese Assassin”.
My friend knew I could play and introduced us. And here we are. I’m a Chinese Assassin DJ. I mainly spin Reggae at this point as I’ve noticed over the years how the calming and soothing of Reggae music has been helping me cope with the difficulties of having M.S. That’s my goal to share with others. Whether you have a disability or not. Like Bob Marley has said “when it comes to Reggae music, you feel no pain.” Welcome to my life. - djSlim (Mike).