Joey Negro

Dave Lee, known professionally for over two decades as Joey Negro, achieved a major career milestone in 1993 by producing Take That’s UK No. 1 hit ‘Relight My Fire.’ Lee began his professional career in 1986 at Smithers & Leigh before moving to Rough Trade’s dance division, Demix, where he contributed to the success of artists like Bomb the Bass and MARRS. In 1987, in partnership with Rough Trade, he co-founded Republic Records, known for ‘The Garage Sound of Deepest New York’ compilation albums. That same year, he debuted as M-D-Emm with ‘Get Busy (It’s Partytime!)’.

He achieved a club hit as Raven Maize in 1989, establishing disco samples as a signature element. His most prominent pseudonym, Joey Negro, debuted in 1990 on Nu Groove, marking his solo transition and the establishment of his self-financed Z Records label. Throughout the 1990s, Lee’s remixer reputation grew with commissions for Diana Ross, M People, and Pet Shop Boys, and he introduced aliases like Z Factor, Doug Willis, Akabu, and Sessomatto. The early 2000s marked a period of significant commercial success for Lee.

In 1999, his track ‘Must Be the Music’ as Joey Negro featuring Taka Boom reached number 8 in the UK charts. The following year, under his Jakatta alias, ‘American Dream’ became his biggest hit, peaking at UK No. 3, followed by ‘So Lonely’ (UK No. 8) and ‘My Vision’ (UK No.

6). His Jakatta album ‘Visions’ (2000) climbed to UK No. 12. Further chart success included ‘The Real Life’ as Raven Maize (UK No.

Maintaining consistent output, Lee released ‘Produced with Love II’ in 2022, followed by ‘Metamorphosis’ in 2023. With ‘London / Detroit’ scheduled for release in 2025, Lee continues to demonstrate his influence in house and disco.