Interview with David Newsum

It's another week of summer heat and there's nothing we can do about it. However, this is perhaps a good time to talk to some people in Dubai and just chill out in an air-conditioned place.

This week, Dubai Lime catch up with David Newsum just to talk about his opinions about the radio shows, summer in Dubai and the entertainment scene in the city since he has been in this business for quite sometime now.

Tell us something about you and what do you do?
My name is David Newsum and I’m a DJ, Radio Presenter, Promoter and many other things.

What do you think of the entertainment scene in Dubai?
Its okay, nothing special though. Dubai’s got thousands of square miles of desert which is perfect for hosting parties and events and yet you just can’t get a license, i.e. DJ/Entertainer licenses, no dancers, 3am closing which I’m sad to say means Dubai will always have second rate nightlife compared to the rest of the world if you are a club person.

How can Dubai be improved in terms of entertainment?
Let concert venues, clubs & bars be built anywhere like warehouses, near offices etc. The two best venues Dubai has/has had are Chi @ The Lodge and the now closed IBO, both are privately owned and are away from hotels. If I have the money and want to build an amazing club in any other country I can find a building and convert it into a club as long as its not near a residential area. Now how many hotels have a spare 60,000 sq. ft. spare to build a club in?

Summer is coming what do you do?
Go and live in Hong Kong! Well ,that’s what I’m doing anyway!

Do you entertainment people ever see sunlight?
Looking down at my pasty white arms I’d have to say no. To be honest, there is nothing more dull than sunbathing. I get so bored after about 10 minutes of lying in the sun and the feeling of sweat dripping down my body I hate it! So, I use sun beds now - out in 8 minutes and you can do it at 9pm!!

What can you handle and what makes you twist?
A door I can handle and Elvis makes me twist; what sort of question is that?

What do you think of the radio shows in Dubai?
Where do I start. There are many good presenters here in Dubai however without listener figures it is difficult to care about making their show the best. A presenter in a market with listener figures could work their socks off making the most amazing radio show and when those figures come in at the end of the quarter they’ll be up and he’ll probably be rewarded financially by the station or be head hunted by a bigger station.

Here in the UAE, though there are no listener figures and so some people put little effort into making their shows great because there is no way of monitoring how well they are doing. Also the best shows are generally the ones that generate the most complaints. A joke always has someone or something that is being made fun of and someone will at some point get offended. Look at how popular Howard Stern is yet look at how many complaints he receives?

Presenters who open themselves up and give opinions are always going to make themselves easy unjustified targets. In more developed markets if a complaint comes in, there is a process they follow to see if there is any validity in the complaint which 99% of the time the authorities conclude there isn’t and you’ve just hit a raw nerve with someone.

In Dubai, there are no set rules and it depends on how your bosses are feeling on any given day or who has made the complaint as to if the presenter gets fired/punished or not. With a presenter who is making lots of jokes and being creative doing new things there are bound to be slip-ups, Humans aren’t machines. Ask everyone which would they prefer: radio where the presenter announces song names and tells the time but that’s about it or a presenter who does creative features, has fun, cracks jokes, makes you laugh and smile while listening but will occasionally go too far or let slip a swear word. I know I’d go for the later every time and I’m pretty sure most people would too. Sadly here in the UAE if you make one slip up your given the boot or punished which isn’t how radio should be as it leads to no presenters taking risk with creative new features pushing things forward.

Who are your influences?
I’ve always been a big fan of Johnny Vaughan since his Big Breakfast days. That would have been my dream job to present that show. Club DJ wise, Judge Jules helped me a lot in my early days and I have a lot of respect that he personally replies to every email he receives which is something pretty much no other DJ does (he gets about 1000 a week). Also Armin Van Buuren and Paul Van Dyk as musical influences.

What does Abu Dhabi shout out to you?
I don’t normally talk to cities -:)

Have you heard any of the rumour’s about new entertainment laws happening in Abu Dhabi regarding DJ’s and bands?
Not in Abu Dhabi, however I’ve heard that they may be extending the opening hours on weekends in Dubai until 6am after Ramadan this year, although that could just be a rumor.

** Interview has been edited by Dubai Lime - Sorry David - We know what you really said though.