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Having worked there for over a decade, Jasmine says a fond farewell to MTV

READERS, some of you may have heard that this month, some opportunities were presented to me that I had to take advantage of and so I have left MTV UK.

I started at MTV International as a news presenter 12 years ago and in that time, I have done some amazing things. I’ve reported from numerous UK B- Boy championships with break-dance icon Crazy Legs; I had Robbie Williams serenade me after convincing him he could rap; I had R’n’B singer Brandy in bed with me; and I interviewed D’Angelo in the bath!

Lifelong memories will include witnessing the most ostentatious parties that record labels threw – before the recession took hold of company’s budgets! There was Janet Jackson's London Dungeons party, where each room was decorated like a different country, with food and beverages from each of those countries on offer. Then there was Maxwell's Aquarium party and Puffy’s post-EMA party in Barcelona – arguably one of the best parties I’ve ever attended!

Having Jodeci serenade me on camera was another great moment, as was break-dancing with the Sugarhill Gang whilst wearing a giant clock a la Flava Flav. Other highlights include staying on Puffy’s yacht in St Tropez; making MTV Diaries with people like Justin Timberlake, G-Unit and Eminem; and Making of the Video moments with the likes of Usher, Jamelia and Wu Tang Clan’s RZA and Methodman.

Flying across the Atlantic for 10-minute interviews with A-list artists was a regular occurrence. And I've grabbed countless music stars at shows, premieres, showcases and even straight after they’ve been released from prison! (Shout out to Mark Morrison!)

Can you imagine watching acts grow from nothing to something global? Doing Destiny's Child and Black Eyed Peas’ first European interviews and seeing how successful they went on to become was wonderful. And being able to work with my favourite artists like Jill Scott and Jaheim was also great.

Crazy moments included filming SWV and Foxy Brown at Stratford Rex. Foxy wore a bikini and insisted on sitting astride a chair so she looked naked! And rolling with Jamiroquai and Prodigy backstage for news segments at the EMAs was eye-opening – they taught me about stars being wild!

Of course, there were stressful moments – like when Whitney Houston fiddled with her scarf look for 45 minutes of my 60-minute interview!

More recently, it’s been fun helping to open doors for the new wave of UK acts and developing new shows for the UK urban comedy scene. (Kojo’s Fresh Prince of Hackney, Young Gods of Comedy, etc). And I’ve loved trying out specialist projects like DJ Takeover (they told me I’d never get all the warring DJs to work together in one studio but we did it); Leaders of the New Skool (where we championed non-music talents like Jonzi D); and From The Endz (where we championed the likes of Tinchy Stryder, Chipmunk and N-Dubz).

I’m proud of the artists who worked with me to show the powers that be that we can be professional, talented and deliver solid results with a diverse outlook. For example, a little-known writer with a good sense of comedy called Jason Lewis banged my door down. He went on to learn the ropes and made MTV Base black history month programming with his own resources. That certainly paid off for him, as he’s now been signed up to the BBC.

It was good to not only widen the door for UK artists and talents, but also to show the wealth of black cultural events like the ACLT ball, the Obama Inauguration Ball and the numerous comedy shows at Hackney Empire.

As well as urban music and comedy, urban movies are growing to be huge in their own right. Inspired by Noel Clarke’s films, young filmmakers have stepped up and now we’re surrounded by a wonderful mix of talent that can’t be stopped. Does that sound to you like all of Britain’s youths are dangerous idiots? No – that’s just what the mainstream media often chooses to focus on.

My ongoing thanks has to go to my fellow music industry partners in rhyme, who battled alongside me in our unspoken, unofficial army. People like Estelle, Trevor Nelson, Tim Westwood, Paul H, Cookie, Jennifer Mills, Taponeswa Mavunga, Jodie Dalmeda, Jay Davidson, Rob Pascoe, Daren Dixon, Rich Pascoe, Matt Ross, Mervyn Lyn, Hattie Collins, Davina Morris, Dionne Grant, Adenike, George Kay, Ray Paul, Kwame Kwaten, Manny Norte, JPESQ and Wale Adeyemi.

I’ve seen artists come and go, labels rise and fall, and attended great parties and crap parties. I’ve also endured so many late night edits, sat in a dark room, feeling sick with exhaustion, but excited about a show about to go on air. That is a natural high.

And for me to see the UK public go from ridiculing UK acts years ago, to championing them like they have this year, is the best note to leave on. My job here is done!

Now, I want to take the scene global with bigger TV exposure and that’s why I am taking new adventures with other TV companies. Terrestrial TV companies have given the green light to a few projects - the first will be a T4 music special on Channel 4 on November 14.

Thanks to you all for taking this journey with me. Please stay on for the ride as we continue onwards and upwards!

Jasmine Dotiwala is a TV producer, director and broadcast journalist. Email her at jasmine@hiphop.com

Published: 02 November 2009
Issue: 1396

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