DJ Dlee

DJ Dlee (real name Aleksey Olegovich Tagantsev; Russian: Алексей Олегович Таганцев; 2 March 1975, Velizh – 12 July 2009, Mozhaysk Highway, Moscow Oblast) was a Russian record producer and DJ who worked in styles such as hip hop and R&B. Over the years of his musical career, he produced and released numerous mixes, including the official mixtape of Ligalize, "LIGA'MIX".

He was sacred "absolute champion" in the R'n'B category at the international DJ championship Movida Corona 2004.^[1]

At the dawn of his musical career, he was the team DJ for the group "Y.G." (Yuzhnye Golvorezy). Later, he performed solo and collaborated with Timati and his group VIP77. He died in a car accident on 12 July 2009.

Aleksey Tagantsev was born on 2 March 1975 in Velizh.^[2] He studied at specialized English school No. 21, after which he entered the Moscow Technical University of Communications and Informatics. In 1996, he took the pseudonym DJ Dlee (meaning "Long" or "Tall") and began his career as a DJ, playing hip hop and R'n'B. According to the musician, before that moment he had visited nightclubs for a long time "and at some point I realized: I don't like what they play, I don't like how the DJ works, I don't like the selection of material and the technique itself. I wanted to do it my way."^[3]

His love for hip hop appeared back in school when Aleksey listened to tracks by the group N.W.A. At the beginning of his career, contemporary R'n'B was not as widely popular as it is now, so DJ Dlee is rightfully considered a Russian pioneer of this style.

DJ Dlee spent most of his career playing music in clubs, although he did not consider them his main place of work. The musician did not limit himself to Moscow alone — he regularly visited cities in Russia and abroad, giving dozens of performances a year. At the same time, Aleksey produced young musicians, for example, the group "Banda" and hip hop artist Timati. DJ Dlee not only produced Timati's debut album Black Star, but also appeared in the music video "V klube" (In the club), thanks to which he became known to the general public.

On the night of 12 July 2009, Aleksey Tagantsev died in a car accident at the 37th km of the Mozhaysk Highway. Aleksey was driving to his dacha when a Mercedes driving in the oncoming lane crashed into his Suzuki Grand Vitara.^[4] The funeral took place on 16 July in the city of Velizh.^[5]

Tagantsev's death is mentioned in Timati's track "Vertolet" (Helicopter): "I still pray that the heavens help me, that the ships of my hopes do not get stuck in the shallows. I still pray that the brakes do not fail, rest in peace, Ratmir, rest in peace, DJ Dlee."

On 4 December 2009, the Odintsovo City Court of the Moscow Oblast found the second participant in the collision guilty of the accident and sentenced him to 3 years and 6 months in prison.^[6]

• 2002 — Y.G., Nonamerz, Da B.O.M.B. "Eto tolko nachalo" (It's Only the Beginning) (live album)
• 2004 — Moscow Finest DJs
• 2004 — DJ Dlee "R&B Summer Session", 2004
• 2004 — DJ Dlee "Blazin' Hip-Hop and R&B in da mix vol. 1", 2004
• 2004 — DJ Dlee "Blazin' Hip-Hop and R&B in da mix vol. 2", 2004
• 2005 — Dancehall Ragga Hip-Hop Re:Mix^[7]
• 2006 — Black Star
• 2009 — Get Money (mixtape)
• 2009 — "LIGA'MIX"

• "Funky Street" award for best DJ of the year — 2003
• Absolute champion in R&B at the World DJ Championship — 2004
• 66th place in the PRO TOP 100 DJ list — 2006

• "Biography" (in Russian). DJ Dlee. Retrieved 2016-05-21.