14 Aug 2018

Fifty-two years ago a man was born and they called him Sidney Baitsile also known as DJ Sid by many in the music circle.

The self-proclaimed music guru divulged that since he was four-years-old, all he could think about was music and nothing could take that passion away from him.

“I had music instruments such as amplifiers and speakers to play and ever since then I have been hooked onto this hobby until now.”

 He divulged that growing up, his father liked music and that was one of the things that motivated him to become a music pundit that he came to be.

He said it was true that you pick up a lot of things from your parents, and that his parents drove him towards this dream without even knowing or realising it.

Reminiscing about his early days, the DJ said his father bought him music equipment at a tender age and that was one memory that he could not forget.

He pointed out that the influence was greater than he could ever comprehend, saying going into primary he liked music more than his peers including music gadgets and records.

Though a Tsabong native, DJ Sid said he grew up in Gaborone and went to Lesedi Primary School and St Joseph’s College.

“The passion that I had for music during my formative years saw me becoming a member of the entertainment committee at St Joseph’s College, something which was known to be only for the senior students, though I was only doing my Form 3.”

After senior school he went to the University of Botswana to do BSC in dentistry and could not get a scholarship to further his studies, proclaiming that though he was not a bad student, he was most of the time let down by misplaced priorities.

After a stint at UB he said he was lucky again as he got a scholarship to do a course in physiotherapy in Washington DC, and once again he fell short of the requirements of the school work, eventually returning back home where he nurtured his burning passion for music.

When he came back, he tried to work at Radio Botswana (RB1) and they turned him down three times, but that did not stop him. He then auditioned for Radio Botswana (RB2) and they finally took him.

He claims to be the first man to go on air when RB2 started and worked there for seven years.

Sid said he had a good eye for natural talent and was able to influence the likes of DJ Fresh, Owen Rampha and others. After leaving RB2 in 1998, he went on to work for Duma Fm, Gabs Fm and also became a club DJ.

He revealed that he also started an online radio station which failed, but said he would not give up on it. In 2017, he became a judge in the popular music talent show My Star Botswana where he has been making appearances from time to time and is currently one of the judges. Ends