Dahlia “DJ Rosegold” Palmer – The epitome of a ‘go-getter’

BY JANIECE CAMPBELL

“One thing about me, I will never do something just to do it. Anything I do, there has to be a full strategic business plan behind how I’m going to execute it.” – DJ Rosegold

Toronto has become a breeding ground for natural talent. For this Mississauga-born creative, her innate flair for music and business go hand-in-hand.

A woman whose voice is as colourful as her name, Dahlia “DJ Rosegold” Palmer is the epitome of ambition. Let’s talk about titles! Besides her evident disk jockey role, she is also the author of her success encouraging workbook, Think Like a Boss, a businesswoman and total foodie!

With only three years of experience spinning tracks, DJ Rosegold has managed to make her mark in the industry. Her success can be attributed to having an extremely musical family. Being the daughter of Jamaican dancehall artist Garnett ‘Terminal DG’ Palmer has led her to appreciate her Caribbean roots and aided in formulating her unique sound. However, playing for sold-out music festivals and tours was nowhere near her original career plan.

“I was actually in school to be a French immersion teacher up until 2017. I didn’t even purchase my first DJ controller until January that year. Prior to that, I had DJ programs on my phone and computer that I’d play around with, but it wasn’t anything too serious. I’ve been around music my entire life, so it was inevitable that I’d end up doing something in music, but that definitely wasn’t my goal when I was younger.”

Her love for music blends effortlessly with her love for family, as she produces beats with her brother, multifaceted artist Chillaa. The musically inclined siblings have already released a bass-heavy club banger earlier this year and have no plans of ending this well-paired partnership anytime soon. Many would be hesitant about working with family members, but DJ Rosegold assuredly omits that thought.

“I have had the best experience working with family. Some people may tell you not to work with your friends or your family, but I think it all depends on your relationship previous to working with them. Luckily, we already know the things that piss each other off and we know the things that each other likes. We’re already so close-knit, so when it came to doing business together, it was a no-brainer.”

Having played for several gigs; from spinning at NBA All Star Weekend in Chicago to being an opening DJ on Jessie Reyez’s tour, DJ Rosegold is no rookie to the game. Earlier this year, she got an opportunity of a lifetime to play for former US president Barack Obama.

“Fortunately, he releases a playlist every year of his favourite songs. It was good to know going into it that he has great taste in music. I was able to play a lot of dancehall and hip-hop music and wasn’t forced to play boring music that I’d be used to playing at a corporate event. I was able to be in my zone and it’s at the top of my list of the coolest events I’ve done. Who can top Obama?!”

DJ Rosegold founded The House of Milo, a media agency specializing in creative, experiential services for brands and artists. Alongside personally hosting an annual large networking event in Toronto called Rosé – The Mixer, she is also crowned with the title ‘artist liaison’. Taking on the role of showing foreign artists the beauty of the city, she arranges to take them to restaurants, manages their club bookings and acquires merchandise for them from several Toronto brands. One major performer in particular on the receiving end of this 5-star treatment was Nigerian-American ‘classic man’ Jidenna, where she organized a pop-up album party at a local nightclub.

A never-ending hustler, DJ Rosegold has a hunger for success – literally! With the COVID-19 pandemic forcefully cancelling many of her international shows, she refused to let the virus cancel her creativity. Take one look at her Instagram and you’ll see two story highlights – “eating” and “cheffing.” A foodie turned business owner; she takes a bite into a new industry.

“I post A LOT of food! Everyone was always telling me to open a restaurant and sell my food, but I never had the time to do any of those things because I was always travelling. Since COVID-19 started, it gave me the opportunity to start my business: The Hungry Gyal! I call it a gourmet take-out restaurant. We offer a bunch of food everyone loves – fan-favourite type of foods!”

From mouth-watering burgers, to creamy mac and cheese, to saucy scotch bonnet wings, The Hungry Gyal aims to satisfy your cravings while being committed to giving back to the community. A portion of proceeds from each order go to Afri-Can FoodBasket, a non-profit organization supporting black families in Toronto.

“Afri-Can FoodBasket launched Black Food Toronto, which is a group of black farmers in the city that sell produce to the public, but more importantly they put together food baskets for black families in need that don’t have access to food. Every meal that is sold by us goes to providing another family with food.”

Giving back is an enormous part of DJ Rosegold’s genuine nature, as she also began another initiative under The Hungry Gyal. Recently, she created a GoFundMe with a goal of raising $9,000 to employ black youth for the upcoming summer.

“The Hungry Gyal is a new business, so I have a lot of start-up costs that I’ve had to put in. I haven’t seen an income that I’d like to see, which is fair because we just started. I needed some help because we have a lot of work that needs to be done. So, what better way to get help than from black youth in Toronto? Especially since black youth are undermined when it comes to the workforce or they settle for jobs that don’t really care about them like big brands or businesses. I wanted to raise some money so I can personally employ these black youth and put them in a positive working environment and I can also pay them. Not only do I want to employ black kids to be in the kitchen learning about hospitality, but I want to do seminars to teach them social media and digital marketing skills. They’d be learning a variety of skills with this money.”

DJ Rosegold is a self-made boss with big dreams (some that she isn’t ready to tell the world about just yet!) She has final words for any young DJs looking into a career in music:

“My goal is to expand in everything. I have a couple of plans in place but I’m just going to manifest them on the inside. As for advice to other DJs on the come-up, connect with other DJs! One mistake that people make is assuming that they can just go into a field and do everything on their own without help. I wouldn’t be where I am if I hadn’t networked and asked questions.”