Meet the seven-year-old DJ Saturday, March 07, 2009, 08:02 When Freddie Mercury belted out Radio Ga Ga, he claimed that radio had become a "backdrop for the girls and boys who just don't know or just don't care" – but he clearly hadn't met Mustapha Malik. In fairness, it would have been difficult for him to have met the Bristol youngster given that Mustapha was born after Freddie died. But the seven-year-old Easton schoolboy is truly ga-ga about all things radio. His regular Saturday night slot on Bristol Community Radio must make him one of the country's youngest regular DJs. He may look remarkably young as he relaxes behind the studio mic, but Mustapha is actually an old hand. "I started four years ago," he says, adjusting the enormous headphones to fit his tiny head. "It was before I started school, even. My dad works in the IT department at the Beacon Centre in Easton, where the station is based. "He came home one evening and said the community radio station was looking for volunteers to do DJing slots, and he asked whether I'd like to do a slot with him. "I thought it sounded like fun, so I went and had a go. My dad and I have been presenting the Saturday evening show ever since. "We play a selection of the latest Asian music and we have a section of the show each week devoted to reviewing the latest Bollywood movies. That seems very popular because it allows people to get to know about the Asian films rather than just the Hollywood movies. For example, we were talking on air about Slumdog Millionaire before it had become a hit with British audiences." The show has made him something of a local celebrity. "My friends all think it's amazing that I get to DJ on the radio at my age," he says. "But it seems normal to me as I've been doing it since I was three years old." His proud dad Zahir says Mustapha is a natural behind the controls. "It was amazing how quickly he picked everything up," he says, "because it's quite complicated when you're trying to present a radio show while working all the controls, jingles and music fades. "But he's so relaxed in the studio it's incredible. There can't be many seven-year-old boys who come home from school each night and after doing their homework start working on the script for their radio programme. "I'm really very proud of the way he throws himself into it. It's all good experience and will stand him in good stead if he ever wants to follow a career in the media. "Sometimes the radio show actually crosses over with his school work. For example, this week he's been learning about ancient Egypt in school, so he's incorporated what he's been learning into his Saturday radio show. It's certainly a novel way of revising." Station manager Phil Gibbons is also proud of his young DJ. "He's fab, isn't he?" says Phil. "His shows are always very popular because he and his dad have this great father-and-son banter. "It's also good to be able to feature a family that also speaks Punjabi and Urdu because it offers accessible entertainment to one of the larger ethnic minority groups in the city. "That's what we aim to do here at Bristol Community Radio – we try to make sure we're broadcasting something for everyone in the community at some point in the week. "That's no easy task, but we're able to do it with the help of more than 50 volunteer presenters ranging from Mustapha to one chap who is 90. "I think that makes us more than just another radio station – it makes us a cohesive agent on the city's diverse communities." To tune into Bristol Community Radio Station, turn your FM dial to 93.2 or log on to the website at www.bcfm.org.uk to hear a live streaming feed. You can catch Mustapha and his dad every Saturday evening from 7pm to 9pm.

• published: 11 Jan 2016
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