Selector

noun si-LEK-ta sɪˈlɛkta

Also spelled selecta, select

The person on a sound system who chooses and plays the records — the equivalent of what much of the world calls a DJ. The selector reads the crowd, drops the right tunes at the right moment, and calls for wheel-ups; the deejay, by contrast, is the one on the mic.

  • Di selector know exactly wah di crowd waan.

    The selector knows exactly what the crowd wants.

  • Big up di selecta!

    Respect to the selector!

    'Selecta' is the common spoken form.

  • A good selector mek or break di dance.

    A good selector makes or breaks the party.

From English 'selector', one who selects — here the records — a role that has existed on Jamaican sound systems since the 1950s.

Usually said 'selecta'. Remember the Jamaican split: the selector plays the music, the deejay chats over it.