Tony T.

Tony T.
Background information
Birth nameNeal Antone Dyer
BornLondon, England, UK
Occupation(s)Singer, rapper, DJ
Years active1996 – present

Neal Antone Dyer better known by the stage name Tony T. is a British singer, rapper and DJ of Jamaican origin,[1] best known as the frontman of German dance music projects Beat System, Cascada, and R.I.O.[2] His best known hit with R.I.O. was "Turn This Club Around",[3] which reached number 3 in German Singles Chart and topped the Swiss Schweizer Hitparade chart, and was certified gold in both charts.[2][4][5][6]

Beginnings

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Born to Jamaican parents, he resided early on in Brooklyn where he started DJing.[7] After two years, he moved to Germany in 1985 where he worked as a resident DJ at the club Gaslight.[8]

1986–1998: Beat System

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Starting 1986, he appeared in various projects under the name Beat System starting with "Noise Dance", a limited release in Germany. In the early 1990s came the singles "Dance Romance" and "Dance Romance Chapter Two" on Insania Records written by C. Kowatsch und Wormit and "Stay with Me" produced by Axel Breitung. Changing labels and signing with Blow Up and release of "Fresh" a cover of Kool & The Gang song that charted in Germany, followed by "Reggae Night", a cover of Jimmy Cliff. Intercord label released Beat System's debut and only album Refreshiator after which the project was dropped.[9]

2008–2012: R.I.O.

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Main article: R.I.O.

In 2008 he was a founding member of the German dance project R.I.O with Yann Pfeifer (Yanou) and Manuel Reuter (DJ Manian).[10] After the debut single "De Janeiro / R.I.O.", the trio with Tony T. as frontman of the band had a string of hits in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, like "Shine On" from the Shine On (The Album), followed by "When the Sun Comes Down", "Hot Girl", "Like I Love You" and "Miss Sunshine". But R.I.O.'s hit "Turn This Club Around" featuring the vocals of U-Jean proved to be an international success reaching No. 5 in Austria, No. 3 in Germany, No. 1 in Switzerland also charting in the UK, Scotland, Netherlands, as well as Belgium, Canada. The band released same titled album Turn This Club Around with the further hit "Animal" from the album.[11]

2012–: Solo career / DNGRS Crew

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Tony T.

Tony T. left the R.I.O. project in 2012 to launch a solo career. His first solo releaser was "Way to Rio". He was featured in "Everybody" from Mike Candys also featuring Evelyn. He also had collaborations such as with Darius & Finlay in "Phenomenon" and with Soulwash featured in "No Games". In 2013, he was featured in the hit "Want U Now" by Ardian Bujupi, a finalist in the German music competition Deutschland sucht den Superstar and in "Beautiful Life" by Sasha Lopez also featuring Big Ali.[12]

In May 2013, he co-founded DNGRS Crew with rappers Carlprit and Marlon B. Their first single together is "Dangerous" credited to DJ Mase vs DNGRS Crew and is released on Kontor Records.

In 2022 he teamed up with singer Iraj and they did a cover of “Truth Hurts”.[13]

Discography

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Albums

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with Beat System
  • 1996: Refreshiator
with R.I.O.

Singles

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with Beat System
Single Year Peak chart positions Album
AUT BELFL BELWA FRA GER
"Fresh" 1996 29 37 18 15 32 Refreshinator
"Reggae Night" – 36 – – 93
"—" denotes singles that did not chart
with R.I.O.
Single Year Peak chart positions Album
AUT CAN ESP FRA GER ITA NLD SWE SWI UK
"De Janeiro" 2007 – – – – – – 9 — — — Shine On (The Album)
"Shine On" 2008 21 – 22 8 25 8 20 10 17 —
"When the Sun Comes Down" 54 – 9 – 63 – 9 – 62 —
"After the Love" 2009 41 – – – 65 – 66 — — —
"Serenade" – – – – 97 — — — — —
"One Heart" 2010 – – – – – – 24 — — —
"Hot Girl" – – – – – – 90 — — — Sunshine
"Like I Love You" 2011 35 – – – 31 – 24 – 28 —
"Miss Sunshine" 44 – – – 50 – 17 – 43 —
"Turn This Club Around"
(feat. U-Jean) 		5 95 – 96 3 – 34 – 1 36 Turn This Club Around
"Animal"
(feat. U-Jean) 		33 – – 111 48 – 26 – 51 —
"—" denotes singles that did not chart
[edit]
Single Year Peak chart positions Album
AUT CZE GER SVK SWI
"Phenomenon"
(Darius & Finlay feat. Tony T.) 		2012 26 — — — —
"Everybody"
(Mike Candys feat. Evelyn & Tony T.) 		2013 14 57 40 69 14
"Beautiful Life"
(Sasha Lopez feat. Tony T. and Big Ali) 		– 49 — — —
"Break My Stride"
(Bodybangers feat. Tony T.) 		62 – 90 — —
"Heart It Tonight"
(ONdray feat. Tony T.) 		2014 – 47 — — —
"—" denotes singles that did not chart
  • 2012: "No Games" (Soulwash feat. Tony T.)
  • 2013: "Want U Now" (Ardian Bujupi feat. Tony T.)
  • 2013: "Breaking the Ice" (Bodybangers feat. Tony T.)
  • 2013: "Summer's Gone" (Sash! feat. Tony T.)
  • 2017: "Color of Love" (Stephan F feat. Tony T.)

References

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  1. ^ InternationalDJs.at: Tony T. Archived 8 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b R.I.O.: Doppel-Gold für "Turn This Club Around" (in German)
  3. ^ "R.I.O. & U-Jean Biography, Discography, Chart History". Top40-Charts.com. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  4. ^ Zeitung, Westdeutsche (29 April 2009). "Tony T – Traumkarriere eines Überfliegers mit Bodenhaftung". Westdeutsche Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  5. ^ "Tony T the Producer". www.top-charts.com. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  6. ^ R.I.O. feat. U-Jean - Turn This Club Around, retrieved 25 January 2023
  7. ^ "TONY T". Blaster Magazine. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  8. ^ Spidermix: Tony T. (in Italian)
  9. ^ "Beat System". webdjs.ch. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
  10. ^ "Tony T va avea o colaborare cu Sasha Lopez". Daily Magazine. 29 November 2012. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  11. ^ "swedishcharts.com - Discography R.I.O." swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  12. ^ "Tony Dyer". The Eurodance Encyclopaedia. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  13. ^ "Iraj and Tony. T release new track - Life Online". www.life.lk. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
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