Today I woke up and learned the shocking and terribly sad news that New England/NYC house DJ Mark Greenland (a.k.a. DJ Markie Gee) has passed away. The cause of death is not yet known.
I met Mark back in the ’90s when I was an editor at Dance Music Report. Mark had reached out to us about contributing music reviews, and I immediately liked him. At the time he had a radio show and was gigging regularly and throwing parties in Connecticut. His reviews were insightful and written from a DJ’s perspective, and I enjoyed seeing him out at clubs and industry gatherings.
Mark played all over North America, including legendary NYC and Boston clubs Limelight, Sound Factory Bar, M-80, AXIS, Hub Club, Element and The Bank. He also booked acts at various clubs and served as a booking agent for Robbie Rivera and US tour manager for Darude.
More recently, he had been playing with The Doug Wimbish Allstars featuring Doug Wimbish (Sugar Hill Gang/Tackhead), Corey Glover (Living Colour) and Daru Jones (Jack White). He also headlined two fundraisers for Bernie Sanders in NYC.
There’s been an outpouring of love on social media for this man with a big persona and heart. I’ll always remember his calling card — a big smile and a warm hug.
More on this breaking story as it develops.
Update March 14: A GoFundMe page has been set up to help Mark’s partner, Michele, deal with expenses. Contributions can be made here.
A memorial service for Mark will be held on Saturday March 18 at 1:00 pm at the 224 Ecospace, 224 Farmington Ave., Hartford, CT 06105.
House Music is about the people who care about said music @markiegee was someone who actually cared RIP my brother. pic.twitter.com/grjlJ9wrfT
— rolandclark (@rolandclark) March 10, 2017
Image from Facebook by Damon H Loucks Photography