Two decades of “Cheeky Cheeky Monday! Oi! Oi! Oi!”

Every Monday, while most of Amsterdam is still recovering from the weekend, a thunderstorm of breaks, bass and sweat erupts in Melkweg’s OZ. We’re talking, of course, about the jungle that is Cheeky Monday — Europe’s longest-running weekly drum & bass night. What began in 2005 as a joke over ‘coffee’ and a cheeky flyer has become a rite of passage for ravers, a platform for music, and a launchpad for legends. To celebrate its 20th anniversary, Melkweg sat down with co-founder Loz to revisit two decades of basslines, community, and beautiful chaos.

In conversation with Loz
Words by Davy de Lepper
 

To understand Cheeky Monday, you first need to understand jungle, drum & bass, and the cultural soil they grew from. In early 1990s London, these genres were born from the ashes of rave culture, the pulse of Black British music, and the urgency of urban protest. “Legend has it that Fabio and Grooverider laid the foundations of jungle during their residency at RAGE in Heaven,” Loz explains. “That’s where they started blending techno and acid-house with double-time hip hop breaks — and in doing so, carved out a sound that would soon evolve into what we now know as jungle.”

The beats were fast, raw, almost futuristic. Made on samplers and played on pirate stations. Shaped by dub, dancehall, hip hop, acid house, even jazz. Jungle, in particular, was a rebellious sound — rhythmic protest music blasting through DIY sound systems in Brixton warehouses and squatted buildings. “It’s music where the rough meets the smooth,” says Loz. “Where a DJ when mixing isn’t just playing tracks, but sculpting sound in real time. The mix can be transformative, it can transcend.”

By the late 90s and early 20s, the genre had evolved into drum & bass — sleeker in production but still rooted in sound system energy and DIY ethics. In Amsterdam, a small but dedicated scene kept the flame alive. Coffeeshops like Hill Street Blues and bars like Greenhouse Effect played jungle, while crews like JungleTerra and Bassground threw raw parties across the city. But by 2005, that scene was fragmenting. Squat venues were closing. Raves were pushed out. Something new was needed. Something Cheeky.

Like most great ideas, they start at the most random moments. Close your eyes and imagine a group of friends at a coffeeshop in the centre of Amsterdam. “It was a fateful day. Someone slammed their phone down and shouted, ‘Godverdomme, who wants to throw a party this Monday?’” Loz remembers. “Sinistah pointed at me and Kaper and said: ‘Those guys will.’ I was hesitant. He said, ‘Just do a cheeky Monday thing.’ And that was it.” Armed with flyers, a sound system mentality, and the scrappy optimism of rave veterans, they launched the first Cheeky Monday at Winston Kingdom. “It was chaos,” Loz says, grinning. “The DJ booth was on the floor, and the crowd had to literally form a human wall to protect the decks.” There were no headliners, no stage, let alone a backstage area. “We weren’t trying to be cool,” Loz adds. “We just wanted somewhere real to play records and bring our people together.”

Cheeky thrived because it rejected trends. While EDM took over festivals and bottle service culture crept into clubs, Cheeky stayed stubbornly grounded in vinyl, MCs, sweat and soul. “We’re not here for champagne selfies,” Loz laughs. “We're here for basslines and blown-out speakers.” Promotion was guerrilla-style: yellow flyers in record stores, local bars, bike shops and headshops. “In the early days, we’d drag passers-by off the street and into the rave,” Loz says. “Sometimes literally. They’d look confused, then end up staying till 4AM.”

Cheeky became a place where expats met locals, old-school ravers danced next to students. That authenticity made Cheeky not just a party, but a cultural anchor in Amsterdam’s ever-changing nightlife. “Week after week, for nearly 20 years, we brought the music — no matter the weather, no matter the hangover. And the people trust us for this. For some it's a bucket-list party, for others it's our weekly church.” Loz tells. And it shows. That consistency built one of the most loyal communities. “It’s a family, not a fanbase.”

Over the years, Cheeky Monday has grown from a small red-light district rave into a staple institution in the international drum and bass circuit. When Winston Kingdom closed in 2017, no one feared Cheeky would disappear. Quite the opposite, it levelled up. Melkweg is a venue historically rooted in counterculture and welcomed Cheeky Monday as if it had always belonged there. “It wasn’t just a venue swap,” Loz explains. “It was a chance to grow without selling out. Melkweg let us stay raw, but reach more people. Bigger acts, better sound, same Cheeky spirit.” Today, you’ll see 500+ people skanking under the lasers on a Monday night. “Melkweg gets it,” says Loz. “They respect the culture. And they let us keep shouting ‘Cheeky Cheeky Monday! Oi! Oi! Oi!’ at the top of our lungs.”

At the heart of Cheeky Monday lies its resident crew — a loyal and ever-evolving family of artists who’ve shaped the night’s sound and energy for years. “Take Adi-J, one of the city’s true drum and bass torchbearers, or Multiplex, the unmistakable host MC of Cheeky itself. And then there’s ZeroZero, who joined as residents while studying audio engineering, and went on to release on top-tier labels like Dispatch, SofaSound and RAM. Crazy!”

The guestlist over the years reads like a who’s who of drum & bass royalty. From the late, great Randall — “your favourite DJ’s favourite DJ,” as Loz calls him — to pioneers like MC Fats, Spirit, and DJ Storm, who once played an unforgettable set alongside MC Skibadee. “Randall was a big supporter of Cheeky Monday,” Loz adds. “We were so lucky to have him as an artist and friend.” With ongoing support from homegrown icons like Lenzman, Nymfo and Pythius, and an endless list of honourable mentions. From long-time Cheeky supporters such as Nicky Blackmarket, Aries, Bladerunner, Kyrist, 3× DMC World Champion JFB, and rising star Tantron. Loz reflects: “Far too many to list here, but so many have contributed, helping make Cheeky what it is today.”
 

So, what’s next? “More madness,” says Loz. “We’ll keep bringing in legends. Keep backing residents. Maybe a label, maybe a festival stage. Who knows. But mostly, we’ll keep doing what we’ve always done: throwing the best party on the best day of the week.” So whether you’re a veteran junglist, a curious tourist, or just someone who needs to sweat out the Monday blues — there’s only one place to be: “Cheeky Cheeky Monday! Oi! Oi! Oi!”

Keep the madness going for another two decades. Join us for Cheeky’s 20 Year Anniversary Special on Monday 26 May at Melkweg — featuring all the residents who’ve made this jungle and drum & bass night what it is. See which cheeky family members are stepping up to the decks and grab your tickets here.