Alex Lloyd gets the low down on a new DJ spot in York.

OKAY - let's be completely honest. How many of you know that Kennedy's has a basement?

Have you noticed those stairs just near the main bar? Well, they don't lead to loos or a staff area.

If you make the descent, you actually discover a rather snazzy club-like room with a bar, a DJ booth and a dancefloor.

It's an easy mistake to make. I've lived in York for almost five years and I only discovered the basement area in March.

And I'm rather glad I did because you can find a whole host of different nights on offer down there.

Latest addition to the bill is DJ Boon, who plays a mix of R 'n' B and hip hop on Thursdays, the night which has become the unofficial start to the weekend for many people.

Launched at the start of last month, it has a bar-to-club vibe about it.

Fans of The Gallery's Thursday northern soul and Motown session can warm-up for some frantic dancing while those who don't want to be out late, but still want to party, will appreciate the up-beat atmosphere and licence until midnight.

And it seems to be working.

"Last week was really busy," says DJ Boon, aka 24-year-old Grant Saker. "It looks as if the word is slowly spreading."

Grant started out as a garage DJ in Ipswich around five years ago and moved to York in the past year to work as an administrator for the school of arts at York St John College. He hopes to use this to his advantage by pulling in the student crowd when the new academic year kicks off in the coming weeks.

Grant says he has been surprised by the depth of interest shown by the York crowd in the music he has been playing.

"I'm originally from down South and there seemed to be much more of an R 'n' B, hip hop and garage scene," he says.

"When I first started in Kennedy's, I was playing a lot more R 'n' B and mainstream, commercial stuff. Chart music I suppose.

"But since then, I've realised there is quite an underground hip hop scene in York. Now it's a complete mixture, a real range of things."

His current big tunes include Joe Budden, a lot of Outkast and "I'm really into Pharrell at the moment".

Hip hop-wise, he has a soft spot for Tupac, Naz, Jay-Z and Black-Eyed Peas.

"It goes right across the board," he says.

DJ Boon is also happy to take requests "but I have to make sure the tunes are good" - who can argue with that?

With plans for a couple of MCs and breakdancers to liven things up in the future, and a soon-to-be-launched drinks offer in the basement area to accompany the night, it seems like everyone will be in the know about Kennedy's basement pretty quickly.

DJ Boon at Kennedy's, Little Stonegate, York, 01904 620222, Thursdays, 8pm-midnight, free entry.

Updated: 09:16 Friday, August 13, 2004