Can We Turn LOW BUDGET Clients Into Profit?

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DJ Ricky B said:
I believe in one video about a year ago he mentioned earning less money from his youtube account these days. He doesn't mention sponsors as much, so his sponsership money is probably very low or nothing this year, BUT here is a rough estimate of what his channel brings in according to views4you.com.

View attachment 56009

Brian S Redd​

Total subscribers
icon-question-dark

67,000
Est. YouTube partner earnings (monthly)
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$2,055
CPM: $11.04
Est. Sponsorships price (each video)
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$670
CPM: $11.04
Total views
38,897,073
Channel's Creation Date
22 June 2006

So he breaks about $24,000 per year from his Youtube account, but I assume he is earning less than that in 2025 looking at the lower views he has been receiving over the last 12 months, and he likely made more money on Youtube in previous years. You might be right because he posted about doing maybe 12 or 13 events last year. Maybe there were some events he did that he never mentioned on his channel, but I don't think he is working a ton of events these days. I know I'm not working a lot of events either compared to my past so it is reasonable to believe he is earning less than 24K per year actually deejaying events today, and might be earning more with his Youtube channel. With that said, he has made videos talking about how he and his wife have to budget tight for groceries, and his vehicles have cost a lot to maintain in recent years so I don't think he is rolling in the dough by any means.
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His type of video is becoming outdated. Look more at videos from Rick Webb, Joe Bunn, Nick Spinelli, etc. Those guys are doing better on youtube. In addition, the major move is to tik tok. Many are phasing out of youtube... not just in this space, but in other industry spaces as wel..
 
sonic-vision said:
View: https://my biggest
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DJ Ricky B said:
I believe in one video about a year ago he mentioned earning less money from his youtube account these days. He doesn't mention sponsors as much, so his sponsership money is probably very low or nothing this year, BUT here is a rough estimate of what his channel brings in according to views4you.com.

View attachment 56009

Brian S Redd​

Total subscribers
icon-question-dark

67,000
Est. YouTube partner earnings (monthly)
icon-question-dark

$2,055
CPM: $11.04
Est. Sponsorships price (each video)
icon-question-dark

$670
CPM: $11.04
Total views
38,897,073
Channel's Creation Date
22 June 2006

So he breaks about $24,000 per year from his Youtube account, but I assume he is earning less than that in 2025 looking at the lower views he has been receiving over the last 12 months, and he likely made more money on Youtube in previous years. You might be right because he posted about doing maybe 12 or 13 events last year. Maybe there were some events he did that he never mentioned on his channel, but I don't think he is working a ton of events these days. I know I'm not working a lot of events either compared to my past so it is reasonable to believe he is earning less than 24K per year actually deejaying events today, and might be earning more with his Youtube channel. With that said, he has made videos talking about how he and his wife have to budget tight for groceries, and his vehicles have cost a lot to maintain in recent years so I don't think he is rolling in the dough by any means.
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I am in no way sure about this but he is also partially disabled from a stroke several years ago and may receive a disability benefit from that,

He has valuable info on how was able to keep DJing after that with building systems he is able to deal with in his situation
 
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tunes4046 said:
I am in no way sure about this but he is also partially disabled from a stroke several years ago and may receive a disability benefit from that,

He has valuable info on how was able to keep DJing after that with building systems he is able to deal with in his situation
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Yeah I was going to mention that. He improved his mobility a good bit since that first year after his stroke occurred. I commend him for pulling through with facilitating being a DJ with his condition. The last few years he hasn't had an assistant on the majority of his events and he is setting everything up himself with one arm. Pretty tough to accomplish that.

I don't know if he get's some kind of disability check, but being a DJ all these years and with the you tube 1099, I would think all the money he makes lowers that to near nothing, or he simply doesn't get it. My sister in law's brother get's disability, and it's only like $940 a month. He hasn't worked in over 11 years, and he is completely physically able to work. He is just a little slow mentally, and claimed PTSD (from a past relationship) and he was approved for it. We all dislike him and consider him a dead beat person. He's been kicked out of multiple homes, and has 3 kids he barely contributes any money to help their mothers out raising them. Not to go off on a tangent about someone I know. I just hate people leeching off the system who could actually work somewhere if they had real work ethic and can get over their social/mental problems. I don't know how anybody could afford to live life on $940 a month either though.
 
DJ Ricky B said:
The last few years he hasn't had an assistant on the majority of his events and he is setting everything up himself with one arm. Pretty tough to accomplish that.
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Choices.
He could move away from mobile gigs and look for resident work. It doesn't have to be DJing - there are all kinds of schools, theaters, and corporate settings where DJs can adapt their skills to better paying and constant work opportunities. If you are already comfortable with audio and presentation equipment then it's a trade-up to more event work without necessarily needing to be a "roadie" when it comes to the gear.
 
NBC
Proformance said:
Choices.
He could move away from mobile gigs and look for resident work. It doesn't have to be DJing - there are all kinds of schools, theaters, and corporate settings where DJs can adapt their skills to better paying and constant work opportunities. If you are already comfortable with audio and presentation equipment then it's a trade-up to more event work without necessarily needing to be a "roadie" when it comes to the gear.
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but the how would he feed his ego? that itch is obviously scratched by his YouTube presence
 
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djtaso said:
His type of video is becoming outdated. Look more at videos from Rick Webb, Joe Bunn, Nick Spinelli, etc. Those guys are doing better on youtube. In addition, the major move is to tik tok. Many are phasing out of youtube... not just in this space, but in other industry spaces as wel..
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Love Nick Spineli and I used to enjoy Joe Bunn but now I find it a little of the same - Subscribe to the Vault, subscribe to Crate Hackers etc. It's like their target audience isn't wedding couples anymore - it's DJs...
 
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cyberphox said:
Love Nick Spineli and I used to enjoy Joe Bunn but now I find it a little of the same - Subscribe to the Vault, subscribe to Crate Hackers etc. It's like their target audience isn't wedding couples anymore - it's DJs...
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I don't like any of them these days. I thought Nick Spineli was humerous with his videos when he first started, but then he got annoying, and I got tired of him showing his Jersey DJ Ego too much in his videos. Rick Webb is a cool younger DJ, but I didn't really gain much value from his videos because he was talking about stuff I already knew about, then he started selling lights and talking Both lighting and I stopped watching his videos all together. I don't think I watch any DJs any more, but I will drop in on DJ Brian S Redd's videos from time to time still, but honestly, his videos are buried on my youtube since he has a small channel I think he new videos largely get buried among all the other stuff I watch. I probably watch like 1 video every 2-3 months from Brian. I only recently watched these last two because of this thread.

Speaking of youtube DJs, @djtaso have you considered making your own DJ discussion channel? Outside of your library of gig recap shorts and videos from the past you might gain popularity like the other DJs that you mentioned. Who knows, you might make some money with it and grow another revenue stream.
 
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DJ Ricky B said:
I don't like any of them these days. I thought Nick Spineli was humerous with his videos when he first started, but then he got annoying, and I got tired of him showing his Jersey DJ Ego too much in his videos. Rick Webb is a cool younger DJ, but I didn't really gain much value from his videos because he was talking about stuff I already knew about, then he started selling lights and talking Both lighting and I stopped watching his videos all together. I don't think I watch any DJs any more, but I will drop in on DJ Brian S Redd's videos from time to time still, but honestly, his videos are buried on my youtube since he has a small channel I think he new videos largely get buried among all the other stuff I watch. I probably watch like 1 video every 2-3 months from Brian. I only recently watched these last two because of this thread.

Speaking of youtube DJs, @djtaso have you considered making your own DJ discussion channel? Outside of your library of gig recap shorts and videos from the past you might gain popularity like the other DJs that you mentioned. Who knows, you might make some money with it and grow another revenue stream.
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My channel has primarily been about reaching out to brides... not other dj's. The video recaps are EXTREMELY effective in converting leads as well as finding new circles of clients that I ordinarily would not be able to reach.

I literally just got this inquiry yesterday: My name is "XXXX", and I am getting married 8/7/26 at Ballroom at the Ben in Philly. My fiance and I actually saw a youtube video at the Ben of your team. We immediately thought you did an amazing job! So, we wanted to see your availability for our date/the travel rates for Philly. I look forward to connecting!

And just contracted this inquiry this week: I am getting married at The Fox Hollow in Woodbury, NY (Long Island) on May 2nd, 2026 and I would like to inquire about your pricing and availability on this date. I really enjoyed watching your videos on YouTube! Thank you!

I just dj'd this one last month: Hello! We are getting married in May of 2025 and came across you on TikTok. We watched several of your instagram clips and thought you were an amazing DJ! We don't want our guests leaving the dance floor at all on our wedding night!

And my wedding on Friday found me on tiktok, only to realize she knew a lot of my clients after looking at more videos.

With that said, could I go more dj centric w/ dj related topics... maybe... a lot of people say I should, but honestly speaking it is so so so hard to break through that it's literally like a 2nd job... and in all honesty not that lucrative without 100k+ subscribers. That's why so many of them have gotten AWAY from youtube and are posting on tik tok. It only takes a couple of viral videos to make it there and the payment system seems to be more in favor of creators. My only appeal compared to everyone else we often mention is I think I'm one of the very few single ops that has made DJin' private events, specifically weddings, a very successful and lucrative career, and those are likely the only topics that may appeal, as any other topic has been covered over and over. We'll see.
 
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First let me say this. There are those who may just be starting out in this business and can learn something from these videos. I get it that to an experienced DJ such videos may not be interesting to them and that's fine. Just don't forget that newbie just starting out. Remember experienced DJ you were a newbie at one time and you didn't know all you know now.

The other issue I have with threads like this is that there are those who will see a DJ post a price of how much they are getting paid to do an event and decide they are not charging enough without knowing who that DJ is and never seen them in action.

Then there are those who will claim no DJ is worth that much no matter what the price is. I say if you can paid a premium price for an event, whatever the premium price is, more power to that DJ.
 
cyberphox said:
Love Nick Spineli and I used to enjoy Joe Bunn but now I find it a little of the same - Subscribe to the Vault, subscribe to Crate Hackers etc. It's like their target audience isn't wedding couples anymore - it's DJs...
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MIXMASTERMACHOM said:
First let me say this. There are those who may just be starting out in this business and can learn something from these videos. I get it that to an experienced DJ such videos may not be interesting to them and that's fine. Just don't forget that newbie just starting out. Remember experienced DJ you were a newbie at one time and you didn't know all you know now.

The other issue I have with threads like this is that there are those who will see a DJ post a price of how much they are getting paid to do an event and decide they are not charging enough without knowing who that DJ is and never seen them in action.

Then there are those who will claim no DJ is worth that much no matter what the price is. I say if you can paid a premium price for an event, whatever the premium price is, more power to that DJ.
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MIXMASTERMACHOM said:
Can someone please explain to me what's a low budget client?
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Someone who doesn’t have much of a budget for an event, typically going to be held at a low end venue such as galloping hill, or perhaps a VFW hall, usually buffet style meal or perhaps even bring a dish to pass,
Realistically if you look at any of your clients they would likely be consider low budget
 
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I asked that question for this reason. He mentioned someone looking to book a DJ for $300. He considers that to be a budget client. Let me say it this way. Forget about the type of event and just focus on a price. There are those DJs who would consider a client looking to pay a DJ $500 as a budget client and another DJ would be fine with that price. Then there are those who would look at a client looking to book a DJ for $1,000 to be a budget client and another DJ would be glad to do an event for that price. What I'm saying is it's all in ones perception and if they can get paid that much or them knowing they can get paid a whole lot more.
 
MIXMASTERMACHOM said:
I asked that question for this reason. He mentioned someone looking to book a DJ for $300. He considers that to be a budget client. Let me say it this way. Forget about the type of event and just focus on a price. There are those DJs who would consider a client looking to pay a DJ $500 as a budget client and another DJ would be fine with that price. Then there are those who would look at a client looking to book a DJ for $1,000 to be a budget client and another DJ would be glad to do an event for that price. What I'm saying is it's all in ones perception and if they can get paid that much or them knowing they can get paid a whole lot more.
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Why do you alway present questions that try to twist a narrative to fit your needs. You are the king of low budget , you constantly brag about how great you are yet do mostly free gigs,
If you were really that amazing you would be constantly contacted by potential clients who are wanting to book you no matter the price, not asking if you will do a gig for a certain amount
 
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tunes4046 said:
Why do you alway present questions that try to twist a narrative to fit your needs. You are the king of low budget , you constantly brag about how great you are yet do mostly free gigs,
If you were really that amazing you would be constantly contacted by potential clients who are wanting to book you no matter the price, not asking if you will do a gig for a certain amount
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My reason as I've said before is that when it comes to price we always wind up at a dead end. We don't solve anything when this topic comes up.. Again as I've said it before, everyone has a limitation on how much they will spend on a goods or services. I don't care if the person is a billionaire. They have limits on how much they will spend for something even though they have enough money to last them 10 lifetimes.
 
MIXMASTERMACHOM said:
My reason as I've said before is that when it comes to price we always wind up at a dead end. We don't solve anything when this topic comes up.. Again as I've said it before, everyone has a limitation on how much they will spend on a goods or services. I don't care if the person is a billionaire. They have limits on how much they will spend for something even though they have enough money to last them 10 lifetimes.
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Actually it only ends up as a dead end if you want or allow it to. 15 years ago I was what I consider a low budget DJ. I actually took the advice of many well established DJs who weee charging top tier pricing, like bob carpenter who you often mention, applied their standards and practices, and now get hundreds of leads from couples looking to spend thousands on a consistent basis. Instead of asking us the same questions on repeat, the question you should be focusing on is what have YOU done to stay relevant in 2025. You’ve made no changes to anything and that’s totally fine but that’s a recipe for becoming irrelevant. I know a number of djs in their 60’s still performing weekly for private events in Nj ranging from $800-$2000 per event.

With that said, the client may have a price limit, but that doesn’t mean you have to serve them if you don’t want. That’s your choice. They’re still low budget regardless if you accept it or not. And if no one can provide the service at the price they want, well then they either have to raise their budget or skip that service.
 
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MIXMASTERMACHOM said:
My reason as I've said before is that when it comes to price we always wind up at a dead end. We don't solve anything when this topic comes up.. Again as I've said it before, everyone has a limitation on how much they will spend on a goods or services. I don't care if the person is a billionaire. They have limits on how much they will spend for something even though they have enough money to last them 10 lifetimes.
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There is nothing to solve. At the end of the day you need to either book work at your rate or not. If you can get someone to pay it, that's your rate. If you can't... they either decided that you are not worth the money, or they aren't willing to spend the money.

We don't need to define what a "low budget" client is because it's not a term that is going to help anyone set their rate or run their business.
 
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It's real simple. Are you happy where you're at with your business. If you are keep doing what you're doing. If not look at what you need to do to change things to where you want to be so you can be happy.
 
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