Staying up with current music

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DJ Forbes

DJ Extraordinaire
Jul 30, 2021
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I hope I don't get beat up too bad for this question... I know this kind of stuff gets brought up a lot on different forums and Facebook groups, but I think my question "MIGHT" be a tad different.

I'm curious how those of you who do a lot of "younger crowd" events (@djtaso ) stay on top of what's current and what's good?

I'm 46 years old. Not a youngster anymore. I started my DJ endeavor over a year ago and I was gifted a very nice library of music. I've been adding to it over the past year. The first few months I had a paid subscription with BPM Supreme and it did provide some good music for me, but after a few months, I found that I could just buy individual songs via Amazon and that was actually cheaper for me as I was paying $30/month for BPM, and if I only downloaded 10 songs, I could do that on Amazon for $15. So I'm buying the music I want. I'm not looking for free downloads or anything like that. There are some obvious purchases, like sure I can buy the new Taylor Swift and Morgan Wallen cd's. But as I get into doing more Sweet 16's, summer parties, etc, I'm struggling a little bit to find the best way to stay on top of what the kids are listening to. I know I'll never be able to please everyone all time time, but I want to do better.... so I'm here seeking suggestions. I've thought about looking at iTunes, Spotify, etc... for their top 25 songs and buying those... but is that overkill?
 
I hope I don't get beat up too bad for this question... I know this kind of stuff gets brought up a lot on different forums and Facebook groups, but I think my question "MIGHT" be a tad different.

I'm curious how those of you who do a lot of "younger crowd" events (@djtaso ) stay on top of what's current and what's good?

I'm 46 years old. Not a youngster anymore. I started my DJ endeavor over a year ago and I was gifted a very nice library of music. I've been adding to it over the past year. The first few months I had a paid subscription with BPM Supreme and it did provide some good music for me, but after a few months, I found that I could just buy individual songs via Amazon and that was actually cheaper for me as I was paying $30/month for BPM, and if I only downloaded 10 songs, I could do that on Amazon for $15. So I'm buying the music I want. I'm not looking for free downloads or anything like that. There are some obvious purchases, like sure I can buy the new Taylor Swift and Morgan Wallen cd's. But as I get into doing more Sweet 16's, summer parties, etc, I'm struggling a little bit to find the best way to stay on top of what the kids are listening to. I know I'll never be able to please everyone all time time, but I want to do better.... so I'm here seeking suggestions. I've thought about looking at iTunes, Spotify, etc... for their top 25 songs and buying those... but is that overkill?
Honestly... just ask. Every event I do I ask for requests (I tell em to give me 10-20... although they usually give more cause they get carried away). If there's something in there I'm not familiar with... I listen to it, see how danceable it is, learn the bpm range and what you can mix it with and incorporate it in a safe way (have a banger ready to go in case it bombs). Based on the reaction I know how to use it in the future going forward. The other thing... just as important... tiktok. You learn more about the trends for youth there than anywhere else (likewise for weddings now). Most of the requests that are popular it's because tiktok made them big. Charts for youth are USELESS. There is no chart that I've found that provides an accurate portrayal of what kids are actually listening to now.

As far as downloads... I love bpm... but I'm not getting just the original versions of a song, which if that's all you do then itunes is fine... I'm getting remixes and transition edits. Especially when it comes to requests that are popular... but not so danceable... finding remixes helps keep everyone happy.

To help put it into perspective here's a list from the last Sweet 16 I did. One trend I'm seeing is not so much new songs being asked... but for a lot of throwbacks (circa 2008-2014). This has been consistent with every sweet 16 this year.

DANCING MUST PLAYS

  • F.N.F- HITKIDD & GLORILLA
  • MY SH*T- A BOOGIE
  • NO HANDS- WAKA FLOCKA
  • EYES- SKAIWATER
  • AINT NO WAY AROUND IT- FUTURE
  • BITCOIN- YUNGMANNY
  • GET LOW- LIL JON
  • GASOLINA- DADDY YANKEE
  • GAS PEDAL- SAGE THE GEMINI
  • PEPAS- FARRUKO
  • TRAP QUEEN- FETTY WAP
  • TALK DIRTY- JASON DERULO
  • DON’T STOP THE MUSIC- RIHANNA
  • UP- CARDI B
  • PARTY IN THE U. S. A. - MILEY CYRUS
  • GOLD DIGGER- KANYE WEST
  • SHOTS- LIL JON
  • HOTEL ROOM SERVICE- PIT BULL
  • FIREBALL- PIT BULL
  • GIVE ME EVERYTHING TONIGHT- PITBULL
  • MR. BRIGHT SIDE- THE KILLERS
  • TURN DOWN FOR WHAT- DJ SHAKE& LIL JON
  • GIMME! GIMME! GIMME!- ABBA
  • I LOVE IT- ICONA POP
  • FIRE BURNING- SEAN KINGSTON
  • SHAKE SUM- DABABY
  • RICH FLEX- DRAKE & 21 SAVAGE
  • MO BAMBA- SHECK WES
  • PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS- KID CUDI
  • DREAMS AND NIGHTMARES- MEEK MILL
  • HUMBLE- KENDRICK LAMAR
  • SHUT UP AND DANCE- WALK THE MOON
  • AREA CODES- KALI
 
Thanks Taso. I forgot to mention that I do use DJEP, and ask for songs ahead of time. That is a big help. I do try to keep up with TikTok a little as well., but I can and need to do better. I appreciate your feedback!
 
Another option , its what I use, Promo Only, I use their basic $12 a month plan, and with that, you get a lot of music, more music than you will use, but it will keep you up to date on all the current tracks, they do monthly packs ( for the basic its just top 40 and hip hop/r&b I belive) , plus they do intro/quick edits for the most of the popular songs.
 
Another option , its what I use, Promo Only, I use their basic $12 a month plan, and with that, you get a lot of music, more music than you will use, but it will keep you up to date on all the current tracks, they do monthly packs ( for the basic its just top 40 and hip hop/r&b I belive) , plus they do intro/quick edits for the most of the popular songs.
Love me some promo only
 
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