Considering the article seems to be written for CLUB DJ's...I think the final paragraph sums it up nicely:
"Bear in mind that what other DJs do or say has no bearing on your own value as a DJ. Cater to your own needs, audience, venue, and talents… and let them cater to theirs".
It very much was, but there are few things mentioned that can carry over to the mobile side.Considering the article seems to be written for CLUB DJ's...
that was the most impressive statement for me, too!
The young Jedi has learned much. Works for motorcycle riding too!Maybe the key would be to truly leave ego at the door.
I've often found myself wondering about how another DJ would handle a crowd or situation that I've been in. Some nights I feel like I've nailed it, and nobody could have thrown anything better at them. Some nights, I feel like I struggle with the crowd to find a groove - and I wonder if there might have been a different DJ that would have had better luck.
Kinda tested that theory several times. Had a client that hired me for Xmas parties 5 years straight. Absolutely killed it first year. Went downhill from there. I was getting tired of them, just as much as they were getting tired of me. I actually offered to bow out and let someone else do it. For my sake and theirs. The new guy didn't have to do a better job, he just had to do a different job. Tell the same joke to the same person every day for a week and see how funny it is.Realistically, on 2 consecutive nights, you could have the exact same DJ play the same exact songs in the same exact order at the same exact times to the same exact audience and you would have 2 completely separate outcomes.
I don't want to derail this thread because it's a good one. But, that's why it is important for DJs to not play the same show every week. I've had couples hire me that had seen me at 3 or 4 or their siblings and friends weddings in the past. If I was doing the same thing at each, there's no way they would keep bringing me back. I'm constantly looking for ways to mix up things that I know work, and to keep expanding that library of "things that work" so that I'm not pigeonholed into one routine.The new guy didn't have to do a better job, he just had to do a different job. Tell the same joke to the same person every day for a week and see how funny it is.
Most on this forum don't mix a dozen songs to death, trying for 20 minutes of YouTube fame. Besides that, how do you make things constantly different on a weekly basis, besides cheesy bar games?I'm not sure I really knew how to do that until I started playing in clubs. It's much easier to get away with in the private event world since you're not always facing the same audience. But, when I started having regulars, and bartenders that heard my set every week... it forced me push further and do it differently.
Play different songs, in a different order, and don't MC with the same schtick. I'm not talking about reinventing the wheel. But if you always play Soul Man into Mustang Sally, try something different.Most on this forum don't mix a dozen songs to death, trying for 20 minutes of YouTube fame. Besides that, how do you make things constantly different on a weekly basis, besides cheesy bar games?
It is a very fortunate DJ who works a Club where the music nights change between Oldies, Disco, EDM, Latin, etc., and the DJ is not being rotated as well!
To clarify, it was an ANNUAL Christmas party. Not a weekly gig.I don't want to derail this thread because it's a good one. But, that's why it is important for DJs to not play the same show every week. I've had couples hire me that had seen me at 3 or 4 or their siblings and friends weddings in the past. If I was doing the same thing at each, there's no way they would keep bringing me back. I'm constantly looking for ways to mix up things that I know work, and to keep expanding that library of "things that work" so that I'm not pigeonholed into one routine.