My partner is giving me a headache!

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MIXMASTERMACHOM

Mac Daddy DJ
ODJT Supporter
Oct 16, 2011
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I got this business partner. He's a really good DJ. I met him some years back. He used to play in this hole in the wall. I noticed he was really good when it comes to DJing. I went out and bought me some equipment getting back into DJing again. So we became friends and later on business partners.

Now on to my issue with him now. I love him like a brother. He's getting real crazy and obsessed with becoming this super star DJ. His girl is his promoter. So she's trying to promote him big time. Nothing wrong with that but it hasn't been working out to well. They have been going to these bars and clubs looking to have a party there and getting some famous DJ's to come and play there in hopes of getting people to come to these parties and pay $10.00 to get in. It's about house music at these parties.

Like i said nice ideal. The problem is that only a handful of people are showing up at these parties. So he keeps running to different places in hopes of having a big turn out and for the most part nothing. I tried to tell him he needs to find a residency somewhere and build on that. Find a place that he can play at on a regular bases so people will know where they can hear him play and get to see what he can do. Then when things get to be successful start having these parties else where.

Now on to my issue with all of this. I had a birthday party in a place in Irvington at a party his girl was promoting. It was $10.00 to get in. The featured DJ was very good and a nice guy. I came up with $200.00 to help out. I was supposed to get my money back. Hardly anyone showed up and i didn't get back anything.

Now they are having a party in the same place. It's a combined birthday party for both of them at the same place. I was supposed to be the opening DJ since i'm his partner. She called me up telling me she needed $150.00 from me to put on this party. I told her i don't have have a $150.00 to help out with this party. When i said that i no longer will be the opening DJ. That's fine with me. I just couldn't take a chance giving up $150.00 and not getting my money back. It's not my party. I needed to know i'm going to get my money back and not just take a chance that i might or might not get my money back.

He told me he has to pay for security. That's what the $150.00 was going to be for. I say if you don't have $150.00 to pay for security then why in the hell are you even having this party! That's crazy to me. I just didn't feel like getting stuck again.

He and his girl are now hating against a friend of mine because of what he said. He had a party that only 400 people showed up. He said if he had a party where 400 people showed up he would be happy. My friend can say what he said because he's built up a reputation of having parties where more then that will show up. My friend can tell you to get to that point it takes a lot of hard work. A lot of late nights passing out postcards and putting them on cars. My partner right now couldn't get half that to show up at a party he was giving because people don't really know who he is like that.

He thinks because he's this great DJ and he's getting other DJ's to come and play with him that a big crowd is going to show up at these parties. He doesn't realize it takes more then that. My friend has talented people to come and perform at these parties sometimes. He also has a place he plays at every Friday for an after work party. He just got a $100.00 from $350.00 to $450.00 to play in this club. I've played there too on Wed. nights before. He gets paid that $450.00 every Friday he plays there and he only has to play for 3 hours.

The owner hired him back after firing him. Of course he had to pay him more money when he first came back. It took him 2 weeks and by the third week you had to get there early to find a parking space. That's how hot he is right now. Also along with him as the DJ at this club for the 3 hours the first hour you pay $10.00 for an open bar and they have a nice buffet. So my point is he's hot and my partner is not. Just keep in mind my6 friends success didn't come over night. He's worked hard to get there.

He's having another party in Clark, NJ at the Holiday Inn. To have an event there in that room it cost $2,000.00 for 5 hours. He's able to get that room for free. He told me it took a lot of lip service to get that. He said he had a party there where 480 people showed up. So when you can get that many people to show up in a place where they serve alcohol why wouldn't the owner/manager let you have the venue for free?

He's having a party there September the 29th with the lady who made the big club hit Wonderful. Tickets are $20.00 to get into this party. He'll have 2 other DJ's to come in and play with him. I plan on coming to the party just so i can take pictures and talk to him about him possibly DJing at my retirement party i want to have in a nice bar/club.

Enough of me ranting you get the point.
 
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Enough of me ranting you get the point.

We get the point? Sorry, but I don't get the point at all. Story impossible to follow.


You paid $200 for something, and lost your money, and then they wanted you to pay $150 the next time or you couldn't be the opening DJ.

Your partner was offended by something someone said, or his girl was, and then there was a DJ that's hot right now, and your partner is not.

Then, someone got hired after you got fired from a job no one knew you had.

Mind just saying what the whole point was in one sentence?


Are you a DJ or a wanna be party promoter?
 
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We get the point? Sorry, but I don't get the point at all. Story impossible to follow.


You paid $200 for something, and lost your money, and then they wanted you to pay $150 the next time or you couldn't be the opening DJ.

Your partner was offended by something someone said, or his girl was, and then there was a DJ that's hot right now, and your partner is not.

Then, someone got hired after you got fired from a job no one knew you had.

Mind just saying what the whole point was in one sentence?


Are you a DJ or a wanna be party promoter?
His girl is trying to be a promoter. I'm a DJ. Now if something came along where i could make money promoting fine then. I never got fired from that club. My friend did but he got hired back. When i was playing there it was on Wed. and a DJ friend had me helping him for that night. I never did a wed. night there expecting to make money. It was just to get more exposure.

Now i put up $200.00 before expecting to get that money back after the party was done. Things bombed miserably and basically the party didn't make any money. I refused to take a chance on getting burned again. Once was enough until i see the evidence of it working out for all.
 
I think we need to have a Special and separate Forum for Mix. We should title it "Mix's Rants".:rolleyes:
 
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I say if you can NOT get on with running a Business

QUIT Djing or go on your own

plain and SIMPLE!!!
 
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I say if you can NOT get on with running a Business

QUIT Djing or go on your own

plain and SIMPLE!!!
I can handle things. I've just noticed lately that my partners ego is getting in the way. He thinks he's this famous DJ because of a few DJ's that he's played with. He thinks he's going to reach super star status. He might but he needs to try and listen sometimes. I mentioned how he needs to find just one place to play at for a while and go from there. The other thing i said to him and her is to stop picking large places to have these parties. Pick small places so that if not a lot of people show up it doesn't look like the party was a bust.

I tried to tell them what they should concentrate on in the beginning is breaking even. Don't worry about making a ton of money in the beginning. All you need to worry about is getting some bodies in the place, are they having a good time and is the party safe. Once enough people find out about the kind of parties you're presenting there will be those who will want to come. Especially around here with house music. There are just not a lot of that type of music being featured around here. Most places want to have DJ's who only play the top 40 junk that is played on the radio which gets the young ones to come in. Ultimately chasing after fast money. That leaves less parties for us who don't want to listen to just today's hip hop and r & b and hyang out with those who are as old as some of their children.
 
They say it's almost inevitable in most partnerships .. one wants to go in a different direction.

If you want to follow, fine .. if you don't, then start planning on either going solo or finding a new partner. It does not seem he want what you did.
 
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I must be some sort of oddball I get paid to play parties not pay others for the right to play.

Mix you have some nice gear when you finally bankrupt yourself tell the receiver I'll be glad to buy some of it up
 
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I DJ because I love music. I also DJ because I like to make money. Mix, it seems your money is going the wrong way here. I would NEVER pay one red cent to play. I have and will continue to do some charity work for a good discount, however it is a business. You cannot last long in business with negative cash flow, pure and simple.

If I were you, I'd go solo, make your own decisions, use your own equipment, and make your own money. No need for the partner you have. Expectations are things you can only set for yourself, setting expectations on others will lead only to disappointment for you.

Paul
 
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If I were you, I'd go solo, make your own decisions, use your own equipment, and make your own money. No need for the partner you have. Expectations are things you can only set for yourself, setting expectations on others will lead only to disappointment for you.

Paul

And put a business plan together, paging Dr. Romard.
 
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The only ships that fail to sail are partnerships. - Dave Ramsey

Dump the partner, get a business plan and methodically follow it step-by-step. You seem to be going in too many directions at once. Focus on one thing at a time and then when you have that issue solved to your satisfaction move on to the next.
 
What's with people renting a club to throw a birthday party for themselves and opening the event to the public? The only times I've heard of this happening were in Mix's posts - it must be a ghetto thing.
 
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What's with people renting a club to throw a birthday party for themselves and opening the event to the public? The only times I've heard of this happening were in Mix's posts - it must be a ghetto thing.
No it's not. Other DJ's i know have done such things in the past, have packed the house and made money off of such a thing. Well i see one thing that's major. My partner is trying to do these parties with little capital to start with. What he needs to do is have postcards made up and sell tickets to the event.

I learned the reason for selling tickets when you can is that if the person doesn't show up for what ever the reason you've got their money. By selling tickets that can help pay the bills for the party. Provided enough tickets are sold. Then when you become hot enough you can sell tickets and for those who don't have a ticket will have to pay more at the door to get into the party.

I just thought i would also make this thread to show some mistakes that can get made if you want to go this route. I've learned some of this by making such mistakes. Also it doesn't hurt to have a team of people you trust to sell tickets for you so you don't have to do all the work yourself.
 
I am getting drunk here. I read then I have to take a drink which makes me read agin and the cycle continues. Problem is what I read when I am intoxicated and when I am not still baffles me. Craigslists DJs ain't got nuttin' on you Mix. They make a little and you lose a lot! How is that working fer ya???
 
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I just thought i would also make this thread to show some mistakes that can get made if you want to go this route. I've learned some of this by making such mistakes.

Smart move. "How Not To Become A Successful DJ" by MixMasterMachoM.
 
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Smart move. "How Not To Become A Successful DJ" by MixMasterMachoM.
No it's about me learning from my mistakes and just passing on info so someone else won't make the same mistakes.

Many years ago when in was first in business i was having a NYE party. I spent 1k or so to rent the largest room in the Irvington Manor. (place no longer is open. It's been closed well over 15 years) I didn't get anyone to help me i did everything all by myself. It bombed. 7 people showed up. I lost a mint. Lesson learned.