Mixing...is it really that important?

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Basicly there is a Time and place for EVERYTHING

as originally stated awhile ago on page 1 of this thread!!!

have a nice day
 
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ahoustondj said:
You are politically correct! ;) However DJs were borne of Mixing Skills. I sometimes laugh that those who don't mix or know how to mix two songs together in harmony are just wasting their money buying DJ Software. If one cannot do it themselves they can have the software do it for them. Same reason why they made powered speakers so it would take the puzzle out of marrying speakers and amps. If one is not going to Mix, why not just use Windows Media player. That would do the same thing for the Non Mixer.

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Can someone who claims that Mixing is not necessary answer this question for me.."When is there a time that is not good to mix songs?"
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That's not true. DJ's used to just play one song all the way through and then fade in another song never mixing at all. Then came along Larry Lavan who started to beat mix songs together. Once he started to do it then others saw that it was a great thing and decided to start doing it. The real thing is that some are great at it, some are good and some suck at it. It's an art form and either you have the skills and know how to pull it off right or you don't. That doesn't mean that every mix you do will be perfect. I'm great at beat mixing and sometimes i just have a bad night. Just not into it at the time.

I'm just thankful i don't have too many sets like that. Very rarely do i have a bad mixing night or day depending on the time of the event.
 
Club is far different from receptions. In club, you'd better not keep them on the floor for an hour, otherwise...You will NOT be back! The club makes money on bar sales, not the cover charge. If you don't rotate the dancers to the bar ever 12 minutes or so then the bar/club owner is NOT going to be happy. So blend 3 song sets and rotate your floor. At every reception I've played (34+ years) beat-mixing is NOT a necessity. As long as the songs "flow" together...you're gold.
 
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Scott McKinney said:
Club is far different from receptions. In club, you'd better not keep them on the floor for an hour, otherwise...You will NOT be back! The club makes money on bar sales, not the cover charge. If you don't rotate the dancers to the bar ever 12 minutes or so then the bar/club owner is NOT going to be happy. So blend 3 song sets and rotate your floor. At every reception I've played (34+ years) beat-mixing is NOT a necessity. As long as the songs "flow" together...you're gold.
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I don't know about the every 12 minute thing. Around here that would get you canned. As long as a nice flow from the dance floor to the bar is happening then you would be ok here. Here it's about doing a good job so they will want to come back to that bar/club you're playing at.
 
boring!!
 
DJ Jynxx said:
I am finding it harder and harder to keep my mouth shut on this thread. I suppose you could argue that its not important to YOU and how you see yourself as a "dj", but to someone like me it DEFINES being a DJ. I grew up in what most would consider "the hood", and so for me, where I come from, if you don't mix, you're just not a DJ. Period.
I know that that is a very narrow way to look at the world, but so is looking at it from the opposite end of the spectrum. Just because mixing isn't important to you, doesn't mean that is NOT important at all.
Besides, what if it IS important to your clients?

I get that most of you aren't in it for the culture, or the music, or it being your passion.... you see it as a business, not a lifestyle. And that's fine, to each his own. But this question could be "Clients... are they important?" to someone like me. I don't do many mobile gigs for a reason, thats just not the DJ that I am. Clients are not as important to me as making sure I have mastered the craft of beat mixing, scratching, blending, remixing, and producing. And a lot of you look at that and scoff.... which is sad, honestly.

This then begs the question, what makes one a DJ?
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I don't think you need to go that deep into culture to see where some people are coming from. Nearly everyone in this thread who claims mixing is not important also admits they can't do it, or can't do it well. They're simply rationalizing a lack of effort or experience.

The question of: "are you really a DJ" is simply a matter of how finished is the product you put out there?

It may seem like one small detail in the craft - but, would you accept a carpenter who claims checking things for square or level isn't that important? A furniture maker who doesn't match the wood grains? A painter that doesn't blend supplies with different lot numbers? Electricians who don't check polarity?

Mixing is a detail - but, you can not claim it to be an unnecessary detail without also making clear your own limitations in the craft.
 
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Proformance said:
I don't think you need to go that deep into culture to see where some people are coming from. Nearly everyone in this thread who claims mixing is not important also admits they can't do it, or can't do it well. They're simply rationalizing a lack of effort or experience.

The question of: "are you really a DJ" is simply a matter of how finished is the product you put out there?

It may seem like one small detail in the craft - but, would you accept a carpenter who claims checking things for square or level isn't that important? A furniture maker who doesn't match the wood grains? A painter that doesn't blend supplies with different lot numbers? Electricians who don't check polarity?

Mixing is a detail - but, you can not claim it to be an unnecessary detail without also making clear your own limitations in the craft.
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I wouldn't have put it so bluntly but i would say you've got a good point.
 
It's like saying "Switch Hitting .. how important is it" to a professional baseball player. It's a skill, one that can be learned, that few have perfected. Some of the best players didn't/don't have it .. doesn't make them less professional or "less finished".
 
steve149 said:
It's like saying "Switch Hitting .. how important is it" to a professional baseball player. It's a skill, one that can be learned, that few have perfected. Some of the best players didn't/don't have it .. doesn't make them less professional or "less finished".
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I dont agree with that. Switch hitting isn't an integral part of Baseball. It's just something some people can do. No one would say "You're not a real baseball player unless you can switch hit", and it's not a skill that defines an entire culture of baseball the way mixing encompasses DJing in the hip-hop culture.
I was talking it over with a friend of mine who is a mobile DJ, never has been a club DJ, and he said "Well... is talking on the mic important?" and I said yes. He said "Is it more important than mixing?" and I said no. He said that to him, talking on the mic and having a good presence and speaking voice were far more important than mixing.
I then said that I would consider him an Emcee that plays music more than a DJ who gets on the mic. He started to say no, but then conceded and said "I never thought of it like that". He still continued to argue, but the point was already made.

You can argue that any one of these is a skill that just makes up who we are as a whole, but you have to ask what that whole is. Are you more of an emcee/showman/entertainer than you are an actual DJ? Because to me, MUSIC, and what you can do with it is the MOST important thing to a DJ. Everything else is a distant second.

So, I put the question to you guys who think mixing is not important. Are microphone skills more important? What skills do you think make you a DJ moreso than an emcee, showman, or entertainer? Just the title?

There is more to being a DJ than calling yourself a DJ. There is an entire culture devoted to DJing, and if you call yourself a DJ you should be able to relate to it in some way, shape, or form. If you don't, then I would argue that you are indeed NOT a DJ, but something else. And I am not just talking about hip-hop DJing, or EDM DJing. I am talking about the traditional "DJ" that most people think of when you say "DJ". When you tell someone you are a DJ, how many of you get the line "Oh? Where do you DJ at?"
That in itself says something.
Does that make you any less of an entertainer? Hell no. But if we're down to arguing semantics, then there are just certain things that define "DJ" as a title, and for most DJs, mixing often sits at the top. If its not important to you, then what is? What aspect of being a DJ is more important than mixing?
 
A clarification needs to be made here. I do receptions exclusively and don't mix and have great dance floors. Tempo flow and what you play is more important IMO. Blending two songs seamlessly doesn't mean much if those songs suck :)
 
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As I said there's a time and a place for it and to know how to do it is good for your resume. However there are situations I would consider it necessary, and see it as going to the dentist and choosing not to use any type of anesthetic. Sure you can reduce pain but, is it really necessary??? ;)
 
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DJ Jynxx said:
I dont agree with that. Switch hitting isn't an integral part of Baseball. It's just something some people can do. No one would say "You're not a real baseball player unless you can switch hit", and it's not a skill that defines an entire culture of baseball the way mixing encompasses DJing in the hip-hop culture.
I was talking it over with a friend of mine who is a mobile DJ, never has been a club DJ, and he said "Well... is talking on the mic important?" and I said yes. He said "Is it more important than mixing?" and I said no. He said that to him, talking on the mic and having a good presence and speaking voice were far more important than mixing.
I then said that I would consider him an Emcee that plays music more than a DJ who gets on the mic. He started to say no, but then conceded and said "I never thought of it like that". He still continued to argue, but the point was already made.

You can argue that any one of these is a skill that just makes up who we are as a whole, but you have to ask what that whole is. Are you more of an emcee/showman/entertainer than you are an actual DJ? Because to me, MUSIC, and what you can do with it is the MOST important thing to a DJ. Everything else is a distant second.

So, I put the question to you guys who think mixing is not important. Are microphone skills more important? What skills do you think make you a DJ moreso than an emcee, showman, or entertainer? Just the title?

There is more to being a DJ than calling yourself a DJ. There is an entire culture devoted to DJing, and if you call yourself a DJ you should be able to relate to it in some way, shape, or form. If you don't, then I would argue that you are indeed NOT a DJ, but something else. And I am not just talking about hip-hop DJing, or EDM DJing. I am talking about the traditional "DJ" that most people think of when you say "DJ". When you tell someone you are a DJ, how many of you get the line "Oh? Where do you DJ at?"
That in itself says something.
Does that make you any less of an entertainer? Hell no. But if we're down to arguing semantics, then there are just certain things that define "DJ" as a title, and for most DJs, mixing often sits at the top. If its not important to you, then what is? What aspect of being a DJ is more important than mixing?
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But switch hitting IS integral with baseball. Ask any manager and they'll consider it an important skill. If someone has it, they approach a pitcher, especially a bullpen pitcher, differently.

Again, lets agree to disagree on the importance of the various skills necessary to be a DJ or any kind of entertainer. They are all important in some situation, but none, other than making a client happy, rises to the level of most important.
 
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