Archive for the ‘DJ How-To’s’ Category

Amplifiers, Speakers, Turntables, Disk Players,Computers & Mixers

In Lesson #1, I indicated that a great DJ must have a practical, working knowledge of his client. In Lesson #2, I gave some tips on how to handle music, and Lesson #3 covered a very profitable line of DJ work, The Wedding. In this lesson, I wish to expand upon the few comments in Lesson #2 regarding equipment.

So far, we have covered two main topics DJ’s must learn if they want to become GREAT DJ’s: (1) Know Your Client, and (2) Know How to Handle Music. In this third lesson, we’ll give some tips on how to do Great Weddings.

Let’s be honest: A DJ could go his or her whole life without ever doing a wedding—and they tend to take more effort than the average birthday party or car rally. However, there are two reasons why I recommend DJ’s get into the wedding business; Weddings reward you (1) financially, and (2) emotionally, I might even say spiritually.

In Lesson #1, I covered several general but critical concepts a DJ must master if (s)he is to become a GREAT DJ: I indicated that a great DJ must have integrity–(s)he must put his or her client’s needs ahead of his own needs to make money and have fun; he must have ambition to do well, ability to analyze himself or accept criticism from others, but the most important thing that distinguishes a poor or average DJ from a great DJ is his knowledge of his client. A fair DJ may know little more than what the event is, may show up with his suitcase full of music, and play for hours oblivious of the background, age, family, and music tastes of his client.

I know this is true, because I was somewhat a victim of this very kind of DJ. Read the rest of this entry »

As a DJ I’ve played hundreds of “gigs” over the years, and I’ve watched as a guest while other poor, fair, good, or sometimes great DJ’s ply their trade, and I believe that not all of them knew how to improve their DJ skills. Most of them were probably self-taught, maybe had tried getting together in a dance band that didn’t work out, maybe had some extra equipment, a friend asks them to play music for a birthday party, and Read the rest of this entry »