[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

so last night I had to be DJ off and on for the night to cover for my idren's smoke breaks at what not.. It was actually kind of fun! I had never done it before, never been Mr Selectah, strictly give requests, but I had a blast!

It was very much like performing a gig..

I mean, I had people dancing, laughing, screaming, moving, chilling.. just like when I play shows, but I didn't touch a guitar! I never realized that you could get that same satisfaction as a musician simply from spinning records.. interesting experience! I would love to do it again.. if I am prepared with my OWN iPod or record stash the selections will be much finer..

too bad there was no mic though, I would have absolutely LOVED to toasted!

[Satan]

DJing is great fun, glad you enjoyed it!
it's fantastic to have such power over the people on the floor, isn't it?

[jon boy]

i heard more michael jackson last night than i care to mention.

[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

Originally Posted by Satan

DJing is great fun, glad you enjoyed it!
it's fantastic to have such power over the people on the floor, isn't it?

well.. I yield this power at gigs.. even street performances.. but I did not realize that the feeling and energy and vibe was the same running the turn tables as it is holding down the rhythm on the guitar track..

What I absolutely love about being a musician is getting people to spontaneously dance and sing in joy.. it is such a gift and a blessing to do for people.. it blows me away every time!

DJing was WAY easier than singing and playing and performing, but gave similar affect on me, sort of like the light beer version of performing music.

Originally Posted by jon boy

i heard more michael jackson last night than i care to mention.

don't hate. I spun at least 5 MJ tracks last night all bangers! he's dead remember let people have the memorials, its only been a few months!

[Glice]

I've DJed quite a few times. Always a good laugh. I think it's definitely a different thing to DJing at a party to in a club. And while it sort of is relatively easy, I think the difference between someone playing records (me) and a decent DJ is massive. I used to know a guy who was 3rd or 4th runner up in the DMCs one year, and he basically never stopped working on it.

My top DJ tip - Michael Jackson saves any dancefloor. It's the law.

[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

Originally Posted by Glice

My top DJ tip - Michael Jackson saves any dancefloor. It's the law.

agreed.

[gualbert]

Dj's are pathetic (and the people who pay attention to them even more!)
The only thing they do is playing records!!!
I've played hundreds of records on my stereo, and never expected any recognition out of it.

As a visual performance, DJs put headphones between their head and their shoulder; I can't find anything tremendous about that!

[Glice]

Oh, gualbert, gualbert, gualbert, why so puritan?

[gualbert]

Long live Carl Cox and Bob Sinclar!!
Anyway I rely on myself to choose the records I want to listen to.

[Keeping It Simple]

A 4-year-old could DJ. It's not rocket science. All you have to do is:

1. Choose a record.
2. Place it on the turntable.
3. Lower the stylus onto the outer edge of the record.
4. Bob's your uncle.

[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

y'all are crazy! that shit is hard! you have to line up records back to back to back all in time as if you were playing an instrument.

you have to fade in and mix it up on time and smooth transitions and the tunes have to match the feel and make sense as a playlist. If you are one of those lame DJs who just sets up an iPod playlist and runs it then yeah it is easy.. but if you are picking records spontaneously to the feel of the crowd and the jam you last played that shit is work! I never realized just how much work the DJ does until I had to cover for him!

[!@#$%!]

Originally Posted by gualbert

Long live Carl Cox and Bob Sinclar!!
Anyway I rely on myself to choose the records I want to listen to.

fine but if youre gonna be SOCIAL and hang out in some sort of collective space you wanna have a good DJ rather than a sucky one.

Originally Posted by Keeping It Simple

A 4-year-old could DJ. It's not rocket science. All you have to do is:

1. Choose a record.
2. Place it on the turntable.
3. Lower the stylus onto the outer edge of the record.
4. Bob's your uncle.

the mechanical process is evidently clear (unless you're *really* spinning records, then dexterity is required), however, the mood control aspect of the job is much more important.

holy fuck, some months ago i went to this bar with some friends to some kind of 80s dj and the thing was UTTER SHIT, horrible pop shit, no siouxie and the banshees, no cure, no devo, just the most ghastly horrible worse shit about the 80s, it was like resurrecting ronald reagan, and i was not going to waste a good intoxication on such horrid aural environment & left the place.

a good DJ is a DJ with good taste and a good record collection and a feel for the room.

[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

Originally Posted by !@#$%!

a good DJ is a DJ with good taste and a good record collection and a feel for the room.

exactly! i think the hardest part about DJing last night was having to select tunes that the crowd liked, because they were not necessarily tunes that I would like, so I had to find a middle ground of tunes that were popular but that I could tolerate and especially that I would not be embarassed to spin. I only spin approved shit, but it had to be mutually approved and that I think is hardest part, matching your taste to the crowd.

[SpectralJulianIsNotDead]

If the crowd is responsive, DJing can be quite a bit of fun.

If the crowd isn't (like at a wedding) DJing can be a great bore.

[SYRFox]

Originally Posted by Keeping It Simple

A 4-year-old could DJ. It's not rocket science. All you have to do is:

1. Choose a record.
2. Place it on the turntable.
3. Lower the stylus onto the outer edge of the record.
4. Bob's your uncle.

A 4-year-old could play a guitar too. All you have to do is:

1. Pick the guitar
2. Pluck some strings

[SYRFox]

I actually found out this year I could enjoy a DJ Set as much (well maybe not as much... but still have a lot of fun) as a live show. Saw Mr Oizo DJing this summer and it was really really great.

[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

Originally Posted by swa(y)

very much like a sidewalk gig when the cops tell swa(y)-man to get lost.
.

good times. performing street music is very much like DJing, you have to pick a selection of tunes that pleases everybody and keeps it positive.

[SpectralJulianIsNotDead]

Originally Posted by !@#$%!

fine but if youre gonna be SOCIAL and hang out in some sort of collective space you wanna have a good DJ rather than a sucky one.



the mechanical process is evidently clear (unless you're *really* spinning records, then dexterity is required), however, the mood control aspect of the job is much more important.

holy fuck, some months ago i went to this bar with some friends to some kind of 80s dj and the thing was UTTER SHIT, horrible pop shit, no siouxie and the banshees, no cure, no devo, just the most ghastly horrible worse shit about the 80s, it was like resurrecting ronald reagan, and i was not going to waste a good intoxication on such horrid aural environment & left the place.

a good DJ is a DJ with good taste and a good record collection and a feel for the room.

How can you be an 80s DJ and not play Cure or DEVO? It seems like such a no brainer, but so many DJs just totally fail at that. I think a lot of DJs believe that they have to have some sort of artistic integrity, and not play obvious songs, so they avoid New Order, Cure, B-52s, DEVO, David Bowie, and even Michael Jackson and Madonna and all that other 70s and 80s stuff that just screams "get on the floor and dance motherfuckers!"

And there are also a lot of DJs that just play the last 6 months' top 40s. That doesn't work. . . because most people don't really listen to that shit. Most people aren't that up to date. Sure maybe they know half a dozen of those songs, but not a whole lot of them.

Here's a good rule:
1. Know what people like to dance to. There are actually very few songs that people do. Hook them with that song.
2. Once you've got them hooked, keep the BPM for a few songs, then change it up with another hook before you lose them

[cryptowonderdruginvogue]

Originally Posted by Keeping It Simple

A 4-year-old could DJ. It's not rocket science. All you have to do is:

1. Choose a record.
2. Place it on the turntable.
3. Lower the stylus onto the outer edge of the record.
4. Bob's your uncle.

You're a retard

[Derek]

Originally Posted by gualbert

Dj's are pathetic (and the people who pay attention to them even more!)
The only thing they do is playing records!!!
I've played hundreds of records on my stereo, and never expected any recognition out of it.

As a visual performance, DJs put headphones between their head and their shoulder; I can't find anything tremendous about that!

Hip hop isn't music!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!