I have been DJing for over ten years. I've traveled all over the globe and had many crazy adventures - the kicker here is that NONE of that was my intent when I started.
Call me a purist, but I think that in order to really go anywhere with any art form, it has to mean something to you. I have always had a love affair with music, and started collecting records in my late teens. A close friend of mine bought a pair of technics and I started to play around. For about 2 years I was a bedroom DJ, and quickly fueled my vinyl addiction more than ever.
A lot of "DJ"s do not move past this incubation phase, and will only go as far as playing records for a few friends at a time. Me? I decided to start playing out when I got bored by the local DJs, convinced I could do better I started passing out mix CDs and business cards to my favorite bars and lounges. Sure enough it paid off and I had a few weekly gigs much quicker than I had bargained for.
Now mind you:
Fame, girls and money were the last things on my mind (used to play for 40 bucks a night) - my mission was simply to support and promote great music while making people dance like maniacs. In this sense I was successful, but I had to sacrifice a lot to get anywhere.
See, DJs nowadays are a dime a dozen and are usually treated as such. The few who make it out of their bedrooms tend to go running back because the gratification/respect is not immediate. You gotta pay your dues!
If this is something you want to do, make sure that you have good reasons to cling to when things don't go well. Its naive to expect instant fortune in this fickle industry. You would be wise to have a good plan B - a steady source of income before you decide to become a pro DJ. Only VERY few of us can live off this gig.
Also, make DAMN sure that your skills are sharp. Practice as much as possible and ALWAYS work to expand your musical repertoire.
The key to greatness on the decks is threefold
1. Selection: You have to really love what you are playing and have an intimate knowledge of your own records. This is why DJs are tune junkies, there is a certain eergy you put into a set when you have some new tunes that you personally are dying to hear on a decent soundsystem. Variety is also key - too much of the same will bore a crowd, so it pays to have songs with different energy levels to compliment the vibe of the evening. Which brings us to
2. Crowd vibing: The best DJs are masters at reading body language and social dynamics. Anyone can play music for themselves - it takes experience and observation to really size a crowd up and decide what they need to hear. Example: If its opening hour and there are not people on the floor, you dont play your high energy, peak hour joints - its crucial to get them warmed up first. Its your responsibility to take the crowd up or down as you see fit.
3. Technique / Musical sensibility: Nothing is worse than a DJ who trainwrecks. For the love of GOD, practice, practice and practice some more until you can at least beatlock properly. Once you get there you can start doing fancy sh!t with EQs, effects, etc.
LOL, this got a lot longer than I intended. If you have any questions or doubts, PM me.
DeepDish said:
Vinyl has lost its relevance in todays' evolution of technology. I am either friends with or share a mutual friend with probably every DJ in Orlando's house/techno scene. Many have vinyl turntables in their homes, relics of the past, but I don't know a soul who plays out with turntables.
^^ This is true for the most part. However I will say that most places I play at provide both Turntables and CDJ, so I usually end up mixing both. Maybe thats just the case here in Europe, mileage may vary in the States.
Personally I love wax too much to let it die, but I can understand why its not as popular, just do the math. You can buy a stack of CDs and fill em up wth downloaded MP3's for the same price of one LP these days, kind of a no brainer.
My method is usually to test out new tunes on CD, the best performers end up getting added to my vinyl stack. This way only my strongest tunes are on glorious vinyl and the investment required to try new sh!t out is much smaller.
Either way, if you are serious about playing anywhere, you better make sure your CDJ skills are up to snuff, cause turntables are quickly going the way of the dodo.