PDA

View Full Version : Advice For Beginners



DJ Highline
08-01-2012, 06:37 PM
I figured that there is so much knowledge here on DJF that we should all chime in with advice for the beginners coming here looking for it. It can be anything from equipment, to techniques to music...whatever nugget of knowledge you think a beginner can use.

So what advice would you give beginner DJs?

I'll start.

First: Make sure that the reason you are getting into DJing is a good one. Whether that is because you love the music or you like making the crowd happy, whatever the reason make sure its real. Don't get into this because you think it'll make you popular or because you want to make money or get laid...you will be burned out in no time and out of alot of money because this hobby/profession is not cheap.

Second: Learn to DJ manually by ear preferably on turntables with a few pieces of real vinyl. If you learn to DJ this way, you learn all the mechanics of what is going on and you can then step up to almost any DJ rig and rock a set. Technology has given us some great tools to use...but if you don't know the basics, then these tools become crutches and at some point the crutches will get removed and you will fall. So learn the basics and how to do it manually.

Third: Learn that DJing is about giving the crowd what they need when they need it. Contrary to popular belief, DJing is not always about rocking out. Its about looking at the crowd and knowing how to take that crowd from one place to another. For example, if you are an opening DJ, your job isn't to rock the party and play all the bangers, your job is to provide a warm friendly sound that will allow people to come into the space and get comfortable before rocking out. Sometimes you may want to do one thing but the crowd (by their reactions or non-reactions) say they want something else. This is a skill that has to be learned...Its called "reading the crowd" and is probably the most important skill a DJ can have.

Fourth: Alot of people will prejudge you based on your equipment. Equipment does matter as in reliability and being able to accomplish what you want to accomplish in your DJing. But at the end of the day, the only thing that matters is what comes out of the speakers. If the crowd is moving to what the DJ is playing and how s/he is playing it then the DJ is doing a good job. Perfect example, one spot that I DJ at, the promoter brings in another DJ occasionally because he brings his crowd with him. He plays on an ION DJ controller (I call it my first DJ) but the fact is that his crowd loves him and follows him.

That's my advice for the beginners...

DJ Highline
08-06-2012, 12:18 PM
Another piece of advice is to network your ass off. I am slowly learning this one and its something I wished I had learned years ago. I am realizing that life is about who you know, not what you know. Which is difficult for me because so many people annoy the hell out of me.

TheRabbitMonk
08-06-2012, 12:19 PM
Another piece of advice is to network your ass off. I am slowly learning this one and its something I wished I had learned years ago. I am realizing that life is about who you know, not what you know. Which is difficult for me because so many people annoy the hell out of me.

lol, i hear you bro.

Archon
08-06-2012, 12:23 PM
practice until you think you are really good before you play out. chances are, you aren't as good as you think you are, meaning that when you think you're okay, you probably are pretty bad. make sure you are good before you try to rock a crowd.