"Get off your laurels" they say in the business world when someone is being lazy or doing a half ass job. The Same goes for DJs. Deejaying is not a sit down job. Any DJ that just sits there pushing buttons rather than taking charge of the party is just plain not a
Real DJ.
There are dozens of styles of DJ. Many Deejays only specialize in a few areas. Some are only good in nightclub settings, many only do mobile DJ parties like birthdays, weddings and corporate events. Some DJs don't like doing kids events while others excel at making a kids birthday a memorable one. Of course just like many of us many Deejays also have a preference for the styles of music they collect and like to play. Then there are the rare Deejays that are ultra versatile and are capable of excelling in any situation. It is these Deejays that you want to hire for your next event.
DJs come in all shapes, sizes and styles but there is no excuse for a lazy DJ. Deejaying is not a sit down job! The DJ is responsible for getting the party going. For keeping people excited, dancing grooving and always moving them with energetic mixes that bring the party to life. How can a DJ do all that if they themselves don't even look like they are into the mix? How can the DJ expect the party to be anything more than mediocre if they themselves don't become active members of the party vibe? The DJ is the glue that binds the party together. A boring DJ is the equivalent of the glue coming undone on a ship while it's at sea... If the DJ is bunk, the party is sunk.
Hiring an event DJ, a mobile DJ company or a nightclub DJ can be a daunting task. Many mobile DJs these days don't know how to mix a song or how to build excitement through their music selection and transitions. Many are using software that beat matches the music for them but without the actual experience and wisdom of a traditional DJ many of the newer generation DJs simply don't know how to rock a party and make your event an exciting and memorable one.
A nightclub DJ will be better at rocking a party and reading the crowd but without mobile DJ experience, professional DJ equipment and lighting and private event experience a nightclub DJ can also be a disastrous choice. Many nightclub Deejays don't own adequate sound and lighting equipment to do larger private events on their own. Nightclub DJs also tend to specialize in only a few genres of music and are not good candidates for varied crowds like one might find at a wedding. Lets face it most nightclub DJs are focused mainly on the 18-30 year old demographic.
My Company http://www.djemir.com/ had to turn down One party because the Grand ballroom they were in was huge and would require us to bring additional sound and lighting equipment. They were already low balling us and the addition of more equipment made the event undoable at the low price they wanted. This would also mean pulling equipment that could otherwise go to another event with another one of our DJs, essentially taking money out of our pockets on two fronts.
I cannot fathom why countless people make the same mistake of spending entire budgets on everything but the entertainment. Do people not understand that it is ultimately the entertainment that will make or break their event? You are willing to drop $10,000 on renting a grand ballroom, a few more thousand on catering, cakes, security etc... but only willing to shell out $500 or less to fill a huge ballroom with great entertainment. In the end the statement you get what you pay for always comes into play. Even though we were contacted the week of the event, the people throwing the party refused to sign a contract and had not made a deposit. The Party was only two days away and when we met at the location we realized we would need to bring an additional 2-4 more base bin speakers to add to the 4 speaker we had brought in for the sound check. They didn't want to pay extra for the extra equipment to make the event sound great and extra people necessary to make the event run smoothly. They then used strong arm negotiation tactics trying to get my company to throw in the extra equipment plus add more lights. Basically they wanted more and wanted to pay less that they had previously offered. They then used a backfiring strong arm tactic by stating we can get this or that other nightclub DJ (whom we already knew didn't have adequate speakers for this event, since the DJ in question previously had wanted to rent our speaker for an even smaller event) In the end they came back to us after their event went sour and said "we should have gone with you, the sound system we ended up with was so much weaker and everyone complained about the DJ the whole night" - OUCH. I had a feeling that was going to be the case.
It's simple most nightclub DJs don't have the equipment to do private events, of the ones that do only a few have enough equipment to handle larger events. But more importantly many nightclub DJs lack the versatility it takes to handle a diverse crowd, unless they are constantly in front of a diverse crowd. The Techno DJs only DJ for Techno Crowds, The Hip Hop DJs only deal with the urban crowd and the Hipster DJs are used to crowds that let them do just about whatever they want.
Mobile DJs without nightclub experience on the other hand can't rock parties and while they have a large database of music often don't know how to properly transition from genre to genre without losing the crowd. There is also a huge cheesiness factor many mobile DJs bring to the events. Since they don't know how to rock the crowd they often rely on cheesy line dances and children's dance songs like the chicken dance to get the crowd involved. Real DJs don't require these crutches and will only throw the songs in if asked to do so specifically by one of the main guests of honor.
The quandary is this: Many nightclub DJs just aren't versatile enough to handle private events. And many mobile DJs just don't have what it takes to rock the crowd. It takes a special
special DJ that combines the best characteristics of both styles of DJ to make an event really come to life.
Great DJs breed great events At an event at Peak to Peak Charter School in Lafayette Colorado before starting they told us the horror story of their previous DJs, they said the previous guy had a tendency to play a ton of SKA and punk music and the kids hated the event and barely danced. What a difference of night and Day. They were so happy when our company
http://www.djemir.com/ completely rocked the homecoming dance. The 400 kids jam packed the gymnasium and danced the entire night to top 40, Old School, Rock, Electro House, remixes Salsa and more. They were so excited to have a real
Nightclub DJ rock their event and play more than just one kind of music They were so happy and thoroughly entertained throughout the entire event that the teacher in charge gave us a tip out of his own pockets.
At a wedding in Breckenridge the Mother of the bride was so delighted that she commented "Wow! You were wonderful. I never knew how hard you deejays work, you never sat down never took a break from the party." and that's the point a DJ isn't supposed to take breaks, we are there to rock your party and make it one to remember, a joyous occasion. Deejaying is not a sit down job! If you are a DJ clock in and put in your time and your effort. If you are looking at a DJ that just sits there pushing a few buttons and your party is boring, he's probably the reason why. Tell him to get up off his laurels! No self respecting DJ would be sitting comfortably while deejaying a party (except maybe while everyone is eating early at a wedding reception)
If a DJ is not constantly mixing, constantly pulling up hot songs, reading the crowd, making sure everyone is dancing and having a good time, then they just aren't doing their job. They are not real DJs and are not worthy of rehiring. The next time you are ready to do an event find out if the Deejays you are going to hire can even mix. Ask them for a sample mix, or if they have video from their past events. Ask them what kind of music they play, what kind of events they have played for and what their mix style is like.
Real DJs don't fade out songs they mix them.
Real DJs keep the party moving and once you experience a
Real DJ you will never want to hire anything other than a
Real DJ again.
About The Author
DJ Emir Santana is an extraordinary international Event, Nightclub and mixtape
DJ based out of Denver CO.
