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Wanna Be DJ..... {HELP}
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
It has always been my dream to become a world known DJ. And now i finally have a job i can afford some equipment. But here comes the problem of what to get & what to do with it hen i get. Could all you lovely guys give me some advice. Or even some links to handy sites.
CHEERS LOVELEYS!!!
CHEERS LOVELEYS!!!
Post edited by JustV on
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Comments
even if you doyou've got a looooong way to go, just look how old all the really world famous djs are, paul oakenfold, carl cox...., and think how long they've been doing it!
gotta remember its fcuking expensive too:mad: how much you planning on spending on the set up?
i got my decks from;
JBSmusic
it was just about the cheapest site i could find,
also worth a look is:
saphires
one last word of financial advice;
record shops are evil, they take all your money away in a matter of minutes!
make sure you've bought essentials like food for the week before you go in to one:D
i've been caught out before, was getting quite hungry by thursday but had some top tunes to listen to:rolleyes:
Here are a few links, but I can't comment constructively on products because I'm not in the position to buy anything at present. I've been unemployed for six months!
DJ Cafe
DJ Superstore
Tascam (manufacturer)
There are also software solutions for you computer, but it is far more reliable staying away from the computer. It is easier doing it on the computer, but it will be useful to get to grips with this sort of DJ-ing before you hit the vinyl.
Mixmeister
PCDJ
Also, if you wanna be a DJ, you have to ask yourself, are you doing it for the lifestyle, or for the music? Are you really into the music that your planning on playing?
I personally want to be a Trance DJ like Armin Van Buuren, but I know I'm gonna have to start off playing House tunes in bars in order to 'get into the scene'. Then, once I've moved on to the clubs, it would be time to drop the trance stormers like GOURYELLA!!!
I know someone in Bristol, who did voluntary Friday night sets (progressive house) at a bar called the Junction. This was a sideline while working as an administrator.
CHEERS anyways.
http://www.midischool.com/dj_course.asp - I attended this in 1997
The market especially in the UK (and NZ for that matter where I am now) is satuated with wannabe DJs and it takes something special to break through, you need to practice and get your technical skills up to scratch, do lots of recording of yourself onto tape or if possible CD and once happy with a mix, distribute these around to friends and get people to talk about you, also take into account any feedback you get. Send mixes to radio stations and speak with promotors, hand out cds to people when they come out of clubs, if people like your stuff (include a number) eventually you will get phone calls and once you get gigs work your way up from there, learn how to control a crowd and remember that in essence you are still a clubber, don't loose touch with everyone else!
There are other ways to get into the DJ world, you can get into dance music production and should a track make it big then you can push foward through there, you could apply to work in a local dance record shop selling vinyl - a popular place for clubs sourcing DJs. Another way in is to become a promotor and run your own nights with some friends.
I've been DJing for 6 years, I started by blagging my way at 14 saying I could mix to some U18 events and landed a residency playing happy hardcore at the Palace nightclub. I followed by playing in DJ competitions on Splash FM before moving foward and landing a show on Planet 107FM pirate radio in Blackpool, UK. I was also doing weekly tri-slots at the Palace nightclub and have played at the Paradise Factory in Manchester. I emigrated over to NZ last year and with a satuated scene here like over there I set up my own production company (on minimum wage working in sales) and now run my own nights called N2O, so far we have run 2 events with our second supporting Zebedee Productions and Paul Glazby (Tidy Trax - UK), our next event I'm running is an alnighter in January heading 8 DJs (1 Ex-International from Tmet Recordings) and I'm playing at Zebedee Productions in January as well as at a large outdoor festival (like a Creamfields type thing but in NZ) in February supporting 2 of the largest internationals in the world (not sure who yet, but it sounds huge)
http://www.n2o.co.nz
http://www.zebedee.co.nz
Getting to world standard is a long trek, people like John Digweed or Pete Tong (etc.) have been DJing since the 1980s and its not something that if your serious about is going to go there overnight. You need to give respect where due, never loose sight of your goals and keep dedicated. People are right, this hobby or line of work costs a fortune, remember there will always be people who think they are better than you and in many cases indeed are better, you've just got to keep plodding along and keep at it... its not un-usual for people to come out of no-where and go all foward...
Mix away!
I'd really advise you to buy
How To DJ (Properly) by Frank Broughton & Bill Brewster befor buying any equipment. You'll be amazed how helpfull it'll be to you. You can get from Amazon or www.htfr.co.uk. It's about 15 quid.
It's not just about learning how to mix for newbies, it's covers..
Buying equipment
Buying records
seting up
mixing
playing out
how to read the crowd
bulid record collections
EQ - FX
Deck effects
Scratching
Getting paid for gigs
How to DJ on air
Getting free tunes
Producing etc, etc...
Well worth it.
This is a pretty cool site aswell:
http://www.looplabs.com