What music are you willing to play?

[Sambo]

I'll play whatever you want me to play baby, as long as the price is right.
(Sorry, I had to, I seem to be the only one picking up on the seedy undertones.)

[sobi]

I used to refuse to play anything but house and techno. If you aren't doing it for what you love, what's the point, right?

Well after being that way for a decade, I got a little lenient with my stance, and over the course of the past 5 years, I've completely sold my soul. I wouldn't change a thing either. While the crowd occasionally wants stuff that makes me completely embarrassed to be playing, I play things my way and try and keep the meat and potatoes of it to stuff that I find decent. That being said, I do still get gigs that are based off of what I love, and selling my soul has made my home studio a LOT nicer than what sticking to my guns would have gotten me.

[DubluW]

I do love mixing my chosen genre's, and if i have played anywhere people usually have the same taste's so i stick to them!

If i have to play to Top 40 for any reason, i have a go to playlist that i've already laid out in 10-12 blocks of songs that generally mix well together, progressing to all the big tunes and a fair smattering of remixes of a here and there.

[the_bastet]

It depends on where I'm playing, the contract with the venue, gm, or music director, and how much im getting paid.

[Patch]

We need to differentiate between a DJ as a hired entertainer, and a DJ as a performer.

A PERFORMER (playing at a club) gets to play whatever-the-hell he (or she) wants. The performing DJ's choice of music is part of the performance, and the performer is in charge of the performance.

A HIRED ENTERTAINER (playing at a wedding, or a party, or any place where the musical policy is dictated by the people paying the bill!) plays whatever he/she IS TOLD TO PLAY. The music policy here is whatever the paying customer wants it to be.

If you're being paid to DJ at a wedding, you have to cater to that crowd. If I was paying you to play at my wedding or birthday, you'd better turn up with PLENTY of Michael Jackson and Beatles tracks.

It all boils down to this:

If you want to play YOUR kind of music, you do it at your own expense. Start your own night, or get a gig somewhere that people WANT To hear your kind of music.

If you want to get PAID, you have to cater to the people with the money!!! Don't turn up to a 60th birthday party with 4 hours worth of 90's Jungle!

[manchild]

I play open format, so theres not too much music I won't play, but if I get offered a job that I know will require me to play a lot of music I don't like......theres no way I take it.

[Sambo]

I will take any genre, I love music as a whole and for me, the fusion of two completely random songs into one that is potentially better is the thrill of DJing.