First gig! How should I play?!

[jessevdriel]

I think your question is not stupid at all. I'm 17 years old and i had my first gig when i was 13.
I sucked.
But now i play gigs every weekend, even in clubs. And although every club, every gig has its own kind of people and every person in the room wants you to play in a different way. Now every DJ on this forum has been in the spot where he has a guy on his left side asking for dubstep and a girl on his right side asking for call me maybe. Now what you could do is play both tracks shorter in the same time you could play one track completely. For me that is not the way, i like to stick to the tacks I like to play too, and which are well-placed at the gig. In most cases probably call me maybe, because it's known to people, they will sing along. (DO NOT underestimate the importance of recognition of the music you play by people in the room).

I would say take your time to figure out what would work at that particular time. It's more important to play the RIGHT tracks at the right time then to play all of the tracks you wanted to play or anybody else wanted you to play! I hope this helps a bit!

[Quist]

Man people are rough. i think your question summarize is. How do i keep a dance floor going without losing the energy....

you have to understand the venue and the format.

Music Festival's, Raves, Concerts people are there to see and experience music

club/party/lounge people come for various reasons not always to experience music

so when i do concert settings i'll plan my set or keep in mind i want to take my audience on a journey of ups and downs and awesomeness

In a club setting i know some people are drunker than others some arrive early and some arrive late. I just mix in relation to the chorus so the audience gets that satisfaction and bang go to the next chourus. i'll only let it go into a break when i know ok these guys need a rest. but even when i let it go into the break i'm still in the mix and i have a constant kick going on to keep the energy. Honestly i know guys that run a 3rd deck just for a kick to throw in if a song ever goes into a break. good luck man btw maybe stay on the house party circuit til your able to go to clubs and see what it's really like. I don't know who booked you but most of the time if your not good you won't get another gig and people will hear about it.... Community is small man

You understood me!
Keep the energy, that is the phrase I was looking for! However, I've learned a lot by this thread! And the most important thing is, feel your crowd! And this is what I am going to do! Thanks!

Also, I won't quit housemusic! Loved it since the first day I heard it! Only 6 months left until I can go out! I am living in a very small town thought (130.000 people) and we do only have 2 "clubs", according to my elder friends, they suck (got another DJ-buddy) and he says that people who play there are just cheap people who want gigs..

I think your question is not stupid at all. I'm 17 years old and i had my first gig when i was 13.
I sucked.
But now i play gigs every weekend, even in clubs. And although every club, every gig has its own kind of people and every person in the room wants you to play in a different way. Now every DJ on this forum has been in the spot where he has a guy on his left side asking for dubstep and a girl on his right side asking for call me maybe. Now what you could do is play both tracks shorter in the same time you could play one track completely. For me that is not the way, i like to stick to the tacks I like to play too, and which are well-placed at the gig. In most cases probably call me maybe, because it's known to people, they will sing along. (DO NOT underestimate the importance of recognition of the music you play by people in the room).

I would say take your time to figure out what would work at that particular time. It's more important to play the RIGHT tracks at the right time then to play all of the tracks you wanted to play or anybody else wanted you to play! I hope this helps a bit!

Thanks for the input, I've learned to make a leap of faith!

[DJKyleHughes]

Just a few final points..

1. Try to take your crowd on a "Musical journey" to build energy throughout the night. Don't start with your bangers. Stay away from those "hands in the air" breakdowns early in the night. A good way to learn this is to start labeling your tracks to help you find certain songs to fit the night. (ex. Openers, Groovers, Bangers, Sexy vocals, Crowd Favorites, Closers..etc)
2. Think about it as if you were dancing...people dance the hardest during the drop, if you keep mixing from drop to drop, people will get tired EXTREMELY quickly. The floor will clear. If you mix how you normally do,(assuming you mix intro to outro) People will recover from the drop during the outdo/intro and stay on the floor.
3. Have FUN! Don't stress, you might make a few mistakes, but to be honest, they're there to have a good time, not critique your DJing.

Good luck and tell us how it goes!

[seitz]

this is my favorite thread of the year


10/10 good sir

[Quist]

this is my favorite thread of the year


10/10 good sir

Negative or positive? x)