bad music requests
How do you guys handle requests? especially when its a really bad one (a.k.a usually)!
By holding out my hand, pointing at it, and saying place your $50.00 for this particular request here.
I kid. Like DJ shadow has helped to teach us, it’s about integrity first. I would never play something I don’t like - and to help facilitate this, I don’t take gigs that might put me in a request situation.
in my case it depends on the venue im playing at
(venue means either wedding, mobile setup, or nightclub)
in all honesty, everyone that has arrived to the club has arrived for a particular style of the night
you are going to goto a hip hop club and wonder why they arent playing frank sinatra so in that light, you dont really get people making requests at a club.
but if you do, i just tell them, (if its just not going to fit) “Ill drop it in my list, and ill get to it in just a bit, but really good call!, I like that track”
if its at a wedding, i have to show the people that i am working for the bride and groom,
no the guests, and i have a list of songs i am supposed to play + a list of songs i can possibly get into + yet another list of songs the B&G certainly DO NOT WANT to hear. Period!
In light of this, i have to explain to them, that “Mr and Mrs pay my bill”, “arent going to allow me to play that,
if its something they would approve, ill have to get the OK from them.”
Say you can’t hear what the person is saying…
lol its possible that (and it has happened to me) they will end up writing it down… and to boot
they have a list of other songs HAHAHHA
sorry ive left my box of shit tunes at home!
what does rattle my cage is when someone comes and just points a phone in your face with the song typed on the screen… i mean have they suddenly lost the power of speech???
I suprisingly dont get too many requests, but I remember a couple years back I used to play at a couple of college bars and their would be all sorts of diff crowds coming in. I just would tell them that I don’t have it, which is true, and people usually leave you alone. If you act like you care, and that you’re sorry that you dn’t have it (made that mistake), then you might get someone trying to hand you a cd/USB stick/Iphone…so I keep it short n brief and then ignore them and go back to mixing
Then you politely take the list and forget about it later by mistake, or you misplace it.
I like when a girl comes up to make a request, and I say “in a few minutes” “I can’t play that right now” or whatever else excuse, and then sends her friend up to request the same song shortly afterwards. At that point I say “For a cutie like you? I’ll cue it up right now!” The hopes that it gets back to the girl is usually worth it.
well yea that goes without saying HAHAHAH
Brilliant!!! I was just thinking of getting a T-Shirt that says “I’m a DJ NOT a Jukebox”
love it! may have to steal that idea too! i swear to god i had the phone situation about ten times tonight, i nearly lost my temper, another one im sick of is people not understanding why i cant just play it off their iphone… i mean yes i use a laptop… but no im not going to play that tune, especially if its off your phone… get the hint.. if i really wanted to play it i would… i probably have it but im playing fu**ing deniz koyu and no the abba will NOT get everyone going and no you havent asked everyone and if you can do better then why am i doing it and you’re paying to be here!!!
sorry for the rant.. im a tad shitfaced 
awesome night though playing from 9 till 5.30!!
lol
Wow, this! Wish I had come up with this a few days ago when a very drunk girl started demanding that the next song was a very specific one and it absolutely had to be the next one because it was very important to her and her sorority. As if I and everyone else there cared…
In general, I just tell people that I’ll see if I can fit in the song somewhere and then quickly shift the focus to the question whether or not they are enjoying themselves. They always say they are enjoying themselves to which I wish them goodnight and my attention is back to dj’ing.
I just nod. Politely say “ok”. They might ask a few times the same night but will eventually give up.
Pretty hilarious that I get lil wayne and drake requests while playing drum & bass.
I usually humor them and say “I’ll try and mix it in later, I’ll see what I can do.” If its a particularly terrible request I like to have fun with the crowd. I do a lot of top 40/hip hop shows, I’ll play the intro to said song (especially if its a beiber request), people will boo and all eyes focus on me. then I’ll pretend to stutter the song by putting on a 1-beat loop, pretend to look confused as the crowd continues to turn on me, then backspin and slam on a hip hop/top40 song (or whatever is hot at the time) everyone goes crazy for.
It works every time, embarasses the hell out of the annoying drunk, and I get massive cheers.
^ Best way of dealing with this I’ve heard so far! 
“Can you play skrillex bangerang?”
FML