First DJ gig - I need a few tips... Please Help!

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First DJ gig - I need a few tips… Please Help!

Hey DJTT Community,

I finally got my hands on the VCI-100SE towards the end of summer and I love it!
I have been practicing with it and finally got a hang of simple mixing and the use of all the FX in Traktor. I attend the University of Texas at Austin (aka UT), and just landed my first gig for an international party here next weekend.

I live in Austin, TX and the house music scene is not so big here (I am used to the bangin’ underground house parties/festivals being that I am from Los Angeles), so I was disappointed when they informed me that I will be collaborating with a local hip-hop/top40 dj out here.

In other words I will be mixing between 3-5 songs consecutively and then the other DJ will do the same with hip-hop going on all night and back and forth- “so the austin crowd doesn’t get to overwhelmed with straight house music.”:confused:

Has anyone here ever been in a situation like mine? If so, how did you organize and select which songs to play in your mini sets?

Or if you can layout a sample playlist/set

Any advice or song suggestions would be much appreciated!!!

Thanks guys!

Best,
Andrew

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I’ve been in that situation dozens of times…And the BEST advice I have is to play more top 40’s, and/or hip hop.

I’m in Toronto, and I used to only spin house, and even though there’s a lot of house-heads here, I find that house crowds and mainstream crowds just don’t mix…And the “mainstream” is an unstoppable force. So many people out there don’t listen to anything but the radio…Or they’re only exposed to the songs they hear outside in malls and restaurants, and it’s ALWAYS mainstream. I don’t listen to mainstream music, nor do I watch MTV…But I always know what’s out there because you can never escape it. It’s everywhere. So it’s not surprise that “mainstream” is “mainstream” because majority rules.

When I first started DJ’ing, I played to A LOT of empty rooms, and to a lot of crowds that couldn’t appreciate anything electronic. I played at an all hip hop party once, and they gave me the last slot, where everyone was basically gone. Worst system I ever played on. The system was in BAD shape, and during the middle of my set, one turntable completely shorted out and went dead. I looked at it, and tried to turn it on and off, shurgged my shoulders and left…Of course I did it for free as well. I’ve even showed up to gigs (again free) the organizer would tell me to just wait for a bit. He didn’t have me on the schedule he just said he could fit me in. After waiting for more than an hour, and seeing how everyone was into hip hop, I left.

I started playing house in my bedroom (3 yrs.), moved into a house club (5yrs.), and had a residency (for pay!..Albeit not much!)…And have since moved onto weddings (2 yrs.vomit).

Another thing I’ve noticed, is that in the house scene, the crowds tend to treat the artist more like an artist. They rarely ask for requests, as it’s considered rude, and it’s not a high school dance, they always face forward to show respect, and they REALLY love hearing stuff they’ve never heard before. Mainstream crowds are the EXACT opposite. They often ask for request (ESPECIALLY at weddings), and sometimes treat you like a human jukebox, they ONLY want to hear the stuff they’re familiar with (eg: radio hits).

That being said, the situation you just described sounds like a tough situation for a house DJ. It sounds to me whoever decided the timeslots recognizes that house is not going to go over well.

My best advice is to play the most commercial set you could play. When I was still a house specialist, I used to invite all my friends to my gigs, and a lot of them were the mainstream type. So I usually played as commercial I can, and REALLY heavy on the vocals…Since the #1 complaint about house music from mainstream lovers, is that it’s too repetitive and there’s no vocals. So I would play “what you waiting for?” by Gwen Stefani, with the remix by Jacques Lu Cont.

If it’s definitely your first gig, then it’ll be a good learning experience. I’m not trying to freak you out, I’m just trying to be helpful.

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Hey Andrew,

Yeah, Ive been there and done that as well; in NYC no less.

In situations like this one, you just gotta decide whether or not it is worth the trouble and bite the bullet.. One of the simplest ways to make it work for you (as best as you can), is to talk to the other dj so you can get a feel for what he’s going to play. If he’s working from a playlist, thats even better since you might be able better segue from what he’s playing to what you are going to play; if he’s ending off with some hip hop, you can come in with some nice neo soul, or some more down tempo house tunes, and if he’s ending off with more uptempo dance, then you can work your uptempo house, or some disco, something along those lines.

Good luck to you.

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fuck the mainstream crowd, sorry, but its not worth the effort to sell yourself short. 3-5 songs? To hell with that bullshit. I know in NYC the house scene is bonkers, especially min/tech house. (Hardstyle is making a comeback, but thats a whole nother story). Whats the point of playing to a crowd that doesnt give a shit, seriously. I guess Im being negative, but I would rather not waste my time. (and here I thought the whole being booked for an hour scenario was bad enough). If you were into the underground house scene in LA surely you can find the underground house scene in texas.

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Hey guys I appreciate all the feedback (even the negative ones haha!), I am really going to take into consideration what tokenasianguy said about playing some more commercial songs with vocals or some good remixes of “mainstream” music so that the crowd is familiar with it.

Anybody have any good recommendations on some good songs?!?!?

Once again, Thank you!

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Wait… but you’re being hired to keep things mixing, right? You’re supposed to play house, and they’re supposed to play hip-hop? So, if you want to really show off, then play house, but dig in to some remixes of top40 stuff, and stretch yourself a little.

You need to keep the crowd you’re hired to spin for in mind, but if there isn’t an underground house scene in your city then make one. :stuck_out_tongue:

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Cant recommend any songs per se’ but you can checl out this site to get an idea what might work for you:

Commercial as heck, but I think this can do a lot to help you.

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Incoming soap box:

These kind of questions always get me going. Are you trying to make a living at this or are you playing for your own enjoyment? I never understand why people get into DJing in the first place if they aren’t going to stick with playing what they really enjoy. It only becomes work and something you begin to hate the more you subject yourself to elements outside your skill set and musical preference (unless your only in it for vanity).

Personally I would never find myself in your situation because I refuse to take part in these types of events. You’re only setting yourself up for a possible win or total FAIL depending on the diversity of said crowd. Chances are if it’s a hip-hop crowd they aren’t going to take the EDM scene lightly (hate or love it). Is this a risk worth taking depending on what your goals are?

I always make it clear with any venue / promoter that I play electronic only (primarily house variants). I won’t sell out… I won’t play that top 40 bullshit that drones on the radio everyday. Don’t even get me started on the trashy rap / hip-hop that brings the worst out in every drunk asshole with an attitude.

If this means I won’t see many opportunities, so be it. At least I enjoy the time I do get and I continue to improve my skill where it matters.

Every person really needs to answer the question of why they got into DJing in the first place. Just be honest with the answer, pursue those avenues, and I think you’ll find the rewards are far greater.

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music is music, when you get down to it. sure, top40 is repetitive in it’s content, but there’s still music behind those lame ass vocals. feel the beat, groove, and mix it. make it yours. if you’re only going to mix one genre your entire career i see you as narrowminded. sure there may be one that everyone prefers over others, but if you refuse to mix any other genre.. cmon son.

i strongly recommend looking up some top40 remixes for this situation. it’s really the best of both worlds for you and the crowd.

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Maybe you should take this opportunity to try spinning top 40’s?

I was surprised how easy it was with software like Traktor. Lot’s of mainstream songs have repetitive bass lines that mix well with house songs. The latest Black Eyed Peas song ‘Meet Me Halfway’ is probably a good example at around 129BPM’s (IIRC). Not a bad song either, as far as mainstream songs go…and I’m sure the crowd will eat it up. Plus this is your chance to show-up the hip hop DJ, by bringing out the big anthems before he has the chance.

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Meh, my opinion is probably due to the fact that I’m from KC and the Top 40 / Hip-Hop DJ’s are a dime a dozen here. More often then not, the depth in their mixing or music selection just isn’t creative enough (start n’ stop DJ’s anyone?).

EDM has more genres then you can shake a stick at. Nobody said anything about sticking with only one. Unless you’re one of those folks that calls all electronic music “techno” and implies that mixing anything EDM is all one style (which I doubt you are).

I do appreciate classic and hard rock from time to time, but not behind the decks. All I was trying to convey is don’t bite off more then you can chew at once. People get discouraged that way. The original poster made it perfectly clear this is his FIRST gig. He should stick with what he knows before jumping into mixing something he has little to no experience with (if he really wants to leave a good impression).

Pick the music you love and gain proficiency in that particular style. When you’ve mastered some of those techniques, pick from some other genre’s and maybe incorporate more of those styles in your overall performance. Define your own sound.

If you’re trying to just make money, go for whatever sells to your demographic and crowd. Personally I don’t DJ for monetary reasons at all. It’s about love of the music and the expression that it allows me to share.

I would recommend the OP stick with House, but chose tracks that have some good vocals and a club feel. Either way, be prepared and best of luck! :slight_smile:

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I think there’s also a razor’s edge that you can walk here, that gives that kind of crowd what they want, but also makes you happy. I’ve been exploring it myself lately, and I’m finding that mastering it only gets me more opportunities to play. What I’m talking about is a setlist of tracks that derive from the mainstream, but have proven themselves to be true classics, not just “pop” music, but great pop music. When I drop “Walk This Way” by Run-D.M.C., the mainstream crowd goes nuts, and I get to keep my self-respect.

Do you know what I mean? You can get away with doing a pop set without having it consist of only current top40 trash.

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i agree with you travis.

but your example of the top40 dj is more of a problem dealing with the djs skills than with the music itself. sadly, most of them are the way you portrayed them. but i know tonight i have a gig that calls for some top40 along with other genres like electro/hip hop/latin music, and i’ll sure as hell be mixing every single genre, no cheap cuts all night.

but i agree that at your first gig, it’s good to stick with what you know well. it puts you right in your comfort zone, which is nice in a very stressful situation like that.

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Totally off topic…

Two words for ya…

BOOMER SOONER!

…I know you kicked our ass this year.

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Hey guys,

I really appreciate the time you are taking in giving me advice. Much Love!

HAHA We didn’t kick your ass too bad this year man… OU STILL SUCKS!!!

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this might be a little off topic: i also lived in austin (went to Southwestern U.). i dj-ed a pool party at longhorn landing. its pretty tough to get your foot in in austin. some of the smaller bars have open tables night, but i never felt like taking my huge ns7.

good luck with your gig.

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Love Austin, was there visiting from the UK this week. Nice laidback vibe.

Normally I’d avoid gigs like this like the plague:

Why? The people who want to listen to hiphop/top 40 possibly aren’t gonna want to listen to house music and vice versa. So you’ll either have all the crowd or (more likely) none of it if you play straight house.

The club owner reckons that changing the genre of the music rapidly gets people to the bar and more drinks get sold. He may be right. However, if you are playing straight up house, the other DJ is going to be playing the tunes the crowd know the words to and in several different genres. He is going to sound varied and crowdpleasing - you may sound repetitive and possibly obscure.

Personally I’d approach this by realising you may have to compromise yourself a bit. I’d construct mini sets (if you are playing 5-6 songs each) comprising of funky house, progressive/tech, electro, breakbeat, philly bass etc etc - across the whole rainbow of EDM. I’d make sure that for every instrumental there is a vocal, for every obscure track there is a remix of a well known song.

I’d be aiming overall for a kind of ‘anything goes as long as its funky’ mixtape impression because you won’t have the chance to build the mood as if you were playing your choice of genre for a couple of hours straight.

Just my couple of cents - good luck mate

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try these for the music, Southern Fried have enjoyed some more commercial success…
Southern Fried and Tested 47 tracks for £10
Southern Fried and Tested 2 68 tracks for £10
given the bundle size to cost ratio it should (help) solve the problem and not break the bank :smiley:

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As everyone else has said, find Top 40 remixes and remixes of classics. (Don’t forget throwbacks!)

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Here’s a website that you might be interested in for finding some remixes and the like. Toolish website, but sometimes some good stuff, just gotta weed through it.