First gig tomorrow night...

DJ Life & Community General Discussion
1

First gig tomorrow night…

I never thought I’d be making this thread, and I’ve read millions of threads just like it. The inevitable, “first gig”.

To give you some background, I started DJ’ing a year and 2-3 months ago with my mouse and keyboard in Virtual DJ. After I realised I actually liked it, I bought a BCD-2000 a month later.

Anyway, fast forward to last November when I bought a VCI-100 and sold the BCD, and I’ve been DJ’ing on that in my basement ever since. Fast forward some more now, and here we are, with my first gig tomorrow.

Basically one of my friends DJ’s a smaller club in our city, and has been there for at least a year to the best of my memory. It’s a pretty cozy place and I think an excellent venue to break myself into everything, as I’ve never played for a crowd, plus this will be on a Thursday night, so I doubt it’ll be too packed.

Still, I have no idea what to expect, apart from the fact that it won’t be TOO full so the music honestly doesn’t matter much. This whole gig (and onwards, every Thursday) is just to get used to playing with people around, and if we’re lucky, some people dancing :slight_smile:

Regardless, I’m still a little…not worried, but, anxious is more like it.

Just wondering if anyone would have any ideas on how to prepare / feel more at ease, though honestly I would say that I’m quite ready…

2

I think the thing which is really going to surprise you is that the sound is much louder in the club…Mixing tends to be a little different on that basis, because you have to have louder headphones cueing and all…Just one advice : don’t forget to “establish contact” with the crowd : look at them, see how they react…

By the way, I’ve alrealy mixed in many parties and friday is also my first time mixing in a real club, so I’m a bit stressed as well, plus I can’t bring my VCI and I will have to mix on cd players…

3

i have a gig waiting for me as soon as I decide to take the plunge.. i know im not ready yet and by beat matching just isnt up to scratch.. using sync is not an option…

cant wait though.. practicing lots.. need to start recording myself as well to find out how it all sounds..

good luck… crowd interaction is a must

4

If you’re ready then just go with it. It’s fine to be nervous while you’re waiting to spin, but try to forget it all when you’re there and focus on getting your music from your computer to the audience in the best, most entertaining way.

If anything, I try to do something really dumb before I go on to get the anxiousness out and the adrenaline going :slight_smile:

5

What type of crowd is typically there on Thursdays?

Do you already know what kind of music they are expecting to hear? Does it even matter?

Are you easily accessible to people? If so, just be prepared for requests. The nice thing about doing a small venue is that you can actually build a strong ‘fan’ base for yourself.

I wouldn’t get too discouraged if nobody dances or if nobody shows up. Just from what you wrote, I’m picturing a place that most people go to in order to have a drink, unwind, and have some conversation with others. As long as the people there aren’t complaining or leaving because ‘the music sucks’, or ‘it’s too loud’, or you’re wasted and acting the fool…you should be absolutely fine :slight_smile:

6

Haha I think that’s why I’m sorta worried, I have no idea what the crowd will be like, if one exists even. I’m scared that there will be a crowd to be honest!

If anything goes “wrong” though it’s all right because my friend who is the resident there will have my back, which is very comforting to know and takes away any tension. I’m sure the first hour of messing around and getting used to the loudness will help too, since nobody would be there.

7

My friend and I are playing at a school dance next Tuesday… and there’s a possibility nobody will show up (all right, maybe 20 people). We are totally down for throwing it down for an empty floor and just going at it. Hey, you play in your room for yourself, why not do it on a loud sound system?

8

you sound strange, really. o.O

9

why u can’t take ur vci???:rage:

10

Cool, so I just got back from the stint.

I opened the night (though nobody was there) :stuck_out_tongue: It was fun and very different from DJ’ing at home. The main thing was, I couldn’t beatmatch for the life of me! I mean, sometimes it’d be all right, but other times, no go. It really sucked.

And it wasn’t because of having monitors or this or that, it was because I just felt sooooo rushed. My friend (who also DJ’d that night) said I did great and that my track selection was on point, and very inventive. But at the same time he could tell that I felt rushed and said I should let things play out a little more.

I think it’s just a matter of experience from here on out.

Past that, I was a little messed up because lighting was poor, so I couldn’t see where my EQ knobs were. Yes, I did have my monitor in front of me, but I never use that to see where my EQs are at, usually I just look at the VCI. So it was somewhat annoying.

Still, a great night overall :slight_smile: After my hour and a bit opening, I played again for about 20-30 minutes before the main DJ came on. I had a really good time, and got the biggest crowd after dropping “One More Time” LOL. Honestly I hate dropping “copout” songs, but those are the ones that people want to hear, you know?

Anyway, a good night and I finally got some much needed experience. I can’t wait to play out again!

11

Congrats glad to hear it went well for you !

12

Thank you for the wishes. I should note that I played with the BPM counter off (as I do at home), and from now on I’m going to practice with my monitor in front of me to get used to reading the EQs off the monitor than the VCI.

Past that, I’m going to practice beatmatching more, though really it’s hard to practice apart from just going at it. Still the progress I’ve made since I started is enormous and I can’t wait to improve even further.

Perhaps the best part about playing out was that it made me realise that I’m not the superstar DJ that I thought I was haha. It’s very easy to be critical when listening to other DJs at shows and so on, comparing them to what you do in your basement. But to do all that live is another ballgame, and I’m glad I’ve been exposed first-hand!

13

Congrats, miyuru. :slight_smile:

14

you are paid to entertain. which means you have to drop stuff you dont want to sometimes. no one likes certain aspects of their jobs, thats life. you just have to do it.
me, im all for it. ill drop a hit track anyday of the week. its more important that the crowd has a good time then you playing what you want.
alot of times you just need to keep where your going and the crowd will get it.
remember, if the crowd doesnt like you, your less likely to get the next booking.

15

Very true! What I was getting at though was I don’t like playing those bomb tracks out of the blue. My friend came up with the best compromise, as he was saying he won’t play anything BUT those tracks if he has a lot of momentum going, since at those points in a set, there’s nothing better!

That’s definitely another area I have to improve in, building energy in a set. I can do it but not as gradually as I would like.

16

congrats for going out there and showing your skills.

17

congrtas and about the hits i hate putting song that are hits and that ppl kno i always try to put new epic songs but sometimes u j=have to play what u dont like:wink: is the JOB

18

my advice is to pretend like you are doing that for years. if you let people to see that you are nervous and that you dont know what you are doing they will pay more atention on you mixing then dancing. just come there and play like you play at home. pay little more attention od headphone cueing and dont stand on the same spot like on funeral!!! and everything will be allright!!! :wink: