I am not moving forward with skills

DJ Life & Community General Discussion
1

I am not moving forward with skills

I don’t call myself a DJ because I am not.

I am just a hobbiest, but i wana play at the party every now and then.

I have been fooling around for a year now and have been listening to music for 4 years.

question is does online course like dj master course worthy to get it?

Because even if it’s a hobby, i want to move forward, not getting stuck you know.

Thanks and plz recommend GOOD online course that is relatively cheap ?

2

A lot of the paid courses provide info that you can easily find for free, especially here on DJTT and Youtube. I’d suggest reading up on the articles and forums here, and watching all the youtube you can handle, and really just lock yourself in your room with your equipment.

It might just be my learning style, but I’ve found that self discovery has been the best way for me to learn, because while you’re in the process of developing your skills as a DJ you’re also building your style; instead of trying to emulate somebody else’s. From what I can tell, there is not rock-solid, concise way to DJ; apart from employing certain techniques for matching beats and key, and making it sound good.

Nobody is going to tell you that you have to scratch a new track in, or that dropping it using a button is the wrong way to go. You have to figure out what works best for you, and concentrate on staying motivated, inspired, and challenging yourself.

3

what exactly are you struggling with?

beatmatching, programming, transitions?

4

everyone learns differently. i dont think an only course would help me anymore than watching random youtube videos. it really comes down to practice and motivation for me.

but what exactly are you having problems with?

5

see, i don’t even know what my issues are.

I feel like i am just fooling myself.

I know how to beat match kinda…and i listen to live of djs and analysis how they put songs together in terms of beat and keys and learn from there.

i use vdj+bcd300+mixed in key for now

just fooling

i am more focused on finding new music and learn to mix it well and what goes together

sometimes after i record myself, i realize what i did good or bad

i guess i just have to keep doing it?

b/c someone told me that either you have dj friend or take online course or something like that to get to the certain point then develop your style.

suggestion?

6

do you go out to clubs or dj events? these are great places to get ideas for mixes and to practice them or just to figure out how they are done. Also a great way to get new music.

You can watch driving course, driving shows, read about driving, but until you GO OUT there and drive, all you will have is book knowledge.

7

My first suggestion is uninstall mixed in key, throw away your camelot wheel print out, and forget about choosing songs based on their ID3 key label for a long long time and you might not ever feel the need to again. I don’t know many professionals who really focus on mixing like that and they make some great mixes, I think it is more of a detriment than a positive for most people.

Just focus on what sounds good and keep practicing. Don’t bother with effects much either.

If you can afford a course in person it might be good but there are only a few and they are only in major cities. I don’t see how an online course would help that much more than what you can find online from videos.

8

Really? Mixed in key is damn useful, and harmonic mixing makes your mix sound much better. Unless your just doing cuts throughout your entire mix.

That said, doesn’t VDJ already do key analysis for you?

9

There is something to be said for using your ears and playing what sounds right for the moment, especially as a beginner. If he thinks he is not progressing and his mixes aren’t up to par, I doubt mixed in key is helping him. There is no need to over complicate things early on.

As a beginner if you are looking at a key tag field and a camelot wheel then you are training your eyes and not your ears.

10

Try picking out the songs you want to play in a set and listen to them all. Then make notes of at what time you want to mix in a different song into another that way the transitions are smooth. Also, practice making a mix at least once a day, practice makes perfect! I’d still use Mixed in Key however since, it makes mixing easier.

11

I agree with Xonetacular on almost all he’s said in this post.

K.I.S.S.

Keep it simple, stupid.

Good rule to live by, and it is also really applicable here. Just keep things simple, spend hours practicing, finding new tunes to mix together in new ways, and just don’t make it overly complicated.

That’s one reason why I like using DVS over Ableton for my sets, and why I’ve chosen Serato over Traktor. No prep work means just getting into the mix, rather than fucking around getting things ready TO be mixed.

12

I see what you mean now, and I agree. The best thing a beginner DJ needs to learn is to let his ears become his eyes for visualising the music. Programs like mixed in key are handy for ID3 tags, but they don’t tell the whole story.

I’ve listened to songs that coudn’t be more different, but when put together, they just work (had a few holy shit moments at gigs). Some really good advice has been handed out in this thread. Get to know your songs, listen to them until you know every beat, every phrase. Be able to play the entire song in your head.

13

Mixed in key is overrated. Xonetacular is absolutely correct. Mixed in key should be saved for later as an advanced technique and left untouched especially as a beginner.

You need to train your ears, eventually you should be able to naturally pick songs that are in the same or similar key. If you let your sight do the work in the beginning, you end up relying on mixed in key which is not good as it then becomes a crutch. You don’t lean on crutches to mix do you?

14

Amen, admittedly I do tag all my tunes. But if I ever feel that there’s a tune that would go with another, I wouldn’t not play that tune just because it’s not in a specific key.

15

keep practicing. nobody is very good after a year, but at least you have the personal insight to tell you need improvement - which is more than a lot of newcomers have.

what i’ve found has helped me get a lot better is practicing individual transitions and techniques over and over and over again until it sounds exactly how i want - versus just mixing songs willy nilly for an hour or 2 once in awhile. that means alot of listening to the same two songs for hours on end, doing the exact same fx and transition type, over and over for hours on end.

if you’re a hobbyist it might sound too much like work, but if advancing is something you really want to do you need to challenge yourself.

16

Look at how the pro’s do it…and Practice!

Practice some more…and then some.

It might sound condescending and what not…but that really is what makes the REAL greats…great!

17

Thanks guys.

ya what i have found is that even if it’s the same key and it’s supposed to go together, if it’s one song from avicii and afrojack, it’s different style right, so they won’t go as smooth as of saying afrojack and chuckie.

so to sum up

no mixed in key, although i am afraid what if i waste my time mixing wrong ones you know

other than that, I will try to figure out the beat. my buddy said it’s all about the beat than actual keys…agreeesss

I will post my mixes and you can tell me:stuck_out_tongue:

thanks

18

keep it up brotha

19

Then you might practice, train your ears, and learn something.

20

MY REMIX…plz spare 20min and listen…it’s just boring…doesn’t have up and down like i feel with actual Djs…

I tried to use the keys and change the dramatic key so that it has ups and downs…but i fail…

what’s wrong?

thanks

https://soundcloud.com/jay3kay/why-cant-my-set-be-as-exciting#