i had my first gig last night, and it was absolutely terrible, i got asked to dj a friends end of summer party, i was told it was going to be huge but it ended up only having a max of 15 people, who all ended up getting so stoned that they where sitting on couches in awkward silence, i might as well of dj’ed to a group of deaf people. i played multiple genres trying to find what would get them going but nothing. i ended up just playing really trippy music for most of the night.
That night really crushed my confidence as a dj, i wanna know if this has happened to anyone else?
Dude, that’s not a gig. Certainly not your “First Gig”, that was just what happens when one of your stoner mates say “yeah man there will be loads of people there” and you get fired up cus your into what you are doing. That was just, what it was, a gathering.
Get over it man..may be the people you were playing for were not worth of it..i guess you should practice harder and perform at some good venue..not like your friends..who would have at least given a applause or a good cheering despite of getting stoned.
Don’t stress it everybody has bad gigs I have seen Derrick May empty a Dance floor with the wroung track at the wroung time and rjd2 resort to a improtute quiz competition because no one was dancing.
My buddy has parties all the time that a DJ friend of mine and I spin for. Sometimes there’s 20 people, sometimes there’s only a few. Not a gig, more like practice. Enjoy these times, you can laugh at huge trainwrecks and not worry about the bar booing you.
I know that feel, i managed to scare away a lot of people yesterday lol and my set was pretty much clanger city (even though few guys told me it wasn’t really noticable.. * BUT i heard it was shit)
it happens, don’t sweat it i’d imagine audience at house parties are a bit more difficult to cater to that club gigs
Neurofunk, drum and bass and dirty electro house is what gets played at these small house parties for me. My friends all really dig it though. I still call it a gig, even though it’s usually just the djs upstairs, and everyone else partaking in beverages downstairs
But it’s no gig.
Don’t sweat it champ. This is called “PAYING YOUR DUES” driving all your equipment out to play for free and sucking lol congrats on your first step to becoming a DJ. I think you got lucky and learned an important lesson in playing out and being a mobile dj vs a club dj Being a DJ isn’t just transitioning from one track to another smoothly… you gotta know your crowd, know how to hold a dance floor, know when to quick mix and when to let a song breathe and know how to build a vibe and a floor. You gotta to understand that not everyone that comes to a house party came to RAGE… some are there to catch up with friends or whatevers. all i gotta say is for your situation i would of hit them with a truckload of “MASH-UPS” i’m talking like beatles and wutang or journey and jam master Jay haha some left field shit that is awesome. if they don’t want to dance i’m gonna lotion their ears til they do. people that don’t dance can appreciate a clever blend and that will make them just as happy as twerkin with a hottie (if your a good dj that is) this experience should make you a better DJ and btw you gotta have thick skin in this biz and keep learning. I’ve probably done 100 mobile gigs and probably i can think of 2 that made me feel like you felt but the other 98 i learned from those 2 times.
^yep.
Tough skin is a big one too, a lot of DJs have egos, and a lot of people think you are a jukebox. You will take your share of sh*t, but playing house parties like this is great. You get to make all of the rookie mistakes in front of 15 friends, and not a bar of 300 drunk sheep. One boos, they all boo. Enjoy spinning these house parties, even if they are small. They will make you better in the longrun, and teach you many things.
Look at this as a positive thing, while its not a first “gig” per say you are doing something extremely valuable.
Getting new clients.
These party-folk will eventally sober up (hopefully) and possibly notice that you were really good. I’d suggest if you’re freinds with any of them to try a bit of networking, get a feel of how they thought the music was, and throw suggestions that you’re down to play parties for them as well.
TLDR
Not 15 stoned people, 15 possible hosts/clients
Any chance you get to play in front of people is a good learning experience, whether its 15 or 1500…i’ve played at bars/clubs where there was NOBODY except the workers and some regulars…but its all about getting comfortable playing live…and you never, one of those guys might have enjoyed your music and may ask you to DJ for them…
i ended up just playing really trippy music for most of the night.
(if your a good dj that is) this experience should make you a better DJ and btw you gotta have thick skin in this biz and keep learning. I’ve probably done 100 mobile gigs and probably i can think of 2 that made me feel like you felt but the other 98 i learned from those 2 times.