New and Ready to Learn ;)

DJ Life & Community General Discussion
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New and Ready to Learn :wink:

Heey wassup ? The names Daniel and Im ready to learn about becoming a DJ. Can anyone tell me the basics and essentials to becoming one ? Like I said Im new to it all so anything can help.

Lemme know ,

–DaanielK

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look up ellaskins and briansredd on youtube. they tought me most of the stuff i know

EDIT: you probably have to go to their older videos and ellaskins is the most helpful of the 2

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Thaanks ,

–DaanielK

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Stick around here mate, lots of keen teachers around here … +1 for ellaskins, if you are just starting out his advice is invaluable. Welcome to the forums bud.

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Thaanks bro ,

–DaanielK

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The only advice I can give is what helped most for me. Buy a controller that is bundled with a software like traktor 3 LE. And stalk www.beatport.com for the music you like - they have all the good tracks of each genre so you will quickly find the genre that will ‘click’ with you and you will find alot of joy in mixing for hours.

Be sure to record your mixes frequently and use a portal like www.soundcloud.com to upload and get people to give you constructive critisism, it helps the learning curve become shorter and you will be mixing with your eyes closed in no time :slight_smile:

I started out 6 months ago and its way too much fun!

Ohh, and try to stay away from the ‘BRAND NEW controller!’ threads - you will get addicted to buying new stuff WAY too easily in this business! :stuck_out_tongue:

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Thaanks that helped a lot :wink:

–DaanielK

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here you go…in this order…

  1. BE HUMBLE
  2. KNOW YOUR MUSIC
  3. LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE THAT CAME BEFORE YOU
  4. BE CONFIDENT
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and follow this…(pretty sure it’s from Ben Watts’ site)

http://treehousemuzique.com/manifesto-for-a-positive-gathering/

Manifesto for a positive gathering

Experience tells me a lot about what makes a movement, what makes an amazing night, and what induces the law of diminishing returns.

As someone who has decidedly side stepped his local community in favor of mental health and emotional ballance in recent years, I see and hear most everyone I have known and loved over the past 10-15 years finding themselves lost with one degree of happiness or another. So I very much to catalog the points I have acquired on the subject of what we did right, and what works for the benefit of those who may wish to continue, or wash up and try something new.

There’s no point in regret, or sloshing about in the quagmire of what used to be. The past is gone. Let it go.

In talking with a dear friend last night he said he had been walking a path for a very long time and finally came to the end of it. I asked him what he will do now, at the end of this path? He said he wasn’t quite sure, but in a way he found it liberating. I understood and suggested he climb a tree and survey the landscape. We laughed… and then smiled because neither of us had thought of it that way before.

Suggestions for what actually works:

  1. Have a tight group of friends who create the party, and make the music at it.
  2. Don’t have guest DJ’s (famous or locals.)
  3. Think small, humble, and honest.
  4. Stick together, no matter what.
  5. Have dinner together before the party.
  6. Be yourself, try not to play other people’s records, develop your own sound.
  7. Never talk shit about eachother. Be quick to ask the person doing so to “please shut the fuck up right now.” as soon as you can.
  8. Love the music you are playing.
  9. Evaluate your success based on how well you moved the dance floor (however small) and how effectively you communicated what it is you have to say.
  10. Don’t rely on your friends to populate your night.
  11. Let your audience fall in love with your music.
  12. Try not to let your audience know you too personally (a little mystery is a very good thing, and it’s disappointing when they find out how boring a dj really is.)
  13. Keep the door charge under $20, but keep it over $5.
  14. If there’s no door at the party, then there really shouldn’t be a “door charge”
  15. Loose lips sink ships (faster than you think)
  16. Carry your own speakers
  17. Make your own flyers
  18. Never promote your party at someone else’s party
  19. Try not to be mad, or hurt when someone wants to do what you’re doing so badly that they book your co conspirators on the same night as your party, and they take the gig. Everyone wants to spin well, and be more productive. Celebrate their success, refocus your energy on your own party.
  20. Tip the bar staff and the door person.
  21. If you use a 3rd party sound company, pay them first. Split what’s left.
  22. Every three weeks or so, with a degree of irregularity and surprise is much better than every week, every other week, or even every month.
  23. Celebrate what you have.
  24. Nevermind what you don’t have.
  25. Never give up: move the party, rename the party, keep trying different things.
  26. Do it yourself
  27. Don’t forget to say thank you.

These virtues have gone into creating the most wonderful parties I have ever been involved in. Whenever and wherever I have let any of them slide, even with a new person, or an excited group of people who really want to help it has all fallen apart.

That said, we arrive back at the begining… Nothing lasts forever. What’s done is done. And when it’s time to pack up and move on… Well, you better just pack up and move on.

Hope that helps.

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Thaanks that really help me out and got me going :slight_smile:

–DaanielK

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sorry to say it but tl;dr

ill read it once my headache goes away :slight_smile:

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Hey and welcome to the forums, glad to have you here! The best advice I can give you is to have patience and take things slow. You can’t expect to dive right in and be a superstar dj and to make a perfect mix every time. Move slowly in the beginning, read every single article on dj’ing you can find; The DJTT blog has some great articles on things such as dj etiquette, mixing tips and tutorials on learning software. There is going to be A LOT more information than you thought there ever could be involving dj’ing. Open your mind and take it in. I lurked this site for a year reading every forum post, reading every blog post and watching every video, and not just this site, but a handful of others.

What I am getting at is this, be patient, read and learn everything you can get your hands on, and when you get frustrated or have a question, know that everyone here at DJTT has your back

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This to the max. read read Read Read Read REAd READ READ everything you can about DJ-ing and practice to the same effect. When I first became interested in DJ-ing I read so much on these forums and on other forums and reviews and what not. It was just so much fun, but then when it came to actually getting my gear, the prices made me cry :disappointed:

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Absorb all knowledge until you are the master, and can zap your competition with lightning bolts of awesome from your spinning finger.

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Thaank yoou all ,

Ill take all words into play :wink:

–DaanielK

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What are you trying to do? Do you want to DJ in clubs? House parties? Weddings? What kind of music do you like? Do you know anything about music theory? What’s your motivation for becoming a DJ?
This is a great hobby, but it requires work. One of the ways I learned was going out and standing next to the DJ booth to see what the guy was doing, and steal his tricks. Good Times… That said, develop your own style. I’m pretty sure nobody mixes the way I do, not that I’m some superstar, just unique.

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[QUOTE=eastcoastams;149496]…You can’t expect to dive right in and be a superstar dj and to make a perfect mix every time.

Hmm…apparently ive been going about this all wrong…:sunglasses:

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Im trying to basically become a House DJ , Event DJ ex : charity etc :slight_smile:
I like House , Hip Hop , Techno basically anything with a good beat :slight_smile:
My motivation is to just be noticed as the guy that has done something no one else has done :wink:

Im only 14 yrs and I no forsure I cant go into clubs except all ages. And not to sure if I could DJ at weddings maybe ?

–DaanielK

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Hrmm… You’re pretty young, not really a bad thing, it just means you have less opportunities. Here’s what I’d suggest: Get and read the book How To DJ Right by Frank Broughton and Bill Brewster.
Figure out what kind of music you want to play. “Anything with a good beat” is not a genre of music. That’s exactly what drunk girls ask me to play when I’m DJing. You are trying to create an experience for the people listening, not sounding like a ipod on random. Start collecting songs. I’d recommend you only get songs you think are GREAT. Don’t waste space with merely decent songs.
Try to find a place you can play at.
Make mixtapes! Mixtapes will probably be your best avenue for exposure, seeing how you can’t really play out anywhere. Give said mixtapes to pretty girls you’re trying to impress. :smiley:

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Thaanks , uhmm I like to listen to Techno , House , Electrica , Trance and a bit of Hip Hop ,

–DaanielK