No gear, No money

DJ Life & Community General Discussion
1

No gear, No money

Howdy Guys,

I have no money or gear (except for a pair of technics RPDH1200s and a macbook pro :slight_smile:)

However in the near future I will be purchasing gear etc.

Is there anything I can do now to get myself ready to DJ or improve any skills that I will need when I actually start physically DJing?

Cheeeers :wink:

2

no money? u donĀ“t need money! diy is the key!
ā€”>

3

haha earl-panda, if only I had any knowledge about controllers and midi mappingā€¦

4

u just have to asign some functions of any dj software to a keyboard and there u have itā€¦lable that keyboard with the function the key should doā€¦

5

you make it sound so easy :stuck_out_tongue: iā€™m guessing thereā€™s some tutorials on here showing how to do it..

looks like a good project for summer :smiley:

6

why not visit one of our perth midi experts? bentosan our guy with them massive posts could help u if u ask him..but he wonĀ“t be available, cause he lives in djtt-wonderland

7

Get a cheap mixer off of ebay and a few records and spin. Learn about beatmatching, mixing, eq, etc. Learn the basic techniques so when you get the software you can dig in and learn the tech side of it to merge them together and become a super DJ awesome star.

8

knowledge is free if you have the internet :smiley: learning midi can be very beneficial in the future.

but yeah iā€™d go with a cheap mixer, a couple vinyls, and teach yourself how to beatmatch if you donā€™t know already.

9

My keyboard didnā€™t look as ā€œprofessionalā€ as pandas when i got started i just used double sided tape a vivid marker! point is its a good starting point and mapping a keyboard is a lot easier than a controller. what i did is basically get started and added functions (and stickers) as i needed them.

10

Heres some free dj software to get you started if you dont have any as of yet:

And if you havent done so already:

  1. Buy music that you like, as well as music that has a proven track record to wreck dancefloors, not just because its charted by Dj such-n-such (charts can be useful reference points to guide you in music selection, but they can also just be hype tools for music that isnt that good, but generates sales due to charting, so be careful). Technical skill (beatmatching, juggling, etc) are good to know, but not absolutely essential to giving folks a fun time. Cracking good music and knowing when to drop it is key, technical skillsets are the icing on the cake.

How do you know what is good music and when to drop it?

  1. Get out to parties/ functions that play the kind of music you like. Get to these events early and watch how the djs setup/ soundcheck, etc. Take the chance if you get an opening to ask questions, but keep in mind some djs are finicky about who approaches them (some are just in ā€œanother worldā€, some are paranoid about being trainspotted, some having their music stolen, and some are just plain ole divas). Then get out of their way and absorb how they unfold the night through their music.

  2. Dancers can give you good feedback on how the djs are doing, so try to observe their reactions to the music that is played during the course of the night:

if there are a decent amount of folks on the floor during most of the night, the djs are doing their job,

if dancers rotate off and on the floor. but the the floor is never sparce during the course of the night, the djs are doing their job,

if the floor is jammed packed full of folks most of the night the djs are out of their minds (course, the bar might not be very happy about a full dancefloor and empty barstools),

if the dance floor is sparce the course of the night, then you need to figure out if:
a. its a normally slow night
b. its a sports bar, and the big game is on, so no one is dancing
c. the wrong djs are playing that night (Infer what you will from this)

  1. Get to know the folks that throw the parties. If you can, volunteer to help with their events. Folks tend to remember you more when you help contribute in making their nights successful; not all of them do, but enough of them do

  2. Become a regular at the clubs/ venues that throw parties or play music you can relate to. Be nice to the doorstaff, coat-check folks, and especially the bar crew (as in, always tip, even if all youre getting is a water or a soft drink). These folks also will remember you as time goes on, and tend to open up a li bit and share some valuable things with you about the club, such as what nights are poppin, what nights are slow, types of crowd that come in on given nights, type of music the club is known for, etc.

  3. Repeat steps 1 to 5 as often and soon as possible.

11

absolutelyā€¦ listen to lotā€™s and lotā€™s of dj mixtapes, and go to lotā€™s of events and trainspot.

make mental notes, or bring a pen+pad if youā€™ve got a bad memory.

12

Thanks for the feedback guys!

Yeah whenever Iā€™m out and about I always take mental notes of the DJs mixes, song choice, and also theyā€™re gear ^ ^

Cheers

13

Also, network! While youā€™re out there, talk to the DJs and club arrangers, make new contacts and get some phone numbers so you have people that know who you are when youā€™re ready to get out there :slight_smile: