pretend your deaf and talk like you cant pronounce your words…
the last thing you want is to have a brains seizure and start fuming… might mess with your mix.
Its a really difficult situation no matter how you look at it if your thin skinned. I would ask them to leave… and if they bother you a second time after you made it clear… go tell the bouncer that the person is trying to sell you crack cocaine or that he has a gun
This is definitely a common experience for most DJs who play out. Depending on the gig, you can politely smile, nod, and ignore most of these comments. But some people get really angry and they take it out on you. I have many stories including a couple where people tried to start physical fights. My favorite was a guy who kept saying “you suck at playing records.” (Got that guy to back off by spinning AC/DC, haha).
Sometimes when a person is really up in your face more than a couple times you can firmly say “thank you, I understand your request, now please step back so I can do my job.” I always try to be polite, but some people will really test you. Most people asking for requests are having a good time and just suddenly thought of something familiar they want to hear – I always look for it and do my best to work it in. But others are worse, demanding you play “hip-hop” and insisting you’re not playing “hip-hop” even when you’re playing Schoolly-D (yes this actually happened to me; if you play much in LA you find a remarkably closed-minded notion of what “hip-hop” is). Sometimes the request is just inappropriate (you’re at a house event and someone demands hip-hop for example). Sometimes it’s just ignorant. I’ve gotten the request to “please play some dance music” when of course that’s all I’m playing … I think the best thing is to be as polite as you can but when someone won’t let up you need to tell them to step off.
If they keep the shit up and get really aggressive about it, you can always signal security … better yet stop the music and hand them a microphone; within seconds the crowd will be demanding the music back on and tossing them out of the club themselves
look this is what someone post on yelp about me. I laugh when it was deleted b/c she give 4 or 5 stars but bashes places.
From what I remember, she ask for this song
btw i wouldnt of had of problem with playing the song but she started name dropping about the people she knows that work at the bar and the “other djs” would have played it.
Another angle is to re-make yourself as not just a dj but a live re-mix-masher-whatever artist. If you blur the line between playing tracks and making new music live, people seem to bother you less, because they’re thinking of you more as an act. People wouldn’t demand a guitar player play a different riff.
It bothers me too, but my best defense has been to keep things diverse, multi tempo, and funky. (granting I’m not playing an event where it’s supposed to be one genre - in that case, I just politely ignore ridiculous requests). If you’re playing music that’s relentless and all the same in an environment that isn’t supporting that vibe, though, I’d expect some gripes. I think what the majority of the crowd would dig hearing is what we should be focused on. There’s lots of ways to look at it.
I got hammered on once to play “something from Drake” at a party advertised as strictly 60’s and 70’s soul. Smile, Nod, Ignore. Mostly I just get asked “do you have…?”. If I do, and it’ll work, I’ll play it. If it would serve to ruin the flow, I just forget about it. If people are happy and dancing, you’re doing the job just fine.
I usually have a couple of flyers in the booth and when somebody makes an absurd request I hand them one, point to my name (where it usually says “breaks, dubstep, drum’n bass”) and say “pick something from these genres, I’m sorry I don’t have anything else”.
but it’s hard to stay polite when people insult you and whatnot… one of the venues I played regularly a few years ago even had a fucking HAMMER in the booth - I shit you not - that you would use to scare off drunk idiots.
play some hardstyle NOW motherfucker!!!1
picks up hammer I already told you I don’t have any. now FUCK OFF.
This happened to me countless times last night. I was playing a basement party for like 30-40 kids, everyone was having a great time and really digging the music I was playing.
Then this girl starts harassing me … “you have to play Nicki Minaj!” I’m like uhh yeah maybe in a little. Comes up to me like 3 times during 1 song to keep reminding me. “Yeah I got it, relax” So I play a Tommie Sunshine remix of one of her songs. She comes up saying “No not this song! Play this one!!” I’m like fine maybe later on. She keeps hounding me and I’m finally like “Listen, I’m not gonna play 2 Nicki Minaj songs back to back, go have fun and let me DJ”
So even after fulfilling her request, within 3 minutes shes back with another request … “Teach me how to Dougie” … I’m playing straight electro house and dubstep here, why don’t people think before requesting? She’s like “This is my last request Please!!” So I agree and play it to get her away from me. Then she comes back another 3 minutes later and requests another song!! So I finally said “I thought you already had a last request?” I playfully patted her on the head and put my headphones on and ignored. She’s lucky she was cute otherwise I wouldn’t have played any of her requests.
I wish people would realize that a DJs job is to work a crowd, and if you see the entire floor dancing then obviously they are doing a good job. People who request songs are so ignorant to what is going on around them, it’s very frustrating and selfish of them. I don’t mind a request here and there but when it becomes multiple requests or requests with an attitude attached then throw the headphones on and ignore mode.
“Can you play jerk music”
“Like ‘Your a Jerk’ by New Boyz?”
“Yea”
“I already played it, know any other songs”
“Uhh…”
“Come back later when you have a song name”
“Can you play Lady GaGa?”
“Playlist is set, next week”
kinda OT:
like most people here, i found out about no speak americano a long time ago, and now im tired of it
its just been ‘discovered’ where i live, so my italian class thought it would be funny playing it in the background while we work on a project
at first im like ‘please no’
then after it was played the 3rd time in a row i was fighting the urge to bang my head on my desk while thinking ‘the very same people who are in love with this song gave me shit only a few months ago for listening to similar stuff’ and ‘this is so annoying!!!’
coming from the kid who only listens to dubstep, dnb, electro, and hardstyle(s) in other words, the most repetitive music known to man
people think its a whole different kind of music now, just because it was on the radio. this kinda relates to mau5 too
