Just practice x2 and when gig comes make sure you play music that ladies shake and dance to it and all guys should be happy too! Also bear or two can make any harm to your nervous
Truth is they probably only care about # of butts through the door + at the bar, especially for an opening set, so relax, do your practice, and enjoy the ride, the first one is always awesome!
I’m going through this right now, with a bar and a restaurant. From my experience as a former club DJ and promoter, they can’t really expect or depend on you to bring a consistent crowd. No matter who you are or how many people you know, the number of people you get out will usually become smaller and smaller from your first gig at said venue, to your last. Case in point, I went to see Danny Tenaglia at ARC in NYC for his weekly residency 10 years ago…Danny is a guy that could easily fill a venue in my city for up to 4000, at up to $75 a pop, and yet, at his residency in NYC, there wasn’t even 50 people.
Nevertheless, bar owners seem to only care about getting asses in the seats spending a lot of money, but with some decent DJ’ing skills and some salesmanship, you might be able to convince them that they should focus on the music, and stop having unrealistic expectations that you’re going to be able to bring 50 people out every single time you play.
If you ask me, DJ’ing as a profession is half about having the skills, and half about having the personality. You have to be able to create and maintain a rapport with people. Get on their good side, tell them excatly what they need to know, and sell yourself in a way where you can always turn things in your favor…Like being able to convince them that it’s not just about putting the asses in the seats, but about creating a good vibe through the music.
