A) go the route of getting into edm (or dance music of any kind) and just start as quickly as possible?
B) be into edm for quite a while and then start.
what would be the pros and cons of each path…personally I started mixing on TTs back in the mid 90s but never could afford a set for myself so I just dabbled and then had a long break and started back up last october with traktor…so I guess I’m a mix of both but I think I’m more along the lines of B
I was into edm for a bit before I started DJing… made things easier cause I already had a collection of music that I liked not to mention having listened to many mixes, so I began to get ideas of what sounds good and what doesn’t.
+1 however… there is one thing that is important and that is to know your music, and nothing helps that better than being into and enjoying the music you are playing.
a person who’d already been into the music for a few years is going to have a leg up on someone who is still getting their feet wet with the scene.
they’ve been to events, they’ve heard mixtapes - they know what proper djing should sound like.
they’ve probably learned how to dig just to satisfy their listening interests.
they already know what they like and who plays what they like, so they probably have a good idea of what they’re going to play in a set.
someone who is completely new to the whole thing would have to learn all of those skills listed above in addition to learning the ins and outs of the tools and mixing techniques.
Good responses from everyone, but one thing that I feel for myself is getting pigeonholed by having listened to all of these DJ mixes over the years. Like kinda getting locked into the old way of djing when there are so many new techniques with the digital stuff. Yes I probably have a leg up when it comes to my ear for what I like, yes I probably have figured out how to find what I like, etc etc, but for me I seem to be locked into the play one song into the next song, mix for a minute or so, mix out rinse and repeat (which admittedly is probably the most effective way to dj) I guess I’m saying that someone that hasn’t been into edm as long as I have the just starts with traktor without seeing the whole Mark Farina/Sasha style of long blends on 2 tts is going to have an easier time figuring out cue point juggling and other things that traktor makes possible.
it still about knowing when to drop in the next song…whether by ear or by cue points…and you have to blend the two songs together…whether its for four beats or four minutes…
DJs who are massively into their genre of choice and have developed a good ear for it along with their own personal tastes are always better than those who just go for the obvious popular ones.
I use to like and play jazz and soul before i became a dj. but i still use it my mixes but i mainly use house i think. i basically have two rule when it comes to genres i dont know them very well so whatever sounds good together and what makes you dance.
