
Every day, a DJ asks someone for suggestions and guidance on how to get gigs playing in clubs and parties, as well as how to become the next big thing. It can be difficult to rise above the bedroom level of competitiveness when there are millions of DJs competing. Unfortunately many DJs and promoters are too concerned with promoting themselves and are not concerned enough with the quality or clarity of the product or service they are promoting. However, we now see that the bigger names have managers, public relations experts, and operate as a firm with a distinct brand. They have logos and a specific image to uphold, which is part of the reason why they perform in front of thousands of people while others may never leave their bedroom. Let's get this party started.
The five different types of DJs…
When I meet a lot of new DJs that want to play out, I can see they're hungry, but they also have a vision of what they want. Many people aspire to be famous DJs like Paul Van Dyk or Deadmau5. Some people simply want to work and pay their bills. Others aspire to lead a larger entertainment organization as an entrepreneur. DJing isn't a one-track mindset, as you may have seen. It's not the same job every time you go to a new location. It's not the same as performing at a large party for a wedding. Playing in a sports bar isn't the same thing as playing for a major league team. You should concentrate on the kind of DJing you want to get into in order to properly sell yourself. To make it easier for you, we've divided them into five categories:
DJs who go to wedding receptions, bar mitzvahs, business gatherings, and other events are known as mobile DJs. They'll spend money on not only the "decks" and mixer, but also lights, speakers, and the equipment needed to throw a party anywhere. Their major strategy is to play in a radio-style format and to act as a human jukebox to some extent. They deal with a lot of requests and try to fulfill them as quickly as possible.
Sports/college bar DJ
If you see one of these DJs performing, you might believe they're comparable to mobile DJs, but they're more of a hybrid of what you'd see a mobile DJ do and what you'd see a club DJ do. While a club DJ can focus on a few genres (house, rap, pop, etc.), a bar DJ must play a wide range of music to create a pleasant atmosphere. So he'd be able to play house, old rock, and popular rap songs. Sometimes he'll mix, and other times he'll just smash in tunes like the radio would. He may not have speakers or lights, but he does have a home setup to play on. His bread and butter consists of transportable performances in settings with sound and lighting.
Mainstream club DJ
The mainstream club is the next step up the ladder after playing smaller bars. These are the places you'll come across, which could range from a tourist trap to a glitzy bottle service club. The fact that you're playing all mainstream music and taking requests makes this kind of DJ gig similar to a bar gig. What's different is that you have more flexibility in terms of what you may play and how you respond to requests. So although the teenager who requested Katy Perry might get her wish, the older man who requested heavy metal will be told flat out where to go! You can also play more remixes of these pop songs and create an atmosphere dependent on the venue and promoter. DJs here usually mix all the time, rather than slamming in tracks or making announcements like you might see in clubs and private events. You have the potential to grow larger if you use your imagination. DJ AM is one example, and DJ Pauly D, love him or hate him, is another.
Underground club DJ
DJing in an underground club is arguably the one thing that most aspiring DJs aspire to do.
They want to be the DJ at the cool place that plays music that isn't generally heard in the mainstream, no matter how big or tiny. They aspire to either open for or surpass the celebrities they idolize. You're hired not to please individual people, but to please the crowds in this scene. This may entail doing a successful opening set before a huge name, or even being large enough that people flock to hear you because of what you play and what you're into... rather than pressuring you to play what they want to hear. You can basically put up a big sign that says "no requests" and get away with it completely.
Rave DJ
I could lump this in with "underground club DJ," but there's a wider distinction now between someone who shows up in a huge club and plays a regular set of house or trance versus someone who shows up at a massive one-night event and plays music that most clubs wouldn't touch. Jungle, hardcore, drum and bass, and even chill out music were popular in the past. Dubstep or indie/nu disco are now possibilities. The rave DJ is brought out not just because he or she has something to give the gathering, but also because he or she isn't bound by the restrictions that club and bar DJs must adhere to. And there are the "controllerists" to consider... Many controllerists, are unsure where they fall. Maybe they just play a lot of mashups on many controllers and never do anything remotely like conventional DJing. I believe you should allow your sound, music selection, and target audience decide. If you can play a wonderful mashup set of pop and rock hits at a college pub on a weekly basis, great; if frat boys and suburban ladies roll their eyes at you and want a "normal" DJ, perhaps you're more suited to the underground scene.
Is it necessary for me to choose one?
No. These "buckets" can frequently overlap. A mobile DJ can work as a college/sports bar DJ as well as play in mainstream clubs.
A lot of mobile DJs do college/sports bar residencies, even several popular club DJs do college/sports bar gigs. The question now is whether a mobile or college/sports bar DJ can work the underground or rave scene as well. we’re not saying it won't happen; we just saying it won't be simple. This relates to the term "branding" that we discussed earlier. Patrons and promoters in the underground and rave scenes are fickle and distrustful of a person who wants to come perform their events when he's better known for playing bars and weddings. It all comes down to the image you project, so turning up to the rave promoter with a CD and business card geared toward mobile gigs isn't going to cut it.
Even if the demo is entirely tech house and dubstep, if people know you as a mainstream music DJ, it might not work. Many people assumed I was merely a trance DJ when I played trance at a few occasions, and were startled when I showed up with demos of deep Chicago-style house. That became a problem. There is, however, a method around this. Many musicians used to have aliases for distinct sounds in the past. Cajmere is an excellent example. For house music, he'd adopt the pseudonym "Cajmere," and for techno, he'd use the nickname "Green Velvet." Similarly, you could be John Doe Entertainment for weddings and then "J. Digital" for raves or something like that. I will state, however, that this will imply a larger long-term commitment in music. Not only would you be seeking for big singles to play at that wedding on iTunes, but you'd also be looking for underground music to play at such events on Beatport. In addition, you may need two copies of any marketing items, such as business cards and websites.
The important thing to remember when deciding on a focus is that this is the first step in developing yourself as a selling brand. When you hear the term "Ford," you automatically think of autos. When you hear the name "Kraft," you immediately think of food. Wouldn't you be wary if Kraft came out with a smartphone all of a sudden? This is also true when it comes to DJing.