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How do you promote yourselves?

So your a confident mixer, confident in your style and love what you do but how did you get your first gig? How did you make yourself known outhere?

Re: How do you promote yourselves?

quote:

Originally posted by sufee_b So your a confident mixer, confident in your style and love what you do but how did you get your first gig? How did you make yourself known outhere?

go to clubs, meet people, hand out siness cards and demos, make contacts get phone numbers, make sure they get urs, shit, tony morello from trance addict hooked me up for thursday night.

persistency and a decent demo...



luck works sometimes too

you go out and become anyone and everyone's friend, especially those who will come show up for a drink when you play

talk to promoters, be out and be seen

this is where the legwork starts happening

you need to have your finger on the pulse in your scene and you need to be out and supporting

a promoter isn't going to book you if he/she doesn't think you'll draw a crowd

always go out with a stack of cds in your pocket, give them to everyone, not just promoters, get your name out to the public, cause they're the ones that'll come spend money when you play

quote:

Originally posted by Tony Morello you go out and become anyone and everyone's friend, especially those who will come show up for a drink when you play talk to promoters, be out and be seen this is where the legwork starts happening you need to have your finger on the pulse in your scene and you need to be out and supporting a promoter isn't going to book you if he/she doesn't think you'll draw a crowd always go out with a stack of cds in your pocket, give them to everyone, not just promoters, get your name out to the public, cause they're the ones that'll come spend money when you play

tony really hit the nail on the head with this post.


confidence and charisma are key as well

start whoring yourself until you don't know who you are anymore

quote:

Originally posted by DJ Lucas start whoring yourself until you don't know who you are anymore

LMAOOOOO

so true

just get a flash website and a bio in the 3rd person. Then your set




hehe. or just whore yourself to people that in teh direction you wanna go in.

idk,i think hitting up a club with a bag full of demos is the wrong way to go. I get really annoyed when kids I just met start pushing demos at me asking if I have a gig for them. I think you need to go out and make some legitimate friends at the clubs, kids who will eventually come out to support you when you are good. But seriously, as a DJ / promoter, there is nothing more annoying than having some random aspiring DJ give you his demo and then big you to see if you listened to it.

But going out to smaller parties to show support is always a plus. People need to see you as a cool kid first, and then as a DJ. No one wants to give a shot or even a listen to some geek who only cares about becoming the next Armin.

quote:

Originally posted by zizack idk,i think hitting up a club with a bag full of demos is the wrong way to go. I get really annoyed when kids I just met start pushing demos at me asking if I have a gig for them. I think you need to go out and make some legitimate friends at the clubs, kids who will eventually come out to support you when you are good. But seriously, as a DJ / promoter, there is nothing more annoying than having some random aspiring DJ give you his demo and then big you to see if you listened to it. But going out to smaller parties to show support is always a plus. People need to see you as a cool kid first, and then as a DJ. No one wants to give a shot or even a listen to some geek who only cares about becoming the next Armin.

agreed, pushing demos on people is not going to work unless they need a DJ right then and there, which is highly unlikely. Make friends and kiss ass, don't be pushy. It will happen in time.

Just get your face known in the right circles. It's really the only way.
No amount of demos or calling cards are going to get you anywhere.

Host your own parties and invite the right people.

Cheers
Nem

quote:

Originally posted by DJ Lucas start whoring yourself until you don't know who you are anymore

Tried that and I just got a sore arse.

Didn't really help my DJing either... so I started handing out demos and trying to persuade people to book me

But seriously, I've just got involved with message boards etc, going out clubbing to the the places I want to play (which funnily enough are the same places I like going myself) and meeting people, giving other DJs support and feedback with demos, productions etc

And being a bit different... even if you do get someone to listen to your demo, by the time they manage to get back to you or you get in touch with them, they'll have forgotten which one it was if it wasn't different enough to stick in their mind.

Most people will just slap it in and search through for the first few mixes to check you don't train wreck them all... then they'll gauge the flow/structure/style of the set from the tracklist - this is something I HATE. But there's not a lot you can do about it... either you've gotta accept that these aren't the kind of people you're appealling to or you've got to make your tracklist look original too.

When listening to demos myself I tend to listen to the first 10 mins in full and if I feel like I want to listen to more then I do, if not then I turn it off. So I'd also recommend never just starting a demo at the start of normal tune with a kick and a bit of perc etc, cos that just says to me "this isn't going to do anything for a while, let's go and make a cup of coffee"... if you can start with a track which is a bit different from the style of rest of the mix then all the better. Even someone just flicking through the mixes will a bit of the start of the first track and the mix from the first track, so if it's different then they'll notice too.

What I've found personally is that although people don't just tend to book you from a demo (if ever), it's a way to get talking to them - ask them for an address for a demo, send them a demo, then speak to them at their next event. So they're not completely useless. But if you can, see if you can get a friend who's opinion the promoter will respect to recommend you - don't be afraid to ask people for that (as long as you don't over do it) and of course support them too.

Just a few thoughts

in norway the scene is really small, so i know most people doing the scene... whore yourself out, play for free.. do them favours.. even tho it might look like the big shit at the time, its nice to put in something on the cv...

also get to know people in other country.. get them to book you for travel+accomodation, that surely looks nice on the cv...
im in the big promoting part of my carrier, and it is hell getting jobs where i live...

quote:

Originally posted by dj_alfi also get to know people in other country.. get them to book you for travel+accomodation, that surely looks nice on the cv... im in the big promoting part of my carrier, and it is hell getting jobs where i live...

Their Curriculum Vitae? thought only academics used those.

quote:

Originally posted by Boomer187 Their Curriculum Vitae? thought only academics used those.

you get what i mean, its just an expression.. often you get the question "where have u played before?"

lots of good points in this thread..

i think really the best option is a combination of all of this.

but going back on what i said about demos before, when i think back to my own exprerience, ive never really gotten booked fully on a demo, but by being nice to whomever would be booking me and trying to get to know his/her friends etc etc.

i am very sensitive about promotion because i hate playing the salesman which is what you are inclined to do whilST promoting. i hate it.

i have resorted to giving demos only to people who i think would enjoy the music anyway, and then not expecting any favors. perhaps drop a stack of CDs off at the local DJ shop once in awhile. post your mixes online in a non-annoying way and follow the rules. talk to bar/club owners and don't BS them...they are trained to spot phonies. if you push too hard, you'll get pushed back. i think over-zealous DJs are annoying and are a discredit to the scene.

you could also...

start producing and get very, very good. if you are at least a somewhat well-known producer in your area, your production talent will promote yourself as a DJ.

in any case, have fun and meet people who love the same music as you...

Produce a hit and everything comes from alone...--> the easy (lucky) way

Send out demos, get contacts and numbers...--> the hard (normal) way

So how does one mysteriously meet a promoter?

I mean, if I was a promoter and some guy comes up to me, the first thing that would come to me is "this guy/gal is a bedrrom dj"

You can't just go to a promoter's party for the first time. Ask everyone who the promoter is and walk up to him and ask for a gig. You need to be a fixture in the scene. The promoter has to be able to recognize you as someone who regularly supports his parties.

quote:

Originally posted by Zild You can't just go to a promoter's party for the first time. Ask everyone who the promoter is and walk up to him and ask for a gig. You need to be a fixture in the scene. The promoter has to be able to recognize you as someone who regularly supports his parties.

That's just soo hard mate

quote:

Originally posted by dj_alfi you get what i mean, its just an expression.. often you get the question "where have u played before?"

aahh, resume then would fit.



but i did know what ya meant

he means something like a list of the places you've played and/or the record companies you've worked with..

also, something few people ever mention:

DJs like DJs. DJs like good DJs even more. befriend your local jocks, specifically the ones that are already playing out. you'll easily find a couple of good guys you can just get together and spin with. they can give you tips on who you should be kissing up to, what promoters are ****s, what clubs have the best crowds, etc. plus, if other DJs think you are good, regardless of having played out or not, you're status elevates from that of eager fanboy to 'undiscovered talent'.

not to mention, if you befriend a resident at a club, he may be able to get you a guest spot sometime, if you're lucky.

just something to think about.

also, remember. some promoters know diddly squat about music. others do. in both cases, they have friends which they believe have similar tastes in music as them. should you come recommended by one of these friends, you have a lot higher chance of getting a genuine shot.

quote:

Originally posted by Inertia also, something few people ever mention: DJs like DJs. DJs like good DJs even more. befriend your local jocks, specifically the ones that are already playing out. you'll easily find a couple of good guys you can just get together and spin with. they can give you tips on who you should be kissing up to, what promoters are ****s, what clubs have the best crowds, etc. plus, if other DJs think you are good, regardless of having played out or not, you're status elevates from that of eager fanboy to 'undiscovered talent'. not to mention, if you befriend a resident at a club, he may be able to get you a guest spot sometime, if you're lucky. just something to think about. also, remember. some promoters know diddly squat about music. others do. in both cases, they have friends which they believe have similar tastes in music as them. should you come recommended by one of these friends, you have a lot higher chance of getting a genuine shot.

Well said. It's always good to know other DJs.

Nem

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