I know I've seen some threads before about it, and I know it depends a lot on each situation, but on average what is a reasonable amount to charge for a 2 or 3 hour gig? I figure one major factor is if you're bringing your own gear or not. If we could distinguish between that that would be great. A ballpark figure would be awesome.

Thanks guys.

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Well, like you said it really depends on many things cause there's a lot of variables involved. Do you have to bring your own gear and setup/tear down? If so price goes up. How much gear? Turntables, CDJs, mixer, lights, sound? More gear, more money. How big is the venue and how many people are expected to show? More people, more money. How much is admission? The more per ticket, the more you should get. How "well known" and "established" are you in your local scene? Are you some bedroom dj no ones ever heard of, or are you an established local/regional area dj/producer that plays gigs on a regular basis? If no ones ever heard of you, don't expect much, although I firmly believe if you're good enough to play (that is without trainwrecking every other song), you're good enough to get paid.

So yeah, it just depends. If you're playing some hole in the wall bar that holds 50-100 people and admission is only $2 and you don't have to bring any gear besides your records and headphones, surely you can't ask for much. But if you're playing some large club that holds 1000+ and admission is $10-15+, then you should be getting a lot more.

Whatever you do though, make sure you set your price in advanced and with a contract, whether verbal or written, although written is the preferred.

I do a 4 hour house party for 250 US

Obviously increased if I'm bringing in lights, or mixing video as well.

My group normally makes anywhere from $250-500 for a 3-5 hour event. $250 for house parties, and $400-500 for clubs/bars. We also bring a very nice sound system.

Alright, yeah that gives me a pretty good idea. Thanks guys.

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I'm doin it for ~$10 an hour plus a few free drinks, but it really depends on the size of the venue. If its a bigger place which means more people and more income, you can ask for a lot more.

You could also arrange to get a cut of the cover instead (money per person in the door, plus a guaranteed base fee if the night is a bust).

It depends on what kind of event is going on. Proms are lucrative, but a small club on a Wednesday night? Not so much

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my advice is to completely detach gear from your fee.

don't be all "well, if i have to bring my own gear then it'll cost you a bit".

act almost as if it is not your own gear, rather you are renting it from a sound setup company or something. make a bill for it. this also gives you room to make a bill for your DJing. keep the things seperate.

this will:

a) keep them from trying to haggle with you over the price
b) make them take you more seriously, possibly lowering the chance of them screwing you over a bit
c) make you more money; you can probably charge them a higher fee for the gear if you're acting like you have to go out and get gear from somewhere than if you own it, since it's a hassle for you, etc.

if this intimidates the promoter, and says he will get the gear himself, you just saved yourself a headache, as bringing your own stuff to a gig is such a hassle. never knowing if it will survive the night. take advantage and state clearly what gear you like to use, in order to make sure they don't set you up on a crap kit.

not to mention, you can also slightly bulk up the bills initially, and then, if necessary, offer them a small discount "just because you like them". ok, so i am starting to sound more like a shady salesman than a DJ, but this is a shady business after all.

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quote:

Originally posted by Inertia ok, so i am starting to sound more like a shady salesman than a DJ, but this is a shady business after all.

So motherfuckin' true- The shadiness is part of the fun!

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quote:

Originally posted by Dojomaster26 You could also arrange to get a cut of the cover instead (money per person in the door, plus a guaranteed base fee if the night is a bust). It depends on what kind of event is going on. Proms are lucrative, but a small club on a Wednesday night? Not so much

i don't know any promoters that would cut me into the cover price profits. not to mention, how can you make sure he isn't screwing you over by saying the cover was cheaper/less people came in than it actually is?

IMO, just state a base fee accordingly to the circumstances (if you're well established or unknown, if it's a big club or not, if you're doing anything specialized [live show, or Ableton mixing] on top of just mixing, etc.) and basically stick to that.

expect to fight with promoters over your money. specially if the night busts. but don't be surprised when the club was packed all night, you had the crowd jumping, and the ****s still try to skip out on paying you.

that's another detriment of having your own gear at a club. if you have a problem with the promoter/the police raids the place/a fight breaks out/there's an earthquake/etc., you can't just leave. you have gear to pack up and take with you.

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check out my guest mix for OndaSonora Podcast (aug.2009)

quote:

Originally posted by Inertia my advice is to completely detach gear from your fee. don't be all "well, if i have to bring my own gear then it'll cost you a bit". act almost as if it is not your own gear, rather you are renting it from a sound setup company or something. make a bill for it. this also gives you room to make a bill for your DJing. keep the things seperate. this will: a) keep them from trying to haggle with you over the price b) make them take you more seriously, possibly lowering the chance of them screwing you over a bit c) make you more money; you can probably charge them a higher fee for the gear if you're acting like you have to go out and get gear from somewhere than if you own it, since it's a hassle for you, etc. if this intimidates the promoter, and says he will get the gear himself, you just saved yourself a headache, as bringing your own stuff to a gig is such a hassle. never knowing if it will survive the night. take advantage and state clearly what gear you like to use, in order to make sure they don't set you up on a crap kit. not to mention, you can also slightly bulk up the bills initially, and then, if necessary, offer them a small discount "just because you like them". ok, so i am starting to sound more like a shady salesman than a DJ, but this is a shady business after all.

Good advice man. I appreciate it.

This is the event I'm playing at fyi. It's gonna be a 2 hour set and I'm opening for the Miami Heat's own DJ Irie... woot.


http://www.board-up.net/

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quote:

i don't know any promoters that would cut me into the cover price profits. not to mention, how can you make sure he isn't screwing you over by saying the cover was cheaper/less people came in than it actually is?

Yeah, you definately have to be careful about this, but in a smaller venue it works fine since you can see exactly how many people are in the door.

No matter how you charge your fee, be careful not to let a promoter screw that money out of you. Shady promoters will try to get out of paying whatever is not laid out in a contract (use a contract!)

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