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DJs who don't love music... (pg. 3)
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| Darkarbiter |
| quote: | Originally posted by MrsPiemont
Well thought out and intelligent stuff |
Good read to say the least. You seem to know what your talking about. |
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| MrsPiemont |
| I know my profile says i'm 22, but i'm not. Simple mistake when registering. ;) Thanks. :) |
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| Beat Blog |
| quote: | Originally posted by MrsPiemont
First off, there are 4 ways to get gigs.
1. Have contacts
This means you can be utter crap and still play. It is because of who you know, not what you know.
2. Have lots of friends
A club will often let these people play because they can guarantee a strong attendance. Attendance equates profit. The music is always 2nd (if even that) to profit.
3. Be so good they can't say no.
This is one of the rare ones. some Dj's are just so talented that clubs will take chances knowing they have a genuine shot of being something special. This makes attendance not as important for the first few gigs. This is done to try and bank on having one of the area's best residents before anyone else. This can lead to big draws down the line. If no one shows after a while, its bye bye good or not. (Usually production is the big factor in this. A DJ that produces will always be more bankable and a better risk to take.)
4. Be close with big talent. (could be under contacts but not the same.
The most profitable way to book international acts is to develop a relationship with them and cut the agent out. This can save alot on DJ fees and is mostly predominant with mid level players.(ie: a DJ that isn't in demand yet but about to blow up.) If you make nice with a DJ that can bring you this it stays interesting for the club. Talented or not. Often (not always) the less talented DJ's also double as the bookers for clubs. This is not a coincidence.
That being said, because they do not answer you does not mean, "They don't know .". Use the example of the professional athelete. How many times do you think an NBA player is asked for tips about jump shots? Or why any athelete will give the same generic answer in TV interviews?
The answer is simple, they are sick of talking about it.
Reporter: "That was a great shot , how did you do it?"
Athelete: "It was a team effort, we worked hard and it paid off."
Is that the real answer? Most likely not, but we do hear it in every sport on a regular basis.
As far as track names go, you shouldn't ask. Its not a crime, but if you are going to train spot...you do it the same way anyone else does. You search for it. Never expect any easy answers. If you do ask and they tell you, so be it, the DJ is a nice guy and confident enough in his skills it will not matter. The people you are talking about are local. This job is even harder than the International headliner, because they do not have the freedom of playing the same set every week.(they also don't have big budgets to get every track they want.) They need to keep fresh and stay ahead of the competition. Gigging is a competition , make no mistake.
This is not meant to offend, but what you asked makes it seem like you are a recent entry into the scene. You will see alot of things that baffle you. In the beginning, i did not understand why it was taboo to make requests. My advice is learn as much as you can however you can. This way you can get your own answers. If DJ's have been doing it for years, they don't always want to talk basics. They might not feel as passionate that night as others. For them this is work, not funtime. Being a successful DJ is hard work, alot of people do not realize this. You need to realize they don't need to give you an all access pass to their knowledge, because simply they don't have the time.
Another reason for this could be.
1. They think you are a douche.
2. You are right and they are douches that do not know anything.
Just my 2 cents.
Short version. Clubs and Dj'ing is a business. In business things are rarely right or fair. |
Thanks for the essay, but if you read my post, you'd realise that everything you just wrote was completely irrelevant.
1. I didn't ask for a guide on how to be a DJ, get gigs and "make it". I play out myself; I know what it takes to get there. I'm not jealous of anyone else's position. I hold down a full-time day job and have no ambitions in the DJ area other than to have fun.
2. I never mentioned these guys being "bad" DJs, though I did make one mention of their " music", which, in context was more about expressing the fact that these DJs are not passionate, and as a result, their music can suffer, even if their general taste is ok.
3. I didn't say that these DJs "don't know ", I said that if they are ignorant of a certain subject, such as harmonic mixing, they show no interest whatsoever in learning, or even finding out what it is. Same if you tell them a track/producer/DJ you think they might like.
4. Again, this mention that perhaps they are withholding knowledge from me, either because they think it will undermine their success, or because they perhaps don't like me.
I debunked this earlier. Half of them are my friends. I'm not asking them "what is your secret to success?", or other invasive questions, I'm asking general stuff like "which do you like better, Prydz' work under Cirez D or Pryda?" and they'll say something stupid like "I dunno, all his stuff sounds pretty much the same..."
After reading your post, I suddenly realise that since you joined this board, you've been bursting to display your "great" knowledge of "the scene", and although this thread was an imperfect opportunity, you decided to go with it anyway. Congratulations.
As for this bit:
"This is not meant to offend, but what you asked makes it seem like you are a recent entry into the scene. "
On the contrary, your post made it abudantly clear that you are a recent entry onto the scene, displaying such basic stuff as proffered wisdom, coupled with the fact that your favourite group is Piemont, who've been releasing tracks for, oh, NEARLY A WHOLE YEAR NOW!
Some of you seem confused; perhaps I should change the thread title to "DJs who are not passionate about music". That would perhaps make more sense to you; my point being that the people I am talking about think music when they are at a club...but only when they're at a club. A true music nut will have it on their brain all day, every day. |
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| Tangil |
| quote: | Originally posted by HaeD
People don't love music neway, so the DJ don't matter, it's all about boose and drug. In fact, it's better for the club if the DJ dont care |
cracked me up, funny |
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| Beat Blog |
| quote: | Originally posted by Tangil
cracked me up, funny |
Sadly enough, I agree with him.
If someone like Thomas Schumacher was playing a small venue, it will be a dedicated, passionate crowd, but a the local, run of the mill club, which I'm talking about, a majority of the crowd will be there for sex, drugs and booze. |
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| MrsPiemont |
Mr blog,
I will not take offense to your long winded post. I think its funny quite honestly. If you think every DJ is dead passionate about DJ'ing all of the time you are dead wrong. Are you always passionate about your job? (your real one) I have been around the scene for a long time, and up until last year was working in PR for a booking agency. Maybe you have heard of them.
http://www.bullittbookings.com/home.asp
Good day
T :) |
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| MrJiveBoJingles |
| quote: | Originally posted by MrsPiemont
The people you are talking about are local. This job is even harder than the International headliner, because they do not have the freedom of playing the same set every week. |
And oh what a wonderful freedom that is. |
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| Kuffdam |
Hey guys
I wanted to post a comment on this thread with regards knowing tracks etc...
Personally I am pretty bad at knowing the names of tracks these days... on occasion I have been asked what's the name of this etc and it might have slipped my mind. Its got nothing to do with the fact that I don't love music... its simply down to having a crappy memory for some titles so it drifts from my chain of thought.
I also now find that with the fact that music music comes in the form of an mp3 from a site like beatport or sent to me by a producer, its hard to put a time and place on when or where I got the track.
I'm a massive fan of many styles of music and I collect many other genres. I love vinyl records and still buy many each month... now with this format I can tell you the artist, track, sleeve image and where I bought it... the reason for this??? well its down to actually having the item, its how it made me fell at the time of buying it... something I find an MP3 can't do...
I can flick through vinyl or cd's at home and remember where and when I got it... Does this mean I don't love dance mp3's as much... no... its just that in my own head I find it easier to attach a name to something I have searched out, picked up and bought...
That's it |
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| MrJiveBoJingles |
Makes sense to me.
Compare the emotional impact of somebody breaking five of your physical records and that of somebody deleting five mp3s from your hard drive (same songs). Is it different? Why? |
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| inconspicuous |
| quote: | Originally posted by MrJiveBoJingles
Is it different? Why? |
yes. it triggers more of your senses. only auditory vs. auditory, visual, & possibly more (I don't want to know what you do with your records). |
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| Project-K |
| quote: | Originally posted by Kuffdam
I also now find that with the fact that music music comes in the form of an mp3 from a site like beatport or sent to me by a producer, its hard to put a time and place on when or where I got the track. |
That's very true. When I buy something on CD, I look at the cover, the title, and it sticks in my mind forever afterwards. |
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| nefardec |
also
i rarely remember my tracklists unless I record it
a lot of times I play music that I might have bought a few days before and forgot the name of it shortly after I play it, but just rememberthat I wanted to play it and it was ing awesome |
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