Saturday, February 16, 2013

How to Get the Right DJ For Your Event


Let's say you are getting married and need a DJ to do the reception. You or someone you know is a friend of a DJ and refer to him or her to do the reception. Although this person may be good, he or she may only play Hip-Hop at nightclubs or bars. Your wedding reception could be a disaster. Unless you only want to hire them to play Hip-Hop.

In any public or private performance, the disc jockey's main responsibility is to please the audience. However, in most situations disc jockey's not only cater to the audience, but also to the client, club owner, management, or promoter. Of course compromises between these considerations and the disc jockey works best.

There are many different varieties of disc jockey's and with these varieties come a different set of circumstances or skills that would be a great enhancement for the type of event your having.

While some DJ's may only play a certain genre of music, other DJ's may only do weddings or battle competitions. Finally, there are some DJ's who immerse themselves in many aspects of the art of DJing like Las Vegas DJ's or Miami DJ's due to the entertainment aspect of such cities. For example, a champion battle DJ who devotes most his or her craft to scratching and doing tricks, may not be the DJ you want to hire for your wedding or club because, the battle DJ may not have devoted a lot of time to programming music. However, keep in mind, a DJ with a certain title like "battle DJ" or "mobile DJ" doesn't mean they can't produce the type of entertainment you're looking for. Just make sure that when you're searching for one, during the interview process, ask them about the type of events they have done in the past. This will not only help you match the best type of Dj for your event, but also help you with making the distinction between the DJ as an artist and as an employee.

Here is a list of a variety DJ types along with a description of the experience they may bring, along with their skill sets to help you make your choice. Good Luck!

Nightclub DJ - The nightclub is a venue where bands where bands were once used as the prime source of entertainment, now DJ's fill that role. This can involve having to play a variety of genres of music or specific style of music on certain nights or events. The club DJ has one objective, keep the dance floor full. A good club DJ has the skill of using the most popular songs with seemless mixing of non-stop music through the use of good programming, like most Las Vegas DJ's or Miami DJ's. Most club DJ's don't M/C because another crucial skill club DJ's must have is crowd gauging. Crucial because of the need to keep the dance floor full.

Rave DJ - This is a scenario where a DJ is brought in to play a specific style of music. In this case the DJ is hired as an artist to showcase their personal taste and abilities as a DJ and producer. The rave DJ usually doesn't M/C. As an artist the Rave DJ has fans, like world famous Tiesto for example, to which their main responsibility is to satisfy their fans.

Battle DJ - The battle DJ specializes in scratching, beat juggling, and other tricks, usually in competition with other DJ's, for money, sponsorship, or a title such as "Grand Master DJ". The battle DJ, in a sense, is more of a flashy kind of DJ. Of course due to the countless hours of practicing. Unfortunately, most battle DJ's don't concern themselves much with other aspects of DJing like M/Cing or programming.

Mobile DJ - Mobile DJ's are DJ's that are more dedicated to performing at weddings, corporate events, birthday's, etc. The mobile DJ is hired to play the kind of music that is appropriate for the event, as well as satisfy the clients musical taste, and M/C the event. The mobile Las Vegas DJ has a wide variety of experiences to satisfy the wide variety of crowds they encounter in the form of wedding receptions, for which there are plenty of in Las Vegas. The mobile DJ wears many hats in the field of entertainment because mobile DJ's usually have to help with the planning of an event. The mobile DJ is also more technically sound because they may have to use lighting, set-up sound systems, or troubleshoot any problems that may arise during a performance or prior to performing.

Bedroom DJ - This DJ is more concerned with just enjoying the music as a personal venture or hobby, as opposed to playing for an audience.

Written by Edward Webb

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