The Best Way to Start Out as a DJ

Nowadays, it seems like Djing is the new rock and roll. Everywhere I turn it is always someone new coming on the scene with a mashup, remix, different blend techniques etc. It really does come down to what you want as a new DJ and how you want to carve your niche into this new music industry.

Equipment

Equipment is key and remember it is always who is behind the equipment instead of who the equipment is in front of. Since Djing is the new rock and roll, companies have been rolling out with simpler ways to sell Djing products for newbies while earning a dollar. Controllers and CDJs seem popular amongst today's crowd because they are easier to use, affordable and can be replaced easily. Vinyl, on the other hand is equipment that started Djing back in the 70s. Since we already made this transition from analog to digital, it seems like there is a divide amongst the Old head spinners and the Newbies. The Old Heads claim that if you can spin on Vinyl then you are a “Real DJ” while the Newbies claim that Vinyl is “too old” and too much of a hassle to deal with. In my honest opinion both of these claims are utter bullshxt and you should be entitled to spin on whatever you want and continue to rock the crowd. Technology advances but you should still in someways pay your dues. This argument is like on the equivalent of saying people should still drive stick shift vehicles instead of automatic...When it comes to the Equipment, choose your weapon of choice because there is a plethora of options out there and make sure to rock that shxt to the best of your ability while picking up more skills on other platforms.

Genre

As a new DJ, you would have to decide what type of genre you would like to start out mixing with. I would suggest to not go overly ambitious and try to mix every single genre known to man. The end result is to mix any genre with each other but as a beginner your should master one genre in flow and move onto the next one. Now, you can choose from many genres to mix from: Hip Hop, R&B, Rock, Funk, Techno, EDM etc so there are options. The easiest genre to mix from first would be EDM because most (if not all) of the songs are around the same BPM (125-135) and you can easily adjust your pitch knobs on your controller to match that (don't use the sync button). EDM music is vivid and live too so you can definitely hold a crowd for a couple hours. From there you should move into Funk music because most funk music is around the 70s in BPM and you can double it to 140 BPM to match the EDM song. And then move to Hip Hop and R&B so forth. It really is your choice to choose which genre to start out from but nonetheless, you need to master one genre of music before becoming as good as Jazzy Jeff and mixing genres upon genres and keeping parties going. It really is patience.

Presence

This is very important above the prior things mentioned. Your presence as a DJ will ultimately define you. Are you looking to be the type of DJ that plays in the hood, the hotels or at a haybarn. How will you dress? Do you plan on dressing in street apparel, suited up, or wearing a company uniform. Who will be your audience? How will you let people even know that you are a DJ? All of these things are very important and fortunately we do have the avenues in 2014 to help with that. After you settle into how you normally mix you can choose how to dress based upon the audience you plan on primarily mixing for. All you would need to do then is network at certain bars/clubs and get to know the owner and show up first as a guest and give them at least a month or 2 and then you should be mixing at their venue in no time depending on what type of impression you leave. You may even expedite it and consolidate it down to weeks before they choose you. It all depends on your approach.

Ultimately becoming the next biggest DJ in the world should be the last thing on your list. Just remember to start small and work your way up. Always be patient, prosperous and confident. Take opinions as feedback not commands and you should be fine. Eventually you will be touring with the big guys and hosting Djing contests. It all comes in a matter of time.