Current technology has afforded us many conveniences and short cuts to instantly summon music and video when and wherever. But can your iPod alone detect when it’s time to quickly fade into another song simply because:
The bride’s father walks by and you decide to surprise him with a tune by his favorite band from his high school days?
Instantly extend a song or groove because a large group has spontaneously started a conga line or a soul train dance off?
Quickly and seamlessly switch to a romantic slow song so the crowd can catch their breath after three up tempo rockers?
Being a DJ is often more technical than anything else. It’s almost an artistic science.
A professional DJ has to:
really know their music inside and out
be able to design the perfect playlist on the fly
actually know HOW to dj as in spinning
knowing different ways to smoothly segue into songs
knowing how to beat mix and knowing when NOT to
how to speak clearly if you are called upon to talk
keep within the musical boundaries of the venue that they’re playing in and the client’s requests
know the parameters of the equipment they’re using and have back ups in case something malfunctions
be able to run and control lighting effects
know the acoustics of the party room and
have a basic working knowledge of sound reinforcement and a great deal of trouble shooting skills
After they have all of this down to a ‘science’ they have to be an entertainer.
They have to make the event FUN. Know how to work the crowd. Know how to play songs in the right order to keep the crowd
coming back for more.
It’s also good to be a good ‘people person’. Learn how to field and deal with song requests.
They ultimately need to have fun themselves. If they aren’t having fun their audience will know it.
Can your iPod do that?
