Hi Everyone

Hey Tolani, welcome to the forums. You have indeed invested in your gear! You are in a very select group (I think) of SZ owners.

Look at your DJ-ing in this way: if it wasn’t a challenge, would it be just as much fun?

Howdy, Tolani, welcome!

Offer to do house parties for your friends birthdays for free! You will feel comfortable with you and you will get the hang of being able to dj in frount of a crowd, plus who wouldnt take a free dj over a mp3 player?

@danzik/op: I don’t agree with the play for free option. Always get something out of it (unless it’s real dear friends you feel you can’t ask for anything), otherwise you will be abused in no-time and suddenly find yourself with an abundance of new “friends”.

Even if it is only a token fee for the gear you are bringing or gas money. DJ-ing is fun, but as a DJ you are suddenly responsible for the party rather than a participant in the party. And for that reason alone I think a small commitment from whoever is hosting the party is a good plan.

Just my two cents, of course.

Many words have been written on these forums on the topic (use the search function) and the general consensus is that playing for free is NEVER a good idea (again, bar for very close friends, charities if you want, ladidadida).

You are not getting paid an amount to be flawless, you are paid expenses for bringing gear, music and somebody to operate it, for not taking your bicycle to the party and drink yourself into oblivion, but for driving a (if you are bringing PA too and perhaps a few lights) rather big car there. And you are giving up on being a party-goer to be a party-maker. Never mind what and how many mistakes you make, getting something as little says two things: I am not cheap (free=cheapest) and that your host is taking you and what you are offering to do seriously as well.

If we talk about clubs, the edge becomes even sharper. You never, ever DJ for free. What is free, has no value. Simple.
A much better approach is to tell them your regular fee up front, but since they don’t know you, you’ll play “no cure, no pay”. If they really did dislike what you did, they won’t pay you, but they can never ask you back for free or a low fee, because that would contradict their first time sending you home with no money. If they do like you, you get paid your normal fee (find out what regular fees are in your area so you don’t overcharge but certainly don’t undercharge either) and the next time they invite you (good chance as they paid you because they clearly liked what you did first time around) there will be no discussion about the fee.

If you play for free first time and next time you ask 100USD an hour, they will see the difference 0-100 dancing in front of their eyes. Tough hurdle to take.

I went to my audition for my first pro-DJ residency at the Hilton Amsterdam Club Juliana’s venue to play for their resident DJ. Requirements other than being able to DJ: DJ in English (bi-lingual so no problem there) and German (I FLUNKED German in high school). I made the appointment at 8pm on sunday to audition at 4 pm on monday. I spent the remaining time practicing a few good lines in German, sleeping and shopping for a sharp outfit. I DJ-ed for 10 minutes or so, transitioned 4 tracks, spoke my 6 studied lines in German (including a welcome, a call to dance and a thank you, goodbye). I ended up in Germany 4 weeks later.

The point being, this business is a lot of “fake it til you make it” too. You HAVE to believe in yourself and realise that you will be playing for people (often including the management) who don’t know what you know. Mistakes are no biggie. As long as you rock the party and people stay, dance and -above all- drink, the venue is gonna be happy.

Thinking that people will give you a break if you tell them you are new to the game is not how it works. Works better if you are full of confidence, ask a real fee. That says I’m a professional and I deserve to get paid for the goods I bring.

Just my two cents, as always.

As a general rule of thumb, commercial rental rates are around 4% of the new value. So, say your PA cost you 2000 USD, you would charge 80 USD full rate for them. If it’s friends, relatives, small house party, you can go a little lower. I think the duration of the party doesn’t really matter for the gear. Still gotta bring it, set it up, take it down and bring it back. The actual time it’s playing is about the one thing that doesn’t take your time and energy 🙂

As for hourly rates, depends heavily on your area. A little research might be necessary. While asking other DJs is the quickest route, count on them exaggerate a bit and likewise asking venue managers will usually result in slightly lower than they actually play. But if you ask enough people you will usually be able to deduct what is about the right amount.

For house-parties I frankly always see what the total budget is. I have been to house-parties with full-color glossy invitations in the mail, the most expensive wines and beers stacked to the ceiling, a live artist “flown in” and then they wanted a “free DJ” to fill up the gaps. Clearly that was not happening. I have also been to house-parties where I knew the budget was (very) low, like in the case of a recently divorced single mom who wanted to celebrate her 40th b’day. She had a pretty decent mini-van, so I asked her to come pick me up with her son and help load the stuff in the van and her son to help me set up. While not exactly payment, I didn’t have to pay for gas or anything, had less of the heavy lifting to do and it felt more like doing it together than me showing up and doing my thing. The son ended up doing about an hour and a half for the younger crowd at the beginning of the evening as well, so I got to mingle and enjoy the party myself as well.

Again, either have them pay for the PA rental (discounted fare if you like) or for your gas/transportation. For house-parties it really is your call and your sizing up the event. Just not for free really (even if what you get paid is being picked up and offered a couple of sets of helping hands).