No way of getting paid :( Any advice?

Hi X-kisscut-X,

I can share your pain! I’ve been DJ’ing live now for two years and I have two residencies at small “goth/ industrial” style clubs (although Electro and EDM are my true passion! haha). The problem is, two years ago when I played my first gig, the agreement was no pay for a 45/ 1 hr set and I would get experience. Being a total beginner I thought that was a good deal so I took it. I DJ’ed there for a year without receiving a dime! But I kept saying, “this will get me out of the gate and get me known so I can start playing paying gigs.” I just finally got my laptop about a month ago and have been pushing really hard to try and get out of this club. It’s at the point where I feel stuck there now and they have come to rely on me. Every now and again I get $10…

My second club I spin at I get $20 a night for an hour set weekly. So at least I’m getting paid there, but after gas and drinks I still come up in the negative.

I think the main problem I’m having is this just seems to be the general attitude of goth club promoters (all of the other DJ’s are on the same level as myself so I’m not the only one getting screwed out of good pay).

My advice to you (which is what I’m in the process of doing right now) is:

1. Don’t burn any bridges with the current club promoter. Just keep searching for another gig and work HARD at it! You have to really put yourself out there. Once you secure a paying gig, you can approach the current club promoter/ owner and let them know your time is worth money and if they don’t start paying you, you will be forced to get the paying gig. Anyone person with some amount of logic would understand this. Remember stay professional!

2. As I read through these forums, the mantra I keep seeing is “Never work for free” and this is something I will be adopting myself for sure. In fact I just had to turn down a guest DJ spot because they did not offer pay. We are not a charity and we all work hard. We deserve to get paid regardless!

So I’m in the process of searching myself for other weekly gigs to pick up and start making some cash. I will respectfully leave the clubs I spin at now on good terms for better paying, higher audience gigs.

Just remember to keep working hard, never give up, and respect the hard work you put into this by not working for free!! I hope I was able to help a bit 🙂

If I dont get paid, I wont work. Its that simple.

Are the promoters getting paid? What are the average turnouts on the weekend? Does the venue charge cover?

It sounds like the EDM scene is still developing in your town. I suggest starting your own night with of few of the other “free-Jays” at the EDM club. Talk to the bar owner, or possibly a bar owner at another place explain your worth and how you and DJs x y & z can pull a decent crowd. Work out a profit sharing deal.

That’s how I started out in Bangkok, me and a couple mates started a monthly party at an hostel. The location isn’t the best, but it has a decent system and a few regulars. We worked out with the owner that we would get 20% of the bar profits. At first we didn’t make much money, maybe taxi fare. Now, we book big name local djs in our scene to make guest appearances.

I had a promoter try to recruit me for a set at his event. It was at a venue that I also host a regular party at so I was familiar with how the owner splits 20% of the bar profit with the Djs. The promoter claimed that he could only afford to pay him and his friend, since they had to buy lots of drinks for the 6 other djs they had booked for the night! I put him on blast on his event page. Mentioned how I’m not in it for the money, but it’s unfair for only a few of the people putting in work to get paid. Even if it ends up being only $5 each, everyone should share in the profits in some way. It’s ok to give a couple freebies at first to help grow the scene, but don’t let the promoters exploit your work! Talk to the other Djs who aren’t getting paid, it might be time to organize! haha

I know that in a town with a limited scene in the genre you are, it can get tough and people can get desperate.
However playing for free does not solve the problem.
Also if the club is not shutting down, then they do get enough money. I did see the income bills on several occasions in the clubs I DJed and even if in a big club where I was DJing the mainfloor and sadly another club had a huge event… so there were only 50 people the whole night… the income was beyond what you think possible….
Yes they do need to make a profit, but so do you. If there is not enough for you to take at least a minimal wage, then they should close down the club or have iTunes play songs.

In my town when I started out as an Industrial DJ I was the only one playing it. But it did not let myself get pressed into it. I made friends with promoters and now my hometown has a healthy Industrial scene, even with me not playing Industrial for over 6 years and the clubs that play it are packed and the DJs get decent pay.

If there is no scene, then you have to make one, but not taking any money does not solve it, because you will have no money to invest in promoting the scene and re-investing for more pay in bigger clubs…

Ess Jay, post: 35999, member: 2540 wrote: Find a small venue and host a party. The smaller it is, the less people you would need to make it look busy. Might not make money to start with, but if it is successful you can then move up to bigger places and people will wanna pay.

Agreed, that’s what I did over here with a few mates. We took our Evolver party from a small hostel with a PA and 20 of our friends to a monthly fixture at the home of underground EDM music in Bangkok. It took us about a year, but we stuck with it and even though the money is small, it’s all ours since we’re promoting the party and djing.

at the very least try and arrange a bar tab 😀