Red Bull Event

I say take it, in the end it is about the music and the crowd right. Take that leap either way i bet you good money that you will walk away with a learning experience

That said you must be prepared to bring on your A game

I say take it; worst case scenario: you loose the DJ competition. So what? The real competition here is you against yourself: against the limits of your imagination, against your skills, against your taste to pick tunes, against your sense of timing to drop the right tune at the right moment. You start to compete with other DJ’s only when you start fighting to get gigs, not before.

Remember that time when you found a musical gem that you just couldn’t stop listening to? Or the other time when you were distractedly listening to some song that made you remind of another one and think “hhmmm… i’ll bet i could mix them”? The times that you went showing new music to your friends (until they went totally bored lol) but you didn’t stopped because you were totally into the music being played? Or maybe all the times that you made some really cool mix that you kept on doing it again and again, not because you needed to practice but just because you loved to ear yourself? All that were some of the reasons that made you become a DJ. The moment you loose that, you stopped being a DJ, no matter how big your name is.

About equipment: yes, that’s true, without expensive shinny gear you will not be seen as a “standard” DJ. Then again, since you can’t do much about the way you are seen, focus yourself on the way that you are heard. Don’t spent a ton of money with gear if you are starting, instead spent a ton of time with your tunes. I’ll rather have Jimmy Page playing the lamest, cheapest guitar ever than some incompetent wannabe with lots of money to spent boring me to death with just average music.

And have fun! If you are not having fun just drop it and go do something else that makes you happy as a human being (i assure you that the minute that i stop being happy with this craft, i’ll stop it period). This is not neurology, this is music, one of the coolest things mankind ever invented by mankind 🙂

So, that gig scares you: good, that will make you work hard to avoid screwing things up; everytime i get a gig i get nervous, and i don’t have any problem to admit it. So what? I’ll rather be the guy “sh*tting enough bricks to build a couple buildings” and do something new and creative than to play the “oh i’m so cool” number and be average, there is no excuse for one not giving is best to the people listening.

So once again, do it and have fun. Don’t get drunk!!!!

It’s true – DJs will frown upon your equipment no use saying they won’t… but if you can pull your weight the crowd won’t care – one thing that I’ve always found though is always be respectful to all the other DJs. Being nice and polite is the greatest marketing tool that most DJs ignore.