Some Advice?

R

R.A.E

The Village Idiot
I guess I should introduce myself first. I go to Berklee College of Music. I'm majoring Music Production and Engineering. I like all aspects of music but for some reason engineering catches me more.
Now that we are done with the small talk, my family is having a family reunion. I'm sure everyone is familiar with this. Now they asked me to DJ for it. I have no problem DJing for it but what my concern is, is what I should charge my family. They want me to do it 3 times. Friday night, Saturday morning unto the afternoon, then that same Saturdays evening. The hours total up to 11. Now they want to pay me about 400...I thought that was kind of low for 2 days....pretty much non stop. I figure I should get a bit more then that seeing as how I'm going to a 40,000 dollar school and taking out loans of 9,000 just to make it through the year. I told them that wasn't really going to cut it for me. What do you think I should ask for?
Second on the agenda, I have a playlist set up for Saturday night. That is when the "party" goes down. Of course it is all ages so I can't roll up there blasten some young joc. I have about 55 songs set up for Saturday night, including all the good line dance favorites like electric slide for the old, chacha for the young and perculator for the teens. I also set up booty call for the middle age ^.^ I was wondering what else I should add to that list? Open to all ideas because if I don't use them that night, I will use them Friday or Saturday mornin'. So it would be nice if you all could post some nice songs for a black family reunion which the older ones are from down south (Georgia).

Happy 4th of July!

Thanks a bunch.
 
If you don't have at least 6-7 cuts from Zapp and Roger's Greatest Hit's on ya list, you betta get hot.....
 
more bounce
sweet fantasy
aint no future in yo frontin
ring my bell
white horse
lenny wiliams i love you
atomic dog
second time around
eric b i know you got soul
ring my bell
cutie pie
this is how we do it
pistol grip pump instrumental
slick rick childrens story
maria maria
mjb and meth you all i need
al green.....
da butt yes da butt

Not trying to tell you how to get yo mix on but
Because of the diversity of your crowd you need to pick songs that have been remade from older songs so the young can feel ok and the old can identify. but you also ned songs that are specific for the time like al green for the old and r. kelly. Also go with more rnb that has an old school feel so you can flip new school stuff in between. keep the rap to the most popular stuff. I used to spin more hip hop than straight rap to keep the older crowd in the groove and to not tlose the younger crowd I would use rnb instrumentals as break beats that were hot like when totals cant you see was popular made for a dame good break beat. then flip a rap joint on it so It was like they still in the groove. and they want to feel young so as long as you flip it back to them after a while they willl stay on the dance floor. Ice cubes instrumentals are great for break beats..

Just do you you will be fine tho

The bottom line is you gotta command the crowd from the getty up
 
Wow Ram, that was extremely informative. I needed that. Thanks a lot my man.
As for the line up of songs, I needed that too. I have about a quarter of them on the playlist already but there are quite a few I forgot about. I can't believe I missed some of them.
It is a pain playin songs for such a diverse crowd. But that seems to be the perfect way to keep everyone happy.
 
groovyisland said:
if family asks a favor you do it aint that right
Click to expand...

I am doing it, its just a matter of payment man. I'm trying to figure out how much I should get. I mean they should be willing to toss as many bones as they can seeing as how I'm in school and I can't even pay my way by myself. They should want to hop on that and be like here, this is all we can give, just make sure you keep them grades up.
 
wow thats crazy that you gonna charge your own fam. to play at your own family reunion the way you should see it is if they happen to throw some money your way then cool if not than that should be cool too but charging them to do it is like sayin they are clients and not your family and to me that is whack....iono could be just the way i been raised. i would rather dj at my fam. reunion than sit there and listen to some other cats music but thats just me
 
when i saw the 400 I was like dam all those years my grandmamma told me I was dj ing it for free. On the real my peeps used to tell me I was doing it and the one time I tried to argue it my mamma and grandma told me " What!!! We gave yo lil ass life so untill you can trump that then get yo ass in there and put them records in the crate." They did cover any new records I needed for the reunion and any xtra equipment.They also asigned people to set it all up moving the records and things. But hey thats just my peeps. 400 seems like a blessing from family. Thats why most cats in here keep addressing the music and not the finance sign. I know you got bills but you might need to chalk this one up to paying the soul and be happy with the 400. Consider it a gift. That might be they way of trying to throw something at you cuz they know you got bills.

"I once complained of having no shoes till I met a man that had no feet"
 
I was raised the same way. I don't ever ask for pay when I perform for them, as in bands or solo acts. I remember when they used to ask me to do stuff and I would be like "whats in it for me?" and they used to be like "food and water, now go do it." So I was raised the same way. I almost never charge them. But see my dad sees it as, "you are getting ripped off because for 3 gigs a normal DJ would get paid a hell of a lot of money and you are trying to get through college. Plus you have to pay for gas to hull all this stuff around to 3 different places and its probably in that mazda going to cost you atleast 2 full tanks. Not to mention you have to pay for the cds you don't have and then split it with your brothers."
I 've already disputed the splitting it with my brothers because they are 9 and 13. Now 400 dollars between, gas, those cds, and splitting it with my brothers...I'm going to end up with 20 dollars by the end of the night. I'd rather be playing piano for a church both nights getting paid over that.
I see what you mean by it being a service to the family, cause you know...it is family, but even my dad said they should toss me a few bones because of my situation. btw, thats 9,000s a semester so by the end of the year its like 20k in loans I have to pay off. Not to mention the government ones. I'm dead poor, the family should be there.
Welp, I guess I'll just take it in the ass and take what they give, sigh. I just don't think its right I have to split it with my significantly younger brothers who ain't going to do ish but sit there look pretty and tell me to play "this song." What the hell do they need money for at that age.
 
Hey RAM, who sings that Cutie Pie joint?? Can't remember...I remember my pops used to bang that shit....
 
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