Anybody DJ for weddings, parties, etc???

  • Thread starter Thread starter dastrick
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dastrick

dastrick

huh???
I'm considering starting to DJ weddings, parties, etc. on the side. I'm not talking about a DJ that "spins" records.:rolleyes:

It seems like a pretty simple setup with low overhead. Do any of you do this? Or have done it in the past? What was your setup? Any advice?

I have speakers and amps that my band uses for live gigs. I'm figuring I'll need a small mixer, cd player, laptop for mp3's, maybe a karaoke unit...


And this might should've went in the DJ/Hip Hop group, but who the heck goes there??:D



Thanks for all of the valuable information that I'm sure to get from the awesome members of HR....................:D
I'm sucking up if you can't tell.
 
Yep. I've done a few. Stumbled into it the way you describe. Had a bunch of gear from doing live sound for bands at concerts, and got volunteered to do a couple parties with recorded music. (Obviously I used a much smaller set up.) After a couple of those, folks in our circle began to think of me as the "DJ" and I started getting asked to do weddings.

I use pretty much what you describe--except no CD player; I'm all MP3.
 
My experience is the same as WhiteStrats. After years of playing in bands, I was asked if I could do the music for a school social. From there on I gradually did more on more DJ jobs. Because I was using CDs (MP3s weren't around when I started), it cost me a fortune in keeping up-to-date. I did a lot of football club jobs, and that was were my eventual disenchantment set in . . . I couldn't take to all the drunk yobbos screaming out "one more, one more!" at some ungodly hour in the morning. So I eventually weaned myself off.

A pair of speakers, an amp, and a means of sequencing tracks (I used two CD players) and a nice array of flashing lights is all you need.
 
Having the right music for the job seems like it would be a pain.
 
As a DJ you also place yourself on the open season list of all musicians trying to make a living from playing real music at weddings.



(:cool:)
 
none

Well, the best advice is to really learn how to read a crowd and learn it well. That will separate you from the amateurs. Having a great collection to go along with that will definitely help. I suggest going with "Greatest Hits" collections for classics and standards to get you going along with a subscription to one of the DJ services out there (RPM, Traxx, etc). For MP3 work, I highly recommend going with VirtualDJ. It's a bit pricey but you get some awesome features with it. Worth every penny. Get a good ripper and file converter too. You won't be sorry. For Karaoke, you can rip regular karaoke CD's and use them with VirtualDJ. A 2nd monitor adaptor will definitely come in handy here. And speaking of equipment, consider a 2nd audio adaptor so you can cue music as well as play at the same time. You won't be able to do that with only one audio (stereo) output. Finally, use good equipment. No home stereo stuff. And have spares available in case of equipment failures. Your laptop should be maintained in top shape. Keep it clean and defragmented. Get an external hard drive to store your music on and keep that in good shape too. Good luck!!!
 
As your showstopping finale, you could stick a 58 in a bucket of water (a brown one) and boom "Thank you for being such a great audience, I hope you enjoyed it, tell all your partying, engaged buddies.... !" :D
 
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