How to DJ

So you want to learn how to DJ, do ya? Well, you’re in the right place because within this post are the secrets to every aspect of the trade. Learning how to DJ will certainly take some time so for those that don’t want to stick with the hobby, it’s best to leave now.

For those that have stayed, you will learn a variety of items from choosing the right DJ gear to start with all the way to landing your first gig. Are you ready?

Purchasing your beginning DJ gear

The DJ gear you wish to purchase when learning how to DJ is very important because of two things:

  • Gear will eventually be used when you reach professional levels
  • Gear that you start with should be high quality to avoid hampering your learning

The reason why you’d want to start with higher end gear is that many of the cheaper packages you find for DJing don’t provide the solid equipment that you’re going to be using when mixing on a professional level; the equipment may break, begin to warp or frustrate you during the initial learning curve.

So then what is the best gear to get started with DJing?

It’s a hard question to answer because it really depends on your budget. The more you save, the better gear you can start off with. An entire overview of what gear you’d need when learning how to become a DJ can be found in the Essential DJ Equipment guide or on the right sidebar.

If you don’t have time to select gear at this moment and want to get started; I’d recommend a midi controller by Hercules which is only around $100, allows you to hook it up to your computer and begin mixing your MP3′s within a few minutes – it’s well worth the investment at this point in time. Likewise, I’ve created a secondary site (work in progress) about DJ Equipment for Beginners which will take you through these DJ gear basics as well.

Once you have your gear selected, it’s time to move onto learning the basics of DJing.

Learning the basics of DJing

how to become a djThe next (and mos crucial step) of learning how to become a DJ are the basic skills you’ll be using throughout your entire career (or hobby days). These basics include techniques such as beatmatching, mixing, cuing your tracks, selecting the right music and more.

There are more than a few tutorials here on BeginnerDJ that will help you get started with learning the basics; choose from some of the following posts and then come back over to continue with learning how to DJ:

Although most of these posts will cover all of the basics, there are still many different techniques that you’ll learn only after practicing over time; these techniques are more personal flares that you’ll be using in your mixing so that’s why it’s a bit beyond just a blog post.

Practice makes perfect (don’t skip this)

learn how to djWith your DJ gear all setup and the basics of DJing down pat, your next task when learning how to become a DJ is to practice, practice, practice. No seriously. The biggest hurdle that you’re going to face when DJing is getting the feel of it all and that only comes with many, many hours of practicing.

At this point, most people will give up on DJing but DON’T! You’ve already come this far, why give up now? Once you have the basics mastered, you can really begin to expand beyond them and start doing full mixes and promote yourself as a DJ.

Another important quality to remember is that you have to believe in yourself (as cheesy as that sounds). Many people get caught up with wanting to practice just a liiiiitle bit more before they create a mix; although I did say you should constantly be practicing, you should also know when to just jump right in and give it your all.

We all learn as we go and, frankly, the best the best way to do it.

Promoting yourself like a pro

You’re at such a lucky time right now; those that are learning how to become a DJ pretty much have it made in terms of promoting themselves. Through the use of the internet, you can spread your mixes, image and name all over the world for free! There’s no better time to get out promoting yourself than right now; so many people aren’t taking advantage of this platform and it really just comes down to joining social networks, uploading your mixes, creating a website or just having others share for you.

I’ve wrote a few guides previously on how you can use the internet to promote yourself as a DJ:

Quite literally, for $20, you can setup your own blog and begin sharing your mixes with others. With a permanent domain, your mixes will always be there for people. Additionally, at a later point, you can begin promoting the parties that you’ll be playing at which will, in turn, help get you heard – it’s like a perpetual promotion machine!

You probably have all the skills you need to promote yourself online right now because you’re most likely already part of social networks; now you just need to shift focus from talking about movies and stuff into your latest mix and getting people to give you feedback – simple, right?!

Landing the gig of a lifetime

Start DJingAnd now comes the all important part that’s going to set you out from the rest of the hobbyist that are learning how to become a DJ – it’s your time to shine: it’s your time to land a gig.

Landing a gig is a bit difficult when you’re first starting off but, like anything, it all comes down to the connections you make. Remember when I said you should start a blog? (Like, 3 sentences ago), yeah, that’s one of the best ways you can land your first gig.

When you start to build a following online and talk with others around your area, you can begin to approach party promoters and club owners for a gig. If you have your promo mix all ready and mastered, it’s just handing over the file/cd and hoping for the best.

Promoters want to know that you can bring in a crowd because they’re trying to make a bit of money from ticket sales or drinks. A DJ that doesn’t have a crowd is bad for their business which means it’s less likely that you’ll land the gig. If you have a great following online already that are willing to come out and promote you during your mixing than you have additional swagger to bring to the promoter’s table. See what I’m saying?

Over time, like many artists, you’ll need to do your due’s. You’ll have to run the local circuit and work your way up; it all takes time and this is the point where you absolutely can’t give up if you want to go all the way. Keep at it and eventually you’ll hit that point where you’ll start landing the gigs you want – it’s the tipping point baby!

Once you build a name for yourself; gigs will come easier and easier and the old dream of becoming a DJ is now a reality.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

In conclusion, if you really want to know how to DJ than you need to take the time to do as much research as possible about the hobby and career. BeginnerDJ is a great resource for many budding DJ’s but you’ll also find a lot of great information out there on the web or through video series like How to DJ Fast.

It all comes down persistence; much like anything. If you set your mind to becoming a DJ and stick with it by practicing every day than you’ll eventually get there. You’ll find your love of the music to increase as you get to play in front of crowds. You’ll love that you’ll be living the party life and being paid for it. You’ll love that you literally get to listen to music all day – who wouldn’t want that, am I right?

So just do it; take the plunge. If you’ve been setting off this hobby for some time than now’s the best time to start – if you do, I wish you the best of luck on your question to become a DJ.

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