How to become a DJ from scratch. Make your own tracks! Dj: definition and myths

Now many boys want to become DJs, play their original mixes in trendy nightclubs and earn a lot of money. Girls want to meet DJs, go to clubs with them and hang out there until the morning. There is a continuous series of clips on TV featuring DJs and beautiful and glamorous nightlife. All this makes the work of a DJ very attractive and desirable. But not many people know how to become a DJ, what this work will actually bring to you.

DJ profession in real life is not as simple as some people imagine. And like every profession, there are occupational diseases and injuries. Deafness, hearing impairment, chronic alcoholism. DJs, as a rule, all drink alcohol at work. 🙂

And the drunkenness of DJs often leads them to alcoholism, depression and, ultimately, to loss of work and the appearance of a bad reputation, which is also very important for a successful DJ.

But if you are ready for any difficulties and still want to become a DJ, then I would like to give some tips that will help you. I have already written before about what kinds of DJs there are, what kind of listeners they work for, and what are the pros and cons of this or that DJ.

But before you start acting, you need to decide what kind of DJ you need to become. And what do you want to get from being a DJ? If there is money and stability, then you need to look away "mobile taverns" DJs

If you want nightlife and drunken stupor, then you should become a club DJ. Club DJs can immediately forget about money. You'll earn money on a taxi home and a couple of cocktails for the girls.

I’ll write right away about the money that DJs are paid in Kirov. The salary is very small, 600-1500 rubles per night, no one else will pay you, unless of course you are a guest star with a well-known name and an army of fans who are guaranteed to come to your performance and drink all the alcohol in the nightclub bar.

The popularity of the DJ profession has led to wild competition; now any club or cafe can find a boy with a laptop who will work for pennies, and they will simply send you with your requests for a decent salary. So DJs move from one club to another, looking like fishermen for places where the “bite” is better, where it will be profitable for the DJ to work and “cool” in the atmosphere.

If you work in a cafe, then you have the opportunity to earn good money by ordering songs and congratulating guests. But then you can forget about your original mixes and work in one favorite musical style. You'll have to play and listen to Shatunov, with Tender May and so on Soviet repertoire last century. He who pays calls the tune, you should already be working for the guests.

So, you wanted to become a DJ and chose your favorite style of music, decided to work for a future name and are ready for difficulties and pittance salaries. The advantages of being a beginner include an undamaged reputation and a willingness to work for pennies; you can easily be hired as a “pick-up” in any establishment where you can learn how to work as a DJ. Don’t immediately rush to expensive and popular places, the competition there is not weak even without you, I already wrote about “nomadic” DJs above.

As a beginner, you need to look for a third-rate establishment, where more experienced DJs do not go because of the low salary, and the guests there mainly come to drink and rarely order songs. This is the kind of place they will take you to, if, of course, you can reliably lie to the administrator, they say “I am an experienced and competent DJ”.

Don’t be afraid that there will be super professional equipment, “pioneers” and “vinyls”. In such places, the equipment is usually the cheapest and has already been killed by newbie Jedi before you. You can even ask the administrator to explain how everything works and turns on.

The ideal option for a beginner is to become a free assistant for a more experienced and mature DJ. You will be taught how to work correctly and navigate around guests, and will be given the opportunity to practice and improve. Little by little you will gain an understanding of this profession and, of course, gain the necessary experience.

Is it worth going to DJ school? Personally, my attitude towards such schools is ambiguous. There, for your hard-earned money, they will give you a lot of information, a little practice and a lot of theory.

But the only thing The right way becoming a good and sought-after DJ is a constant and long-term practice. And they won’t give you this at school. They can teach you how to play vinyl, but there are only a few establishments in Kirov where you can play them. Ladies, everything is already full without you. And as a newcomer without a name, you won’t be allowed anywhere near the stage.

There they will teach you how to work with equipment, which in itself is not bad, the job of a DJ is to communicate with the audience, dancing people. Feeling and predicting the desire of the audience comes only with experience. Graduates of such schools often try to find institutions for themselves, but usually to no avail. A DJ is worthless if he can do everything, but there is no dance floor and no dancers on it. A waste of money. But this is an opportunity to meet DJs, become a person "on topic ".

And then, you will have a chance to become a free DJ assistant, and this, as I already wrote, is the most best school for a beginner who wants to become a DJ.

Such a concept as a DJ began to firmly enter our lives only in the last couple of decades; before that, we did not even know what kind of people they were and what they did. Development club movement did this profession very fashionable and desirable for many boys and girls. Today we will talk about how to become a DJ.

A little about the profession

If you are puzzled by how to become a DJ, then know that this area activity is one of the most promising in the world. For example, almost half of UK teenagers aged 15 years say they want to devote their lives to this profession. This means that they are going to strive for career growth and improve your well-being without spending days on end in a stuffy office with a strict work schedule and annoying dress code. By the way, the financial benefits of this profession are very obvious: for example, a domestic professional DJ can easily earn money in one night.

Is one desire enough?

Many young people, concerned about how to become a DJ, end up convincing themselves that one desire is enough. There is some truth in this: at first it is really very important. However, subsequently the desire must be reinforced sober calculation and a developed plan for further action. It is necessary to clearly understand that popular domestic and foreign DJs have been on their way to fame for a long time and high fees. Many of today's young people, having barely learned to mix, already believe that they are quite ready to conquer the world charts. As a result, such “upstarts” never manage to recognize the entire creative component of the profession, and their works do not find a response among music connoisseurs.

No music education? No problem!

If someone, when asked about how to become a professional DJ, tells you that you cannot do without knowledge of musical notation, do not believe him. After all, not all people who gained fame in this field had classes behind them. music school. However this fact It didn’t stop them from starting dance floors with their sets and selling albums in the millions. All that is required of a DJ at the initial stage is availability. Of course, musical literacy will also be required, but a little later, when you start writing your own tracks.

How quickly can you achieve success?

It is impossible to unequivocally answer the question of being a DJ. Everything will depend on your abilities, as well as the time you devote to this matter. Of course, the more effort you put in, the faster you can achieve the desired result. We can definitely say that you will have to spend quite a lot of time creating your unique and memorable “I”, which would set you apart from the numerous gray masses. Remember that the DJ is a public figure who is the center of attention of journalists and clubgoers. Therefore, it should look appropriate. By building up your unique image grain by grain, in two to three years you will be able to achieve certain heights in this profession.

Do you need a mentor?

Many, discussing the topic of how to become a DJ, claim that it will not be possible to do this without a teacher. However, professionals insist that it is quite possible to master this science on your own if you have the desire and certain abilities. Of course, if you have an experienced mentor next to you, he will probably share with you professional secrets and will point out errors. But if there is no such person among your friends, then you should not despair. It may take you a little longer to understand all the nuances, but you can still achieve success.

Where to start?

First of all, you need to understand in detail what kind of environment you will find yourself in after your dream of becoming a DJ comes true. Because the club life is part of show business, you need to try to find out what it is. What rules and laws exist in it, as well as who sets the accents and sets the tone for certain processes. First of all, analyze the situation in your city. Find out what clubs and promotional agencies exist here, who is in them and for what reason. Also find out which DJs are the most popular and try to understand how they managed to achieve this. Once you can answer these questions, your professional future will become more or less clear.

Now you can move on to compiling step-by-step plan development. First, you need to set aside a couple of months for training. Despite the fact that there is nothing difficult in mixing records, this process requires certain skills. It will take about three more months to select a suitable musical material and recording a high-quality promo mix, which will later become yours business card. You will also have to spend some time knocking on the doors of nightclubs and booking agencies before you are given a chance to prove yourself. And here you simply cannot lose face in the dirt. It is necessary to prove yourself to be a true professional who knows and loves his job.

How to become a DJ in a club: the financial side of the issue

Many people advise beginners in this business to purchase the cheapest DJ equipment at first. However, some professional DJs strongly disagree with this. This is due to the fact that the vast majority of clubs around the world have a standard set of equipment. In addition, once you purchase inexpensive turntables, sooner or later you will want to replace them with a professional DJ set. Therefore, if you seriously decide to devote yourself to this matter, then do not skimp on the appropriate equipment.

How to become a radio DJ?

The work of a DJ on the radio is significantly different from the same activity in a nightclub. In addition to the ability to select music that is interesting and suits the tastes of the target audience and the format of the station, you will also need to have a pleasant voice and the ability to speak English. various topics, as well as conduct dialogue with listeners. If you are confident in your abilities, then go straight to one of the local radio stations and feel free to propose your candidacy.

This type of activity, and one might even say the profession of DJing, is becoming increasingly popular among young people. If just a couple of decades ago this type of activity was new and little-known, today many young people dream of seeing themselves behind a DJ console, and from time to time they think about how they can become a DJ.

Who is a DJ?

The term is borrowed from in English, where is the abbreviation DJ stands for disc jockey, and indicates a person who plays various musical compositions for a specific audience, giving the finished tracks special shades of sound using special equipment.

The DJ console can be equipped with a variety of musical equipment from regular turntables and turntables to synthesizers and laptops with special programs sound processing and creation. Of course, the person behind this remote control must not only have an excellent command of all the skills of operating such equipment, but also create his own unique style that attracts the audience and distinguishes him from others.

We will determine the direction of work and its place

Few people think that the DJ profession has several directions, and each has its own characteristics. How to become a DJ? First of all, you need to decide on the place of further work. It can be:

Clubs (club DJ).
Various parties, holidays and events (mobile DJ).
Radio stations (radio DJ).

In addition, DJs are divided by the type of musical media they work with and the equipment necessary for this. Today, not everyone knows how to operate a vinyl installation; some prefer to work on a professional laptop, adding special effects to tracks from a variety of music programs, and someone plays music from regular CDs.

Of course, the style of music and the peculiarities of its playing, as well as the addition of special effects and unique moments, also contribute to the division and development of one’s own direction. But still, most DJs prefer to be generalists using music different styles with the creation of your own “trick”. This approach allows you to attract different audiences and increase the number of fans.

Let's take a look at the club

Of course, not a single club establishment can do without its own DJ, who is its face, its feature. This is explained simply - people come to clubs to relax, dance or just listen to music in a certain style and manner of performance. Many club visitors come to listen to the DJ and look at his work, to get a certain mood and emotions.

According to many professionals, a DJ is not a profession or a job, it is a state of mind and heart. This is the life's work of many people.

Almost all world-famous professional DJs unanimously say that decent money in the DJ business will only be received by a person who is not trying to get it.

To be a DJ is, first of all, to have the desire to give joy to people, surprise them with your skills, make them forget about all their problems and completely surrender to the musical style.

Becoming a DJ without any skills, but with a great desire, is quite possible. This is far from easy, but it is as possible as learning to play the violin or piano.

A person who strives to devote his life to this business must love nightclubs, not get tired of loud music and large cluster people, find mutual language with the audience, not to be constrained or shy, to have an ear for music.

Before you start storming the Internet in search of recommendations on how to become a DJ from scratch, you need to know that only true fans of their craft, who believe in themselves and their capabilities one hundred percent, achieve real success.

How to become a DJ: where to start

To learn how to DJ, you can take several paths. You can learn this art at a special school, sign up for classes with a teacher in person, or master the profession of a DJ on your own.

All these methods are available, but each of them should be discussed in more detail.

DJ school

The advantages of this type of training are the ability not to worry about lost knowledge and the successful combination of theory and practice. The problem with the equipment is also automatically resolved.

When choosing a school, be sure to focus on reviews from graduates, who probably know about the professionalism of the teachers and the quality of the equipment.

Lessons with a teacher

In such classes, each student is subject to individual approach. In addition, the problem with the equipment is solved.

After successful training with a teacher, you can meet established professionals and find a job in your favorite field. The problem is that a good teacher of this craft is far from easy to find.

Selfeducation

The most time-consuming way to master the skill of working as a DJ is to teach it yourself. The disadvantage of this method is that you need to purchase the equipment yourself.

Many experts claim that this method is the most effective, because only true fans will have the patience to complete the training. In addition, you can find many world-famous effective techniques and learn with their help.

What to do after training

So, you have already completed the training, now you need to know directly how to become a DJ from scratch and where to start when looking for a job?

The answer is very simple: start by defining your style of music. For a beginner in DJing, it is best to decide on a favorite style and master your favorite business in its direction.

After some practice, you will need to expand your musical boundaries to several styles. Ideally there should be no problem with any style.

The second step is to find a job. There are three ways to become a successful DJ:

Radio DJ;

In this case, your responsibilities will include choosing music for broadcast, communicating with listeners, reporting news of any type and level of urgency.

A specialist in this field must have good diction and be able to speak clearly for quite a long time.

In addition, you need to be able to control your work and coordinate it with announcers, producers, and scriptwriters. This all needs to be done very quickly.

DJ in a club;

In this case, you need to be able to compose long mixed mixes. Transitions between songs should not be heard.

This is quite painstaking work that requires musical taste and patience. Such a DJ must feel the music, which is why he can become music producer in perspective.

But this is very difficult, because simply recording a track is not enough. Throughout the event you need to entertain the audience, arouse interest and maintain the right mood.

Mobile DJ.

Such a professional works at all kinds of events: parties, weddings, corporate events. The disadvantage of this type of DJing is that you must have your own equipment.

In addition, such specialists work for themselves, so communication skills are required in order to find new customers and promote themselves as a professional.

Without work experience, it is quite difficult to get any of the above positions, so you need to have talent and communication skills.

The third step in mastering the profession is choosing an audio medium.

They are:

A vinyl record conveys very good sound quality, but it can only hold a very limited amount of music;
A CD can hold much larger volumes of music, but is significantly inferior in quality to a record;
A laptop or computer can hold enormous sizes, but the tracks are written with such losses that about good quality can be forgotten.

If the DJ is a real pro, then he can combine work on all these devices at once, this is done with the help of special equipment.

Once the choice in favor of the desired musical media has been made, you can proceed directly to the purchase of musical equipment.

How to become a DJ from scratch and what equipment you need

If the DJ's music carrier is a vinyl record, then to play the music you will need.

You need to purchase a vinyl player, and in the future constantly change records. When working with a disc, you need to buy two players and a mixing console.

The most problematic choice of equipment is selecting it for a laptop. In this case you will need:

Laptop;
Headphones;
Speakers;
Software;
DJ controller.

Naturally, if you want to become a real professional, you should not choose cheap equipment.

Future celebrity music collection

You need to look for as much quality music as possible for the medium you have chosen. In the collection of tracks of a true professional there should be everyone’s favorite and very popular songs, and rare soundtracks.

The Internet is the best and highest quality resource for searching for music. But do not forget that creating a remix of any song is illegal if there is no consent of the author. It's better, of course, to learn how to create your own music.

But such experience comes with time, provided great desire And huge amount the work done.

Composing tracks

All you need to do in the previous steps is to learn how to write quality music. A professional DJ has a well-developed sense of rhythm and ear for music.

One more thing: a beginner will have to learn the whole theory. Yes, it’s boring at times, but you can’t do without it in mastering the DJ business.

Thus, the work of a DJ is not as easy as it might seem at first glance. In addition, a professional in his field must be able to find a common language with different audiences.

Therefore, not everyone can master this skill. Adequately assess your strengths and don’t be lazy, start learning, then success and recognition are guaranteed to you.

Historical aspect

So interesting profession originated already in 1906. How did this happen? During the Christmas holidays, Reginald A Fessenden broadcast not standard encoded signals (as was usually the case), but real music and speeches, which caused absolute delight from the audience. Thus, the famous American commentator Walter Winchell became the first to introduce the term “disc jockey” to society, which was directly related to radio host Martin Block, the first DJ who later became a star. Later, the concept of DJ began to be used in society to denote the presented term. In addition, this phrase is the original root of the term “DJing,” which explains the activity of a DJ. Thus, sounds and music became the main aspect of this profession. DJ mixes different compositions into a pleasant and high-quality complex using special equipment. For successful career V musical field are definitely necessary creative inclinations, Availability good taste and serious preparation in the relevant field.

The front side of the profession

As it turns out, the job of a DJ is to track, collect and mix (mix) musical compositions and their individual parts. These operations must be performed in order to dance party or going on the radio, he could choose the most suitable ones from a variety of audio recordings and provide them for public listening, because the specific situation and specifics of the event can be fully determined and brightened by well-chosen music. DJing is not an easy job, as some people think at first glance. But society is only familiar with front side medals. A huge part of his work takes place behind the scenes. entertainment programs and beyond the scenes of atmospheric dance halls. around the world, they practice identifying and listening to an incredible number of speakers, getting to know a wide variety of melodies and, accordingly, their performers, familiarizing themselves with endless public polls, chart results and other musical information, and, of course, scrupulously working with all sorts of materials used in further creative work. ways.

Technical aspect of the profession

As noted earlier, it involves direct mixing of various musical fragments. Here, the master is required to have absolute knowledge of technology, mastery of the appropriate techniques and skills in working with professional equipment (sampler, turn table, and so on). Naturally, with the advent of CD players, the work of DJs has become significantly easier and has expanded significantly in terms of capabilities (quickly changing the speed of recordings and creating even the most unusual musical effects). Despite such a significant revolution, professional DJs still believe that there are no discoveries or miracles scientific progress unable to become a suitable alternative to the familiar and tried and true vinyl records. They are inclined to believe that even the most virtuoso technical technique It won't help if the music is boring or poorly chosen. It's important to note that best djs peace learned not only to mix compositions, but also to correctly say what is the most important aspect this area, because it is very important to qualitatively and successfully “eclipse” the pause between musical creations.

DJ as a pioneer of a new sound

An important aspect of the DJ profession is the master’s ability to stir up public interest, which never allows one to stand in one place, remaining hostage to a standard and so boring melody, song or one rhythm. Thus, the master of this field can rightfully be called a musical preacher, because over a huge period of time of the existence of the professional category (more than fifty years), it was the DJ who processed the first rhythm and blues, and then rock and roll. In addition, the presented creations were broadcast even despite strong opposition from conservatives. An interesting fact is that it was the radio DJ who brought out today’s very well-known styles, including disco, techno, house or hip-hop. So, in modern times DJ skills determine the direction of popular clubs and radio stations. In addition, the names famous figures of this category (for example, Groove) are on a par with the names of our pop stars.

DJ is the modern master of dance!

It is important to note that DJ activities have long been not limited to minor clubs. Thus, large-scale sites are being actively developed concert halls and even the widest stadiums. Moreover, the most famous performers Today they often order remixes of their songs from professionals. No one will argue that today it is impossible to imagine a single youth event, festival or competition without a DJ, because the master of music can not only control the public mood, but also make speeches with sincerity.

DJing is not just a profession, but a way of life. As a rule, it is related to young people, because often, due to a non-standard work schedule, there is practically no time left for sleep. You need to play at night, when the clubs where the event is taking place are open and crowded. disco. DJ- a man, of course, “burning” with his work, because if his soul were not so passionate about music, it is unlikely that he would work to the detriment of his daily routine.

Personal qualities of a DJ

Of course, in addition to professional skills and knowledge, the main ones of which are knowledge musical styles and specialized equipment, the ability to mix tracks, experience in cutting music, high-quality equipment setup, conducting entertainment events, availability of music data and creative imagination, a radio DJ must have a number of personal qualities that will help maximize the productivity of his activities and, of course, his general mood. It would be advisable to include competent and pleasant speech here, good production diction, developed taste preferences for aesthetics, the ability to speak beautifully, as well as to formulate one’s thoughts extremely clearly, good feeling humor, taste in music, energy, sociability and, of course, restraint. All these qualities will help the DJ to fully realize his potential and truly charge the audience with positive energy.

Employment issue

The modern public is particularly diverse, and a DJ is a person who needs to clearly capture their mood and create a festive atmosphere. Of course, a specialist in this field must have an excellent understanding of music, know what is popular on this moment, and what was most common, for example, in the 90s. It is important to note that in major cities the number of DJs is increasing every year. And this is not surprising, because young people find this work quite interesting and very profitable. Moreover, good specialist d in this area, capable of not only performing professional operations efficiently, but also getting pleasure from it, will undoubtedly be in demand. have very good earnings. They are invited to various events and paid for every hour of work. In addition, in restaurants and other public institutions there is a separate rate for workers in the profession in question. A nightclub resident receives a smaller amount per hour of activity than an invited guest. However, this work is based on permanent conditions and a fixed salary.

Universities do not produce DJs

It is important to note that the DJ profession is not taught in universities and colleges. Therefore, to become familiar with this area of knowledge, it is necessary to undergo training independently or through specialized courses. It was noted above that operating in a nightclub requires skills in working with a variety of media (both standard and innovative). In addition, absolute computer knowledge in terms of music mixing is important. The DJ must have his own equipment, especially if we're talking about about servicing thematic events of a private nature (weddings, anniversaries, graduations, specific parties, corporate events, and so on). A music specialist also needs to periodically select a personal library. These should not only be tracks that suit the taste of the DJ himself, but also those that are fully capable of satisfying a wide audience. Professionals note that the most important thing for a professional is good musical ear and But these qualities can be developed independently!

Specifics of the profession

Like any type of activity, musical field has its pros and cons. Thus, in the process of working as a DJ, the main advantages are the opportunity to start a career at almost any age (which is why 16-year-old DJs today are far from uncommon), the exclusion of “old” DJs in this area (for some, the hobby becomes uninteresting, while others turn him into his life's work), interesting life, because a DJ can constantly travel, make new acquaintances, fans, and most importantly - fruitfully do his job. The profession also has a number of disadvantages, among which the following are quite significant: work at night (but for some this is a plus), unhealthy atmosphere in clubs (loud music, a lot of smoke, not always friendly visitors, severe fatigue at the end of the shift and so on), as well as the need to have your own equipment, but decent equipment costs a lot of money. But there is also a latent plus in the last point: the equipment can be rented out!