How/Why did you get started in DJing

Flatline0 4:48 AM - 10 August, 2006

Greetings all. New to the forum, so I don't know if this topic has brought up before but I've always thought knowing someone's beginnings always sheads an interesting light on your peception of them. So here goes... ( might be a long post so read if you got the time ).

I guess like most people here I've always had a love for music and for the way I would see DJ's rock a crowd at the clubs. DJing was something I always thought I could do, but for one reason or another, I never buckled down and bought my own tables.

Fast foward a few years and now I'm a young Airman in the U.S. Air Force stationed in Nebraska of all places ( I'm from Florida ). The club we use to hit was called "Guitars and Cadillacs"( now called Club 108 and looking much better these days from their myspace page ), which use to be an ol' country western bar, but would play hip hop and top 40 on Thursdays and Saturdays. I can't remember the DJ's name, but let me tell you terrible dosen't begin to explain this guy. His CD's would skip all the time and when people would boo, he would have the nerve to say on the mic " Hey, I don't tell you how to flip burgers, don't tell me how to do my job." Needless to say I stop going.

Friends would ask why I stop going and I would say I could do a better job DJing then that guy. And one day, one of my friends said " Well, why don't you then?" ....

Three weeks later after checking Mars Music ( remember that place? I think they went out of business.), for any sales I bought 2 CDJ 1000's ( I wanted some turntables at first, but really going into it blind and not knowing where to buy any vinyl in Nebraska, CD's seemed like a smart chioce). No sooner then after I bought them, I got orders to Koera and had to have my personal items picked up for shipping in 2 weeks.

The Saturday before the movers came, my friend Jules came by and told me of a friend of his who was having a bar-b-que and wanted to know if I would go and DJ it.

Me: " But yo, I don't really know how to DJ yet. I Haven't been able to practice."
Jules: " He said he'd give you $50."
Me "...?! What time should I be there?"

Long story short, I did an OK job at the bar-b-que, went to Korea,( and didn't see my CDJ's for another 4 months but thats another story), did my thing there, came back, got out the Air Force and now just working to pay the bills, but really trying to get my act together and get paid doing what I enjoy, DJing ( gonna post another topic on ideas on how to get that started). So there it is. Can't wait to read yours.

By the way, I plan on buying an SSL within the next few months and using it for gigs after coming to this site and reading these posts. Great forum here.

perish 6:20 AM - 10 August, 2006

I got into hip hop and started rapping. I had no-one to do beats and bought a sampler, turntable and records to smaple from, which ended up with having a decent collection. It grew from there until I bouight another deck. Kind of fell into it from knowing DJs etc. I don't really calss myself as a DJ, more of a record player.

djskeetz 6:46 AM - 10 August, 2006

i was high on meth, and i liked to twitch.

DJ C.A.P 6:50 AM - 10 August, 2006

Man I got into music when I was 11 (hip-hop)

Then I just caught this show where there were djing and I was Like "WOWW" I wanna do that.

Then I started listening to radio mixes. I heard remixes And I loved the way they could get a song and change it up.

When I was 13 I bought acid 5.0 and started doing my "mixtapes" (yeah I wass a wann-be)

When I was 14 my dad bought me my $200 dj set. He thought it would keep me out of trouble. I played on those belt-drives like crazy.

Then when I was 15 I decided I wanted to upgrade. I got a job at a fast-food joint. I saved up my money. And for x-mas I bought my self turntables and a mixer.

Started buying more vinyl and practicing.

After A while. I notice I had NO money to keep buying vinyl. So I stopped buying vinyl for like a month. And saved up for ssl.

Now, I buy a few vinyls and cd's and use ssl. I'm a man with little money so ssl was a good way to expand my djing without going broke.

Now, I'm 16 yrs old. Would love to work with a radio-station when I'm older.

Right Now, I'm a bedroom dj Trying to polish my skills bfore going to the dj world!!

DJ Limelight 7:56 AM - 10 August, 2006

Quote:

Man I got into music when I was 11 (hip-hop)

Then I just caught this show where there were djing and I was Like "WOWW" I wanna do that.

Then I started listening to radio mixes. I heard remixes And I loved the way they could get a song and change it up.

When I was 13 I bought acid 5.0 and started doing my "mixtapes" (yeah I wass a wann-be)

When I was 14 my dad bought me my $200 dj set. He thought it would keep me out of trouble. I played on those belt-drives like crazy.

Then when I was 15 I decided I wanted to upgrade. I got a job at a fast-food joint. I saved up my money. And for x-mas I bought my self turntables and a mixer.

Started buying more vinyl and practicing.

After A while. I notice I had NO money to keep buying vinyl. So I stopped buying vinyl for like a month. And saved up for ssl.

Now, I buy a few vinyls and cd's and use ssl. I'm a man with little money so ssl was a good way to expand my djing without going broke.

Now, I'm 16 yrs old. Would love to work with a radio-station when I'm older.

Right Now, I'm a bedroom dj Trying to polish my skills bfore going to the dj world!!

Good start. If you have the money, still buy vinyl though. Still dig and become fimiliar with what's in the crates at the record store even if you don't have the money to buy all of the time. DJ your friends house parties when you get comfortable with your skill set. There's nothing like learning how to make people move. The earlier you learn that, the better.

Monk-A 9:01 AM - 10 August, 2006

My parents always had music on in the house, and then when hip hop dropped I was breaker.

started making tape eidts of the tracks i wanted to hear and making little compilations that i coudl break to, and then started doing little tape edits and so on and that progressed in to Pause Button Mixtapes, and then I got a record player and an amp for christmas and then tried scratching on that using the rotary volume fader, and my parents decide they'd buy em amixer for my birthday and i was off!!

deejayfatcat 3:41 PM - 10 August, 2006

I am a guitarist and songwriter that wanted to learn how to produce records. DJ is a very basic form of producing. Here I am 12 years later, still writing songs, practicing guitar and rocking the funky beat.

DJ_Mike_Coquilla 3:45 PM - 10 August, 2006

Quote:

Greetings all. New to the forum, so I don't know if this topic has brought up before but I've always thought knowing someone's beginnings always sheads an interesting light on your peception of them. So here goes... ( might be a long post so read if you got the time ).

I guess like most people here I've always had a love for music and for the way I would see DJ's rock a crowd at the clubs. DJing was something I always thought I could do, but for one reason or another, I never buckled down and bought my own tables.

Fast foward a few years and now I'm a young Airman in the U.S. Air Force stationed in Nebraska of all places ( I'm from Florida ). The club we use to hit was called "Guitars and Cadillacs"( now called Club 108 and looking much better these days from their myspace page ), which use to be an ol' country western bar, but would play hip hop and top 40 on Thursdays and Saturdays. I can't remember the DJ's name, but let me tell you terrible dosen't begin to explain this guy. His CD's would skip all the time and when people would boo, he would have the nerve to say on the mic " Hey, I don't tell you how to flip burgers, don't tell me how to do my job." Needless to say I stop going.

Friends would ask why I stop going and I would say I could do a better job DJing then that guy. And one day, one of my friends said " Well, why don't you then?" ....

Three weeks later after checking Mars Music ( remember that place? I think they went out of business.), for any sales I bought 2 CDJ 1000's ( I wanted some turntables at first, but really going into it blind and not knowing where to buy any vinyl in Nebraska, CD's seemed like a smart chioce). No sooner then after I bought them, I got orders to Koera and had to have my personal items picked up for shipping in 2 weeks.

The Saturday before the movers came, my friend Jules came by and told me of a friend of his who was having a bar-b-que and wanted to know if I would go and DJ it.

Me: " But yo, I don't really know how to DJ yet. I Haven't been able to practice."
Jules: " He said he'd give you $50."
Me "...?! What time should I be there?"

Long story short, I did an OK job at the bar-b-que, went to Korea,( and didn't see my CDJ's for another 4 months but thats another story), did my thing there, came back, got out the Air Force and now just working to pay the bills, but really trying to get my act together and get paid doing what I enjoy, DJing ( gonna post another topic on ideas on how to get that started). So there it is. Can't wait to read yours.

By the way, I plan on buying an SSL within the next few months and using it for gigs after coming to this site and reading these posts. Great forum here.

very good topic Flatline0

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Dj KaGeN 3:48 PM - 10 August, 2006

I too thought I could do better than some peeps, but also just had a desire to LOVE 4 MUSIC in a more ways than just buying cd and tapes from a store and playing it end to end. Now I pay MORE for music, and gear and subscriptions and magazines and vinyl and more cd's and more laptops and more software and nice printers for labels and blank cd's and more hard drives and more shit that I could ever have needed and still to just play them from end to endlessly. What a raw deal.

Flatline0 11:12 PM - 10 August, 2006

All really cool posts. I see that this topic has been posted before. Great minds think alike I guess. :)

DJ_Mike_Coquilla 1:04 AM - 11 August, 2006

Quote:

All really cool posts. I see that this topic has been posted before. Great minds think alike I guess. :)

dittoe :)

wakka 2:02 AM - 11 August, 2006

Who hasn't started out on belt-drives ;)

It all started when I got into underground hip-hop, and started buying CDs at mom-and-pop vinyl stores. I just loved the vibe of the shop; there was a DJ spinning and cuttin it up, the nice conversing clerks talking about the ugly state of hip-hop over some Grays Papaya hot dogs, and special guests like Talib Kweli would peep in religiously. I can't describe the vibe, you could say it was something spiritual. Soon enough, I moved from CDs to vinyl.

The thing I noticed is that electronica DJs usually have a different 'spark' that started their interests in turntablism than hip-hop DJs

phil 8:14 AM - 11 August, 2006

It all started, when little Phils friend gave him a Cd with Rahzels - All i know......

Back in the days i thought those where sounds made by a turntable....

Then i listened to a Austrian Group called "Waxolutionists"...
Watch www.youtube.com
always wanted to do the "sounds" the make in middle of this video

Thats how it all began....

And in 2010 i'll WIN ITF Category "Scracthing"

Monk-A 9:09 AM - 11 August, 2006

Quote:

And in 2010 i'll WIN ITF Category "Scracthing"

be difficult, ITF dosen't exist anymore. :)

They've changed their name to something else now. Think this years Eastern Hem final is in vienna.

"all i know" is a classic. also check out sian super crew for more vocal scratchy madness.......

s42000 4:15 PM - 11 August, 2006

Quote:

Greetings all. New to the forum, so I don't know if this topic has brought up....

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