Stay true to the game....BUT STAY EMPLOYED. Yeah I hate today's hiphop, but I PLAY IT....I will however "Educate" the crowd with "Golden Era" hiphop to #1.) Give the OLD HEADS something to appreciate that they probably haven't heard in a long time, and #2.) to give the YOUNGER HEADS a dose of what REAL music/hiphop is.

Embrace new technology, but don't forget your roots.

Don't become a jukebox.

Damn, 15 years? Not me! Not even close. After spinning that long I only have one question: How do you mix two turntables with a straightjacket on?

Just playin' I hope to get there someday!

Don't bend on your music principles if it makes you hate playing out.

Jukebox... i hate those kind of dj's... anyone can push play. and even worse when there are gaps in the transitions...

true.. there was a time where i needed money so thats why i was dj-ing... that takes all the fun out of it... I like when i get to choose where and when i DJ.

I'll officially be at 15 years this summer. just have to stay motivated. lots have changed since then.

im hitten over 20 years. LOL been spinnin since 1985.. im 36 this year.. LOL fuckin old! lol

but i had lots of gaps without spinning. then i start again .. then i stop again. LOL

Now i'm busy with my son and my business but still like to DJ at least twice a month just for the love of it. I love deejaying. : ) for real.

i been thinking of startin back up officially but not sure.

I like what DJ-A said... when you do it ONLY for money, it takes the fun out of it.. its true, when it becomes a job, it gets wack...

to be honest if serato was never invented, i wouldn't be dJin anymore at all. LOL I used to take 8 crates to the club every night! I aint even tryin to lift them shits no more.. I bring one now. LOL

Thanks rane & serato.
lol

In the game since 1992.

Always be true to yourself but also be versatile. Don't pick up ANY gig just because of the money alone. You gotta like something about it. At least something else besides the money.

Also, have fun with it. I've lasted this long because I love this shit and I have fun with it.

Never stop learning.

Embrace new technology that works for you. I love my Serato but I spin in absolute mode only. Not because I think it's cool or whatever, but because it's how I have the most fun. Plus, it's what I love... the closest to using real vinyl.

Keep an ear to the streets, the club, the mixtape scene, the radio scene.

Always watch your back and the backs of those DJ's close to you.

Share what you know. Educate the new DJ's.

Educate the crowd while entertaining them.

SSL is doing too much. All we needed was a way to stop carrying so many crates. Now its doing all of the work and getting to sophisticated. It's becoming a resource hog on my computer. Now I have to configure my PC in such a way that there are no drop-outs on the USB. That's enough. If they are going to add anymore bells and whistles, they should come out with another program with all of that stuff. The DJs that like to freak the turntables already have enough stuff and don't need all of that craziness to bog down the system.

wats up people.
been spinning since 1990! took a four year break around 93 then got back into it in 97.
from the early 90's on in my opinion was truly the golden age in hiphop, a great time to be a dj or artist! and i allways try to bring some of that era to my sets when i can.
what have i learned?..hmmm
well i think the most important thing when playing in a club is read the crowd, dont play for yourself, a mistake i often made when starting out, and i would wonder why nobody was dancing!
you might not like what people want, but i find that you get to like it when you see that it gets the party jumping, and you know peeps are on it!.it doesnt make you a sell out, just a more popular dj with your clubbers!
also,, never shit on anyone on your way up,, be humble,, your only human after all.but dont let anyone shit on you either!
another thing...if you got dem skillz, show em off! let people see what years of practicing is all about!
i book alot of turntablists to play in asia, and there is nothing i hate more than a dj with mad skillz up his sleeve sitting on his laurels and doing just enough to get paid!
that why we lock ourselves up in our rooms for months at a time, dont answer the phone, lose girlfriends coz we aint making time for em :P !!!
and i think the most important thing,, is to have fun doing it! and look like your having fun!! if you not enjoying it,, why do it,, and nobody wants to see a dj in a club looking lifeless and disinterested in what hes doing,, like some of my local co-residents!
last, but certainly not least! never....NEVER,,, be intimidated by any other dj! no matter how dope he thinks he is,, or is!
remember,, he/she was wack at one time too! nobody is born with a crossfader up their ass! we all got to work hard to learn dem skillz!
my two cents!

I've lost countless girlfriends over DJing.....lol. I have one true love and that's MUSIC (other than family). That's enough for me. I'm excited about every gig I do because of that love. I've been Djing since the I was 6 and i'm 23 now...been in clubs since 2002.

Wow! i started when i was 12.. and i thought i was young

Been at it since '83. Understand that you will have to play crap music. You will play cheese and you will feel dirty doing it. Cleanse yourself with classics. Sprinkle in some good music, it may thin the floor but will pack the bar.

There will be nights that you feel like you are not getting paid enough to play this crap. There will be nights that you can't believe that somebody is actually paying you just to have this much fun. Go with the flow and hopefully you will have more nights of the latter.

Respect the music.

Been at it for 12 years now (just realized this as I was typing) and the thing that keeps me motivated is that feeling you get when you have an entire party rocking and YOU are responsible (second best feeling in the world to me). Always remain humble and play a couple joints for yourself throughout the night, keeps you sane especially if you are stuck playing shit you hate.

started dj'ing way back in 89,started to get payed for it in 90.
never made any real money out of it,and i'm still at it!
do it for the love of music!
stick to your gun's and never pimp yourself out for money!

so thats where the money is... now theres advice! with all of the hot chics at all the places i've DJ-ed at... to go home with them and make some money, thats brilliant

16 years for me this April. Got my first set of equipment in 91. Started DJ'ing that same year at the beginning of my junior year in high school.

16 years for me too. The scary thing is, I know a DJ in Ohio who has been at the SAME CLUB as their main DJ for 16 years !!!!!

on a side note....I have 19 year old cocktail waitress' at one of the clubs I am at now, and I joke to them when I play something like Push It, Shook Me, Wild Thing etc.....that they were 3 years old when I first spun that song in a club.

If that doesn't make you feel old....well.....forget that, it's actually the clubs, music and DJ'ing that has kept me much younger than all my friends who are the same age, married and unhappy :)

Me Too! first dance was a Valantines dance (you're 1 year ahead of me.

I have been spinning since 92. What did I learn? Don't bang the waitresses or GM's wife. Doing either has a tendency to bring about unemployment.

I started djing 1976 But what i learned is you can't please everybody !

Very well said!

+100 for that post. 18yrs of mixing here. longer if you actually count my first encounter with two turntables and a mixer (1983) and im only 30!!

been down since 1984. i have never relied solely on being a dj for my income, thats foolish. my main thing is real estate, investments and other side projects that allow me financial freedom. with that said, i can take my time with being a dj, im not tied down and forced to play whatever music because i need a paycheck. this should apply in whatever you are doing, not just being a dj. that old saying "don't put all of your eggs in one basket" still stays true to this day.

ever wonder how djs like qbert are so well off? heres a hint:: its not from being a dj alone! a lot of younger djs see these star djs today and think they can skratch like them and make a million, sorry guys is not going to happen. plus even if it did, its not going to last, the dj/music business is very much like a see-saw always having really good times or you can be on your ass and have nothing. i have seen to many good and even great djs fail because they relied on being a dj and had nothing else.

anyway, thats my 2 cents.

Words to live by!

Or marriage...

well this is my 17th year and plan not to stop but i will say that i hate the guy or girl who has a hard drive full of ill. downloads and thinks he or she is a dj theres a lot more to it.

I've been playing since about 91 ... so that means I've now been a dj for more than half my life. I've done this longer than anything else!!

There are a few key things I've learned over the years.

1) even though you play so and so type of music, make it a point to check out other events with different styles. Hearing and seeing something different can be very inspirational and networking in a different crowd can always be very beneficial.

2) always push yourself don't fall into the "it just a job" kind of shit. Not all shows are gonna be wicked every time but you gotta keep pushing your skills to the edge so that you get those wicked shows where you just know you played a next level set that you just couldn't do practicing at home ... that's what keeps it exciting

3) always try and get paid up front ... that way if shit hits the fan or promoters take off or whatever, you are at least paid, and that always makes it that much easier to throw down a killer set ;)

20 years in da game

Just started my 15th year. One thing says it all: Have Fun!

Some helpful rules.
1) its only a party if you are a guest, if your are a DJ its a job, if you are an owner, its a business. Make decisions accordingly.

2) if you're a "playa", don't nail the honeys in your regular crowd...this can get way too complicated and mess with your $.

3) don't play intoxicated...buzzed is OK, but not really the best idea for the best show possible...see rule #1

Oh, I've been on the track since '78.

I started Djing in 94. The reason I'm still here the music,the feeling of playing a good rockin music that no one knows. Or they don't even bother to listen.

Digging keeps me excited and the new techniques on scratching.

I wish we had Youtube back then for those instructional videos.

WORD!!!!!!!! Could not agree more! (All this technology confuses my little brain...):-)

Stay open minded and open to change. The game, music and culture are always changing. Grow with it.

no doubt...I just took an Ableton Live demo. Talk about love it/hate it...all those years, all that hard work, and now some program makes it so a beginner can throw down like a pro. I could get bitter and join the vinyl purist crowd giving me static over SSL...or embrace the new, learn some more and step it up a notch. Basically, someone just moved our cheese...time to go find it!

Good advice. I haven't been doing it for 15 years (only 9), but that stuff is important to me. I still do oldschool sets along with playing the current mainstream stuff.

And as for embracing new technology without forgetting where you came from, DAMN RIGHT. More DJs need to do this. Turntable traditionalists might not like SSL because of the immense technology (do any of you really realize how advanced this shit it? Imagine what we had even just 5/6 years ago), but it really makes the busy-work of the DJ easier, thus allowing him to spend more time working on style and perfecting the techniques. I honestly feel that I've improved as a DJ since I got SSL because I spend less time searching for/preparing music. Tools like this are meant to improve the DJ, not create the DJ... so as long as you remember what you started with and maintain those skills, all is well.

I have 24 years in the game,and I pick and choose what gigs to take.I have a 9 to 5 with the airlines and love to dj all over the place.I really can't imagine having to play some of this radio shit all night long it's about fun and if I am not having fun then the crowd will not have fun.A Dj job back in the days use to be to bring out the new shit now most dj's don't use there ears and they are afraid to play the stuff they feel is hot!!! JUST LIKE TOP 40 RADIO

In it since 1989... And still doing it because of the MUSIC.

I think we do this DJ thing because we're all MUSIC LOVERS first and foremost... and like to provide the masses with some sort of 'sonic oasis' from all the crap in the world. Y'know some real good, feel good music so you can forget your problems even if its for jus' a few minutes.

Started back in 1984...off and on since then. Really into again right now. What have I learned? Here are my top 5:

5) Fuck the Cerwin Vega Earthquakes and the cargo van needed to hall them (I use self amplified compact subs now)

4) Don't take a gig just for the money

3) Don't get shit faced at a gig you are working

2) The client is ALWAYS right, even when they are WRONG

1) Don't fuck the hot young babe requesting Britney Spears every other song, even if she tells you she's 18, has the sweetest ass and nicest tits you ever seen, and on your jock all night(never ever!)

BLABLABLABLABLABLABLABLA I CAN'T HEAR YOU BLABLABLABLABLABLA!

Don't go inserting your blasphemous realities into my jaded reverent memories! Nothing smells as sweet as CV Quake carpet & dust wafting away from 4 beasts positioned strategically around the room...

I hate you

^^^"And the Thunder rolls, and the lightning strikes....." lol

So, after 15 years do ya'll ever practice? or is doing a gig good enough?

I still "practice" all the time, if you call making mix tapes practice... Doing a gig is never enough. You still have to have those practice sessions where you can play YOUR favorite tunes n shit. Or sometimes after a hard days work, I'll just go into my DJ room and spin the stress away...

Word!

Every day. I don't practice the same way I used to, but I mix a bit every day.

oh yeah...the title of this thread...been at it since 1987. Did it exclusively 90-97 travelling in Germany, the UK and Central US, to finally land in Chicago. Took a break in 2000 to dedicate time to the dojo. Been doing spots a few times a year since then and getting back into the game a bit more now.

Most of my gigs have been in a club. 2 HS dances, 2 frat parties, 3 weddings, 5 raves, 1 corporate event & 1 mountain bike race...everything else is in da club...'cept for all the house parties I can't remember from being too fkt up. Does a gig count if you can't remember it...maybe if it makes the police reports. ehh? Cleaned up my act a lot since then.

Is this Mark the 45 King? If so, that "I can't stop" break is the joint! Droppin it on the regular...

j cue, you speak some motivation right there, keep up the good work!

but wwwhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy?

They're SO HARD to resist! lol