Unfortunately, there isn't a set of tests you have to pass to get some kind of certificate or degree so, while we as professionals or experienced DJ's won't like it, they can call themselves DJ's whenever they want. We will keep calling them douchebags.

nm

You have to get a handjob from a D-List celebrity chick. Thats the bar nowdays.

lol... the ones that call themselves DJs and only own a hacked copy of VDJ def deserve the douchebag title.

but i realize you have to crawl before you walk, but i get way more of the above coming up to me than the "real" ppl that are actually trying to learn, and do it the right way, because there is a respect for the craft. vs the "i wanna be a dj cuz it looks cool and ill score cool points."

You cant really call Djin a profession unless your making a living doing it. Djing has more to do with talent than profession. Like theres tons of singers that are talented but is it their profession? No.. So they can not be called a singer? Same with rap, if i put out a mixtape of me rapping, am i not a rapper? Unfortunatially there are alotta bad djs that actually make the right moves and know the right people to make a living off of it. People now dont take the time to learn at least the fundamentas of djing, its all about just playing music now. If you have a laptop and you have music yes you can dj a party and be called a dj, sad but true.

good point...makes sense.

good point...makes sense.

but what about the ones who aren't talented and just sing along on an American Idol game on their playstion 3 or sing karaoke at bars?

do they get to legitimately get to call themselves singers?

Talent is based judgement, "an opinion", depends who you ask... Legitimately.. they shouldnt be called a singer... but why cant they? If they are really making an effort to be that, weather good or bad.. i dont see why they cant be. Same with djin, ive heard some of the wackest djs, some people said they were horrible and some say they were the best.. And with singing theres pretty much some standards on what we all kno sounds really bad. But theres so many djs around sounding bad most people dont know the difference anymore.

That's a good point. I still say unless there's a test or degree you gotta pass you can call yourself whatever you want be it a singer, rapper, DJ, etc.

The only difference is people will judge you and put the adjective "good" or "bad" or "horrible" before it.

I thought all you had to do was ask around on this forum help with your DJ name...

serato.com

lol... the way they've been poppin up...seems like it

no doubt... Nessnice made a valid point...

i guess i just kinda take it personal when somebody with no intention on learning how to properly be a dj and who has no basic knowledge or respect for the game... just uses the term "DJ" loosely like its some type of fad or status symbol of being cool.... i get the same way when i hear ppl callin Trinidad James and Lil Wayne "hip hop"... lol

i find myself correctin ppl all the time.

Well let me ask you all this. How long did it take for you to call yourself a DJ after you got your first set up?

nm

about 4months after i got my first set up... but i started djing in my highschool lunchroom during lunch...everybody called me DJ wicky wicky remix...so that shit stuck.

but i was serious about becoming a dj...hell, i was sneakin in clubs @17 and hangin by the dj booth all night just to study and see what the pros were doin...takin mental notes

when i introduced myself to the dj's in the club...not once did i ever refer to myself as a DJ... i always told them im trying to be a dj, and im hangin by the booth to learn from the best.

I think 4 months is way too short (IMO) to be calling yourself a DJ. I have a feeling you weren't even that good in 4 months. So, isn't that a little hypocritical of you?

(and no, not trying to start an argument)

well good or bad.... if you get PAID to dj a party... YOU ARE A PROFESSIONAL DJ... sorry guys that's just how it is... and even if you dj a party for free... guess what you are DJ (shitty one but a dj none the less)

This is a crazy business. Probably the only one where you can get the job with NO credentials what-so-ever. Try to hire a plumber with no license... How about a pilot who's never flown a plane before... It took a college degree for me to get my regular job, but none to be a DJ! :) I just jumped in. Got me two turntables and a microphone and I was good to go.

There are plenty of people who fix stuff without a license and they're good at it and plenty with a license who fuck shit up.

There is good and bad and so so in every profession with degrees, licenses or not.

nm

I do a handful of the parties that take place amongst San Francisco State students. I swear, 3 out of every 5 males that come up to me say "Hey bro! I'm a DJ too! Let me check this out! Woah, your speakers are so big! Nice lights! what program is this? I use Virtual DJ!"

The first SF State event I did, part of the deal was that the "house DJ" got to spin for an hour. I was pretty out of my element, I expected the kids to all get down to house music, apparently, they all wanted hip hop. I was playing house for the first 30 minutes and the hosts were saying "hey man! This music sucks, we want our boy to spin now!"

Dude came up with a laptop running virtual DJ (and not a single audio cable of any sort) and asking me where to plug in to my NS7 0___o

I was courteous enough to move his playlist into a Serato crate on my computer and let him try out my equipment. Basically all Tyga and 2010 trap music for the next hour, then the party got shut down. He didn't mix a single song, and kept asking me "how to set an 8 bar loop". he managed to get one track at +35BPM somehow, so I was nice enough to save him from that train wreck.

Anyways, the moral of the story, everyone in San Francisco is a DJ. I've been to so many parties with kids rocking a stanton mixer hooked up to a laptop playing out of a logitech home theater system it makes me want to cry.

Tomorrow is my first ever gig at an actual bar, though, so I will consider myself to be a DJ after tomorrow night!!! Danny Coyle's on Haight Street, a four hour hip hop set, finishing off with some house mixed with top 40 and a little bit of trap here and there. Not getting paid very much, considering I'm bringing all the PA and lighting equipment, but good promotion (and fun) none the less.

True - I thought of all that as I was writing the post, but most people don't run around calling themselves a "nurse" or a "nuclear physicist" without having the credentials to back it up. There are always a few hacks in any business, but DJing has - by far - the most!

LOL - The same story everywhere bro. I saw this guy "rocking" a garage party here in town with his home speaker system hooked to his laptop with VDJ. No skills, crappy equipment, and gawd-awful mp3 quality. Problem is... the crowd loved it! To them, this "DJ" was the schmint!

Heck, I just did a Zumba-thon gig last night. All I did was hook up the stereo. All the music was on some dance instructor's iPod - I just had to press play and stand there for two hours. At the end of the gig, I got compliments of my "DJing". I couldn't take credit where credit wasn't due. I guess just the appearance of TT's and headphones gave people the impression that I was a good DJ.

Only because its illegal to impersonate a nurse or a doctor. lol

But hey, George Constanta claims to be an architect and marine biologist! lmao

nm

lol

Correction: George Costanza... :)

i.qkme.me

This is the reason I often will refer to myself and my contemporaries as 'working DJs'.

It just allows that separation between paid and totally amateur.

I prefer 'working' to 'professional' because Pro, to me, means someone who does the job full time, and some of the best working DJs I've known have also had day jobs.

For example, this Friday I needed cover for one of my gigs, and I was able to tell the management that my substitute was a 'working DJ', and they clearly understood what that implied.

at 4 months i sucked balls (nh)...lol...but the passion to learn was there, and i knew it wasnt gonna be some overnight fad.

but honestly there is a difference between the guy who is really trying to learn and respect the craft... versus the guy going around bragging that hes a DJ all because he just downloaded a pirated copy of VDJ or bought a mixtrack.

and i never had the balls to step to an OG at the club and be like "Hey, Imma DJ Too!" with only four months under my belt....lol

the fuckin thruth!



yeah... these are the guys im talkin about...lol

ok so ive recently done my first "gig" a birthday party for about 100 people, can i call my self a dj? and also whats the next step?

I think it all is subjective. I think you can call yourself a DJ if you are learned the basics and can beatmatch or make mixes, etc regardless of your equipment (controller, vinyl, cdjs) and software and have played a real gig. I havent been Djing for very long (less than a year) and use a Numark Mixtrack Pro with Serato or my Numark Mixtrack with Virtual DJ, I dont feel this disqualifies me as I have played with people who are established DJs but couldnt hold a crowd or have a set that flowed. I've played with real DJs who have all considered me a "real DJ". I think the break down is really in the quality of your playing or skills and your ability to work a dance floor

I feel you. NH

You usually can tell who has a passion for it and who doesn't within minutes of having a conversation with them.

nm

im a petroleum transfer engineer every time i pump gas into my truck

hahaha

nm

What annoys me the most is these idiots that work for fuck all,
Ever tried finding a plumber or car mechanic who will do the job for nothing for you just because they like the work?
Ever heard of a top resturant employing a bad chef just because chef had lots of friends on facebook

Ain't that the truth. lol

nm

ive been djing 7 years and people first started calling me a dj when I had my first residency, which was 2 years after i got decks

I started calling myself a DJ when I did my first party using turntables and this was after months of practice when I already knew how to mix properly. I'm not saying you need turntables to be called a DJ. I was experimenting with mixtapes and "mixing" two sources using a mixer about a year before I owned turntables
nm

a good indication on whether you're really a DJ is if OTHER people call you a DJ, not yourself. Calling yourself a DJ is just douchey

Well this kinda makes sense but people know shit about DJing so they would call anyone a DJ behind the music even if you're essentially a jukebox.

nm

so if im a computer programer durring the week but i play a pickup game of basketball on the weekend i am a basketball player and if someone gives me gas money to get there im a professional basketball player?

you obviously dont have a vajina lol, ask a hot chick these same two questions and your gat a whole lotta yes......most girls would flip out if they realised things acutually cost money lol

way off but good for laughs. lol

nm

nope you are a basketball player... but since you are getting money for gas... makes you a FREELOADER lol or i need to know the person that is giving you gas money shit i could use some of that

I am booked every weekends to different clubs. I've invested enough equipment to elevate my skills. I can use pure vinyl to dvs, cd to time code, midi to hid. People like how i play, but still I don't call my self as a "DJ" (while other people does), I rather address my self on my first name, no hype, no fuzz. If people ask me if Im a DJ? I always says " I'm not a DJ, I only know how to use the equipment" and I like to keep it that way.

i do the same..... sometimes when they meet me at the venue they ar elike whats your name so i just tell them my real name and not even mention my dj name ever... and i just drop a sound sample with my dj name 1-2 times during the whole event...i think it's classy. lot's of Djs feel like they on some other level just cause the are DJs i like to stay grounded.

I would that but it would be outta wack with my "Im a DJ" hat, shirt, jacket, wristbands, laptop sticker, and the "Hes the DJ" sign that the dwarf who i pay to follow me around holds up

This information right here should be in some type of "DJ Manual" and issued prior to purchasing equipment.......?

Tell that to dr dre and george zimmerman

Watchwww.youtube.com

LMFAO!!

lmao...funny shit

If any of you Stateside guys get a chance, there are two series of that show PhoneShop, and it's kinda genius. Not all of the references will translate, but funny is funny... Watchwww.youtube.com

Watchwww.youtube.com

The problem with DJing is the lack of talent and lack of integrity. There's a lot of weak lazy Djs out, so it's hard to say something when the guy just starting is as good as you. The hunt for ease and all of the excuses that warrant their use has brought us here.

I entered the club scene after 7 years of practicing in the bedroom. I wasn't ok coming out wack, I also set my standards higher.

Look at the sync button, that's just the start of our culture it's respect. There use to be standards, even if the crowd didn't notice, we did and respected people doing their craft. I won't get into the aurgument of controllers and technology, but I hope that being a DJ will not keep going in the direction it is.

I am a Dj, that's what I do for a living and am proud of it. I've worked hard and keep working hard to stay here. You should consider yourself a DJ when you honestly feel you've earned it, if you have to question or defend yourself, then you know the answer.

Yaawn

?

truth

perhaps...... im all for the sync button! thank god for it and i don't always use the word god... but i got tire of figuring out the Bpms and tagging my cds... long time ago :-)

.....neither one of those has ANYTHING to do with a sync button

Fixed

LOl

LOL this nigga never fails to deliver good shit