As funny as it sounds… the secret to learning how to dj and beatmatch doesn’t actually have anything to do with beatmatching. (To see some video DJ Lessons on beatmatching sign up for our newsletter by clicking HERE now!
ALL new DJs struggle with beatmatching. Some more than others. This makes sense because the human brain isn’t trained to listen to two different sounds and determine their speeds. And the process of mixing takes it one step further because not only do we have to focus on two different songs… we have to be able to tell which one is going faster!
This is much easier to determine if you throw in the songs at the right time and the right speed… hence the importance of the “cue and throw”. It doesn’t matter if you are playing MP3s, Ableton Live, DJ Turntables, DJ CD Players, Traktor Studio or other Dj Software… The Cue and Throw are ESSENTIAL for DJing.
“Cueing Up A Record” means getting the record ready to play right on the first beat… and “throwing in a record” means playing that song at the right time and the right speed.
So you’re starting out as a new DJ and you’re confused and disoriented. All you want to do is DJ for your friend or for big crowds at nightclubs or raves… You go online and EVERYONE has differing options on how to be a DJ.
I just stumbled across this series of posts on DJTechTools.com. They walk you through how to get started as a beginner DJ from square one. I like their DJ advice because it is well written:
My mom and sat me down at the dinner table and said “Sean…Why do you want to learn how to DJ? You’re wasting your time… You should be focused on school and your job”. At the same time, my friends used to make fun of me for dj mixing techno music because hip hop was cool at my school.
I didn’t listen to any of them…
I went out and spent my hard earned money on DJ Lessons (I couldn’t afford many), I bought DJ DVDs, I read disc jockey message forums, I looked up DJ tutorials online and I even followed DJs around to watch them playing in nightclubs…
Having great looking business cards just screams out a DJs professionalism to his or her clients, competitors and most importantly, the club owners and promoters. Business cards are one of the best self-promotion techniques used to get your name out there and sell yourself, and the majority of DJ’s forget all about them!
Above all, DJs like you and I don’t have to spend money on professional designers, printers and fancy paper to produce great results that score DJ gigs!
On of the biggest DJ lessons that I came across when I was learning how to DJ is that these personal and professional methods of promoting yourself as a DJ are invaluable! Anyone can make a Disc Jockey business card, but here are some rules you should follow to get great results:
1) Your Disc Jockey business card must represent your entire Djing business and DJ personality through Read the rest of this entry »
