• DJ

DJ

It must be the hottest job on the planet, DJ.  I’m getting ready to pack my bags and fly off to Ibiza soon.  I’ve already booked my ticket for the opening night at Amnesia, Cream! Guaranteed P A R T Y... it’s amazing to think somebody actually gets paid for having that amount of fun.

Personally I’m looking forward to seeing Eric Prydz “call on me; call on me
call on meeeee...!” But no doubt we’ll be alternating between the two massive rooms because with Paul Van Dyk on the terrace I won’t know where to be. 

It’s all too exciting, I wish I was one of those lucky people ‘making the pilgrimage’ every year. But sadly it’s a one off for me.  But that doesn’t mean I don’t have the rest of the world to party in.  You get amazing DJs like that everywhere now days; you just have to know where to look.

DJs are paid a fortune and they are part of that elite scene that knows where to make everything happen. Imagine that? Though, it has to be said, there’s lots more to “DJaying” than just being super stylish and popular, there is also that small matter of the music!

It’s all about Technology - how ‘sounds’ works. It’s an art.  You have to have a feel for it, ask yourself, how well do you hear a beat? Can you feel rhythm in any song? Do you have the musical intuition to know how to beat match and make any tune evolve into a dance floor classic?

I’m not saying you should be a natural musical genius.  But you should certainly have a feel for it, and that will tell you maybe it’s your destiny. But where do you go from there?  Well the first thing to do, is stick in Music at school, even if you think it’s boring, getting a good understanding of inventing and a feel for all the different musical genres (even the old naff ones) will put you in a brilliant position. Don’t let anyone kid you on, all the best DJs will be incorporating neat tricks from classical, jazz and the rest to come up with timeless hits.

Following that lots of college courses like Reid Kerr cover music technology, which is a great way to learn your way around the studio and mixing desk.  Otherwise, university Media Studies is an intelligent option for budding DJs, gaffers or even the future PR executives who will be organising and marketing your amazing sounds to the world. Keep an open mind and have a look at places like Caledonian University who offer amazing media studies courses.

It’s wrong to promise fame or stardom, but you never know in this crazy world.  If you are hard working, and truly passionate about your talent, before you know it you could be hitting the big time – like Fat Boy slim and the rest of them who have had me dancing as I grew up.

Yes it’s hard work at all hours and away from family friends, but if you find yourself partying in the sun – like me in Ibiza – that sort of makes it worthwhile right? And once you’ve made the big bucks, just ship your peers to wherever you’re at, what a life!