Almost all of us have had a chance to see and hear a DJ at events, parties, simchas, etc. But have you ever wondered what the meaning of “DJ” is? And what a DJ actually does? Have you ever dreamed of becoming a DJ? It’s summer time and our kids are off from school, so perhaps it is a good opportunity for kids who like music to learn a new profession during summer time.
Historically, DJ – or disc jockey – was the person in charge of playing the playlist and the music at radio stations. Since then, the term became used for someone who plays music at events, parties, simchas, etc. Many DJs not only play music at events, but also produce music and sets. Producing music and sets require knowledge of both music and software.
In the past, DJs played music from gramophones which required them to carry a lot of (heavy) phonograph records. Today some DJs still play phonograph records. They say it’s really the highest quality of music. Analog music has all the frequencies without compromising on the quality or compression. With a phonograph record you can listen to very high frequencies. We already discussed HiFi music in a past column, “Music In High Frequencies: How To Select A Music Player,” which you can find on The Jewish Press website. Today, most of the DJs use a laptop to carry their music. Yet, it is important to have high quality, lossless audio files.
So what does a DJ actually do?
The DJ’s main role is to expose his audience to new music, new genres. If you go to a simcha and you hear a new song, new style, something you were not familiar with before, the DJ did his job. Obviously, the DJ needs to play music and he’s in charge of the atmosphere at the event or the simcha – wedding, bar mitzvah, etc. Yet a good DJ will expose the audience to more than the standard tracks and the contemporary music everyone knows. A good DJ will bring some added value by introducing new music to the audience, musicians and styles they never heard before. In today’s music world there are many artists that not everyone is familiar with, many young talented musicians. Not only young musicians, but also good old music that not everyone (yet) is familiar with. A good DJ will know how to mix and play different styles and genres and create a musical experience for the audience. A good DJ will be familiar with oldies and contemporary music. But for this, the DJ himself has to be well educated and experienced in different styles of music.
A DJ not only plays during dancing, but also when people sit down to eat. The DJ can play a mix of Kadatzke, Klezmer, marches, and some classical music.
In some ways, in this column I’m kind of a DJ. Every week I try to bring new musicians or old songs to the column, so you can get exposed to a wide range of Jewish music.
A DJ also needs to keep the audience dancing and active. Building a playlist is not easy. The DJ needs to be familiar with his audience and match the playlist accordingly. But at the same time, to bring them something new they were not familiar with before.
During the event, the DJ’s goal is to make sure the music is playing continuously with a smooth transition between the songs. Therefore, while the current song is being played, the DJ must prepare the next song. The DJ uses headphones to prepare the next song while the current one is playing. As a keyboardist I can say that when I perform as a one-man band, it’s kind of challenging to have a smooth transition between the songs. You need to keep the people dancing and the transition from one song to the next has to be quick and keep the tempo. The DJ’s task is to make a few tracks to appear as one continuous track. While this might seem like an easy task, there’s a lot of theory and technical knowledge on how to do the blend, how to use filters, etc. I don’t want to get too much into the technical details, but if you plan to become a DJ, be prepared to learn. The more you learn, the better DJ you’ll become.
With their equipment, DJs control the tempo of the played song and can increase or decrease the speed the song is playing. If the people get excited, they can increase or decrease the tempo. They can mix and do other effects.
So what’s the first step to becoming a DJ? Before starting to shop for equipment and software, the first thing a DJ needs is music. A DJ needs a big music library, to have a wide range of music. Today it is easy to buy music online, but sometimes you cannot find everything online. Some of the music either I couldn’t find online, or I couldn’t find a good quality online and I went to music stores and purchased the CD. Then, I convert the CD to files and load it to my music player. On my old computer, I still have a CD drive. Every time I go to Lakewood, or if I happen to be in Monsey, I like to enter the Judaica stores and look for old CDs that I am still looking for. There are some albums which I still want to buy but couldn’t find yet online. Just recently I was happy to see, in a Judaica store in Lakewood, two albums that I was looking for for a while.
In the past, DJs carried a big bag or even a suitcase full with phonograph records which was very heavy. Today, things are easy. You load all your music onto your laptop and that’s it. All you need is a laptop packed with your music library.
Once you have a nice library of music, the next step is learning how to be a DJ, and getting professional equipment.
Basic equipment for a DJ is the DJ board, which is also called a DJ controller, and high quality headphones. The prices of DJ controllers can start at around $100 to a few thousand, depending of course on the quality and other professional features. Don’t confuse the DJ Controller and Mixer. These are two different things. There’s a lot of information online about this.
Good headphone prices also can start at around $100 and go to a few thousand. Yes, you heard right. Headphones can cost a few thousand dollars. DJs also need speakers, but for the beginning it’s possible to rent. In stores like Guitar Center for example, you can rent speakers for your event and return them the next day. Rental costs are usually a few hundred dollars. Once you start getting more gigs you can consider getting your own speakers.
Even though there’s a lot of information online on how to become a DJ, those who really want to become professional can consider taking a course. There are schools that offer courses on how to become a DJ. Those who choose to become a DJ professionally should also learn music producing. Often a DJ is also a producer.
And there is another important thing that I think people should not compromise on if they choose to become a DJ as a profession. Even when it comes to our professional career, we should not forget our values. The music business in general sometimes involves big money, and the temptations are big. But we should always have our red lines, for example, mix dancing. Do not agree to play music if men and women are dancing together. Before any event, tell the client that there should be a mechitza during dancing and that you won’t agree to play music if there is going to be a mix of men and women dancing. Yes, it’s hard sometimes, and yes, sometimes a DJ might even lose some business. But what should guide us in life is not only money, but the values we grew up on and still use. Money is not everything in life. There are things that are more important than money. I think that a DJ, or any other professional, should not compromise on the halacha at work. You can bring joy and simcha, yet keep it kosher.
I tried to summarize here what a DJ is and what a DJ does, but of course for those who are interested in becoming a DJ there’s a lot more to learn.
Good luck!
