Paranoia - The DJ's worst enemy!!

[messiahwannabe]

i was having a similar problem getting the dancefloor going this saturday, after about 20 minutes of lackluster reactions i saw the bride and some friends and family standing nearby. i was in the middle of a track and had one lined up for next so i just walked over and asked them if they had any requests - i played their suggestions to little avail, and didn't manage to fill the floor till later, but it seemed an appropriate move and i imagine they appreciated the effort/attention.

that said i DO NOT mc at my gigs, i just wait for the requests to come - they always do but this seemed like a good time to be proactive. anyway like others have experienced, i got loads of compliments at the end of the night even though it took me a little while to find the right music for the crowd. sometimes we're our own harshest judges.

[yourdj]

i imagine they appreciated the effort/attention.

Cool - Some times thats all it needs, even if it does not work. People are not silly they know when their gusts a boring or not and its not you etc.

All the people who have said bad things bout DJ's to me have said that they are disassociated and deluded from the crowd (although thats a bit of generalization) and have not played the music they wanted.

I do think at times asking the people (or at least having a conversation when applicable) helps and creates a rapor with them - especially if you do not say a word all night.

I did the complete opposite and told someone off the other night as he was laughing at me.
His whole attitude condensated as he realised I could move from the decks to the chair next to him
he himself on the spot on my approach but was OK when I said he was being very rude and I will play his track in a bit

Although its a bit of generalization

[djsns]

Very interesting and useful thread...

I think this discussion over "paranoia" and "reading the dancefloor" is digging into the core of beeing a mobile DJ. How do we evaluate our work and ourselves - to know if we have done our best or not at the end of a night?

My experience doing mobil DJing through many years in Norway is similar to what you are telling through this thread. Weddings are the most unpredictable gigs of them all. I have done a LOT of Norwegian weddings and they range from full dancefloor through the night to no one dancing the entrire evening. When the guests then tells you how nice your music has been in the end of the night - it feels more like a consolation prize...

Over the years I have developed a couple of countermeasures and directed acts to avoid paranoia situations and empty dancefloors:

1. Communicating with my customers to get their expectations, their view of the guests and musical preferences. Advicing them on plans for the evening and what to expect. I usually also asks about their guests dancing interest - and some customers are sometimes aware that they have few danceinterested guests - and then I'm prepared to handle the paranoia

2. Using e-mail wishlists and planning ahead of the gig together with my customers. This also gives me a clue about any special kind of music taste or interest which might be shared by the other guests.

3. Trying to have my customers to concentrate the party/wedding into ONE ROOM when the dance is about to start. My experience with a "separate dancing room" is often terrible - all sitting and chatting on the other side of the doorstep - the barrier of the night

4. Using the time before my gig starts to assess the guests in the party - looking at them - even talking to some of them. How are they dressed, which mix of ages - and so forth - stereotyping a bit to find what normally would work based on my experiece with different kind of people and gigs.

5. Introducing myself in the beginning of the evening (even if I'm mostly a mixing DJ) through the microphone and telling that "I'll accept musical request - for dance music"...

6. Building up the evening musically. Always starting out the evening with "sing-a-longs" - getting the guests humming and singing known tunes.
I think this is crucial to getting the guests in the right mood and on to the floor... After a while I start throwing in a floorfiller or two to test if there is any interest for dancing, but not to soon - the mood takes time to build.
Of course I also have gigs where everybody is dancing from the first tune - then I might drop using "sing-a-longs"

7. Avoid playing requests that are none-danceable or kind of "special interests" for only one of the guests.

8. Playing triplets of different music styles - 3 x 80s disco, 3 x charts, 3 x reggae, 3 x oldies rock, 3 x swing - trying to hit different musical tastes. Then when the floor really is rocking I expand and build from there (reading the floor). (Triplets because it often takes some time before people recognizes the music and gets to the floor - and also to not make the show to scattered.)

9. Doing my megamix of old Disco (using Ableton Live) - a very thight and energic live mix with 20 or more floorfillers played in 10 to 15 minutes while monitoring the floor. I'm mostly playing choruses... Often this makes the dancefloor go wild - almost always works... (if this fails - then paranoia next )

10. Assess timing - and this is different from gig to gig. The buildup of the evening depends on many factors - not only the music. If the guests are tired after spending 5 hours at the table - they won't likely go direct to the dancefloor. Alcohol and drinking also might help some guests to the floor, and some needs a real buildup before dancing is feasible. In some parties (like weddings, school reunions, birthday parties) people meet again after a long time, and have a special need to reconnect and talk with their friends - before dancing is actual.

I think that the combination of all these activities (and even some) are essentially what we do to "read the dancefloor"... This is after all what makes mobile DJing challenging and rewarding when you succeed

Would be nice to have other suggestions to what might help to handle difficult gigs.


DJ Safe N' Sound

[DiscoMagic]

What a great thread!!!

I learnt quite early on when I gigged a 50th birthday and nobody danced until 11.30 (it finished at midnight!), prior to that I stressing, paranoid etc etc... and at the end the host came up thanked me for a great evening and gave me a £30 tip!!! She also apologised for the fact that no-one was dancing, but explained that alot of people hadn't seen each other for ages and wanted to catch up, but that the music was super!!!

A valuable lesson learnt and one I have taken everywhere since then

On the flip side I went to a colleagues 50th Birthday and whilst no-one was dancing, the DJ started by shouting at the birthday girl to come up on the dancefloor with her sisters and family, followed by other friends and family, and then every one else - the result - everyone kinda stood there dancing uncomfortably!!! Big no no in my eyes - if people don't want to dance - don't make them!

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Totally agree in that if people don't want to dance, don't make them.
I found DJSNS's comments interesting. A lot of that I do myself although I don't tend to do (for want of a better word), megamix type things.

Infact next week I am doing a Surprise 60th Birthday party on a big boat on the Thames and one of the things the lady asked me at our meeting was not to play any of those Megamix / Stars on 45 things. Her comments were that she wants to hear the whole song and both her and her husband hate them with a passion. She was actually quite forceful when she started mentioning them.