The worst Disco ever

[Skins]

My best mate got married last weekend, and as I was best man, decided that (for a change), I wouldnt be able to do the disco for the reception.

It was "right up north", and as such, the hotel arranged the disco on behalf of the bride and groom.

I did offer to put the feelers out and see if anyone was up near Cleethorps that could help but the hotel said it would be much easier for them to do things direct.

So, the reception was starting at 7pm...everyone was all fired up and ready for a bit of dancing and we waited for the disco to arrive...

6.30pm came...and no disco, so we drank more in the bar...

by 6.45pm, the hotel are running around trying to find just exactly the name of the person who`d been booked.

7pm...DJ is a no shower.

7.30pm comes, and the brides in tears, but I had a brainwave.

I had done a gig the night before and had travelled up from swindon with 2 cases of party tunes in the car so providing the hotel had some kit - there was no panic.!

7.50pm, Im outside having a cheeky fag, and a car flys past me in the carpark at breakneck speed!!!

Bloke parks at the rear, then walks over to me and says "how do i get into this place mate, Ive been here 50minutes and couldnt get in?!

"through those big sqaure wood and glass things mate" I replied.

It was in fact the DJ, who then calmy walks into the venue, opens the fire doors, takes out a paste table, handbuilt flightcase and two small speakers and plonks them on the floor.

He was setup within about 15 minutes, no lighting, no nothing in fact -just some PA.

By this time, people are pretty cheesed off with this guys attitude, but we stay positive and finally get the first dance underway,

The day itself was fab, just everyone was a bit annoyed with this dj`s attitude, the music selection was terrible and very self indulgent.

Its easy for us dj`s to give opinions, and I`d be the first to go up to a fellow dj and praise them for a good night or kit, whatever but this was terrible.

From 8 till 1, we sat through 5 hours of mastermix cd`s..in full.........

and if it wasnt for the hotel turning one of there disco lights on there would have been nothing.......

The dj came up to the brides parents at the end of the night and asked for payment, though the hotel had already paid him upfront. I spoke with the manager and they said that was the first and last time they would be using him...

I have some photos and will upload shortly.......

anyone else been in the same kinda situation?

Thats my rant over!!!

Shaun:zip:

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

Dear oh dear, I do hate to hear stories like this.

Just as the people on this forum have raised the bar with people's expectations, along comes another idiot to take it down again.

Why would a Hotel book a guy like that for someone's wedding?

[djsteve10]

Dear oh dear, I do hate to hear stories like this.

Just as the people on this forum have raised the bar with people's expectations, along comes another idiot to take it down again.

Why would a Hotel book a guy like that for someone's wedding?

Must be a poor management system in that hotel where they don't care what they use so long as they get their money.
When you say he didn't have any lighting the problem was he might of spent it on all them mastermix cds lol.

[Skins]

Why would a Hotel book a guy like that for someone's wedding?

As I understand, the "agent" puts these DJ`s into alot of smaller hotels and the hotel thought it was a good idea!

I`m not even going to mention how much this guy / agent got paid!:eek:

but its alot more than what some people charge - who take this business seriously!

Shaun

[Dragonfly]

Dear oh dear, I do hate to hear stories like this.

Just as the people on this forum have raised the bar with people's expectations, along comes another idiot to take it down again.

Why would a Hotel book a guy like that for someone's wedding?

Because he charged little enough for the hotel to make a huge wad of cash with an upmark :confused: :confused: :confused: ????


ooooooohhhh the soon to be ex dj is one cynical man in his twilight career.

[DJ INDIE]

ive come across many a story similar to this.

hotels using agents - using djs - using other djs - and so on.......before you know it there are 3 to 4 levels down the line from direct contact between bride and groom and the actual DJ on the night.

its fair enough trusting the hotel etc if they use a recommended 'resident' DJ, or using a replicable agency directly, but once its out of the bride and grooms direct control, things like this can happen, either by poor communication, bad DJs or even bad agencies not giving the DJ the correct information. (start times, musical preference, requirements etc) or worse, bad agencies using bad DJs.

[Tom]

When I take a booking from a hotel form another dj I always ask for the B&G contact number so I can call them and ask them some questions.

I'm sure other's on here would do the same???

[Charlie Brown]

Oh god, sounds like a nightmare!! I cant wait to see the pictures!!

[soundmaster mobile disco]

Surely the hotel who booked the disco must have had a contract with contact details on it.When 6.30 ish came and no sign of the disco thats when contact should have been made to ask where are you?

Most hotels that i have worked with would rather recommend a dj company that is reliable and not always the cheapest option.

As for the Mastermix cds,the dj could not have been up to much if that was all he had\was playing.

If it was me as the best man and in a situation like this i would have been having words with the dj.

[Dillmiester]

Sounds like the management are mostly to blame for this one.
If he wants to be a DJ with that amount of equipment (or lack of) then thats up to him but the organiser should know what he is and hire accordingly ie someone else...

[nigelwright7557]

When I take a booking from a hotel form another dj I always ask for the B&G contact number so I can call them and ask them some questions.

I'm sure other's on here would do the same???

I talked to the groom on one gig I did.
He wanted a cheap disco with no DJ to plug his IPOD into.

When I got there and set up the bride said she wanted a DJ !

Even when you try your best there can still be communication problems...

It would have been best to get together with both of them to make sure we are all on the same frequency concerning what is required or not required.

[Twinspin]

what hotel was it mate?

im not too far away from cleethorpes about 30 odd mile or so.

When it comes to this i usually find its the hotels fault. Because knowing that it is someones wedding function they should be putting a half decent disc jockey in there to begin with. They probably do what a lot of hotels do.

charge a bit for the disco.... and try and get the cheapest dj possible and pocket the rest of the money as most hotels do.

it sucks big time. But for this i would blame the management of the hotel for it as well as the DJ.

[Excalibur]

I find certain aspects of Shaun's post shocking! For a start Cleethorpes is virtually in the Tropical South! :D :D But the worst part has got to be the Disco. Is it legal to only have two speakers? :confused: :D :D :D

OK, Serious time. I'd lay odds that it's all a money issue, I lost a residency many many years ago, to a price undercut, and for months after heard nothing but bad reports of my replacement. Did they change him? Of course not! In the posted case, I'd suspect that it's simply a case of finding something at the right price, regardless of quality. Sorry to hear it.

[soundtracker]

I talked to the groom on one gig I did.
He wanted a cheap disco with no DJ to plug his IPOD into.

When I got there and set up the bride said she wanted a DJ !

Even when you try your best there can still be communication problems...

It would have been best to get together with both of them to make sure we are all on the same frequency concerning what is required or not required.

How many more times are you going to repeat this post about the same thing, I think everyone has:bang: got the message now!:bang:

[DJ Frankie]

Bloke parks at the rear, then walks over to me and says "how do i get into this place mate, Ive been here 50minutes and couldnt get in?!

Blimey must be a huge hotel for it to take him 50mins to find reception. :p

[soundtracker]

It can be very dis-orientating on those cobbled streets up north, that all look the same!

[Corabar Steve]

I talked to the groom on one gig I did.
He wanted a cheap disco with no DJ to plug his IPOD into.

When I got there and set up the bride said she wanted a DJ !

Even when you try your best there can still be communication problems...

It would have been best to get together with both of them to make sure we are all on the same frequency concerning what is required or not required.

Sounds like a nightmare, you'll have to post up a full account of it some time :sj:

[Dragonfly]

Blimey must be a huge hotel for it to take him 50mins to find reception. :p


It can be very dis-orientating on those cobbled streets up north, that all look the same!


nooo its up north .... at 8pm everything gets locked up and chained so it doen't get nicked ....... even hotels apparently :D :D :D :D :D :D

[summer sounds]

Cleethorpes, Skegness...all the Seaside Hotels have the same approach....make as much money as they can by providing the cheapest Disco available and by charging crazy money for 'The Complete Package'...my friends recently got married but were told ...'no discount if you choose to book your own Disco'...so obviously they had the DJ included in the price, and guess what...he was hopeless!

[Reminisce disco]

Thats hilarious! looking forward to seeing some pictures as well. I feel for the B and G though.

[djdarren]

it would be nice to see the pictures mate, from my point of view selling the kit.. there is nothing more that annoys me when people say they want the cheapest stuff, i try to tell them its the wrong thing for the job and they tell me they dont care then advertise them self the same prices as people who put in the effort...

now dont get me wrong the equipment is not everything a good dj also matters but how can you be a good dj if you dont have the correct equipment to work correctly.

[colagirl]

people should realise that hotels are about making as much money as possible and will employ cheapest possible. OF EVERYTHING.

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

people should realise that hotels are about making as much money as possible and will employ cheapest possible. OF EVERYTHING.

That's quite a statement.

Do you have any info to back this up?

[djsteve10]

That's quite a statement.

Do you have any info to back this up?

I know that you are empliyed by a hotel and probaly are not the cheapest around either so I would too like to see some info to back it up.

[Dragonfly]

from my own experience of hotels/venues they don't neccessarily want the cheapest but all the ones i have encountered have wanted some kind of special "deal" ............never oh you are good a real professional and someone we would like to be associated with and help uphold the good reputation of our establishment.

personally i've had we will recommend you if :

you give us £2500 to go in our wedding brochure
you slash the price for us
you do x amount of free discos for us each year

now some of these are appealing if you are being sold with the package and getting a shed load of work but for me it has always been agree to this and we will give some cards out and see what happens ?? which may or may not result in bookings .....

the thing is very few in my experience are willing to pay what you would "normally" charge without getting something for nothing.

i am trying not to express a for or against opinion on this ...... just stating my personal findings, on one hand it makes good business sense on the other it's a shame the human race has come to this.

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

I know that you are empliyed by a hotel and probaly are not the cheapest around either so I would too like to see some info to back it up.

Not employed. I have recommendations and referrals.

I don't like it when people just make blanket statements that cannot possibly be justified.

[theoloyla]

Not employed. I have recommendations and referrals.

I don't like it when people just make blanket statements that cannot possibly be justified.
I agree. The hotel where I do lots of work recommend me as the best disco and I get lots of work passed on by them. I also work there all December. I do some favours for them as a result: a charity gig every Christmas for people with learning disabilities, staff members parties at mates rates etc etc. I am by no means the cheapest around here but I dont think the trade offs are what swings it for me either. They recommend me because they believe in me and I do the favours because it is good practice.

[Excalibur]

Not employed. I have recommendations and referrals.

I don't like it when people just make blanket statements that cannot possibly be justified.

Sorry to show my ignorance again, but do you mean the hotel doesn't have a resident disco, but recommends from a list or similar, with you at the top?

[Skins]

If Ive done this right the photo is now on here!

Take into account that the light that shines around the room is coming from a very old unit that was screwed into the ceiling by the hotel, so at least there was some kind of lighting.

This was taken middway through the night,,,dj has again, gone for a fag.!:eek:

The hotel was the something or other grange...I`ll dig out the info and post in a mo!

wahey!

Shaun

[nigelwright7557]

If Ive done this right the photo is now on here!

Shaun

I did a gig once where the client refused to turn off the houselights !
Completely spoiled the effect....

[DazzyD]

Crikey! I know they say less is more but this is taking the mickey! :eek:

[Excalibur]

Even I usually put a couple of Vastos above the speaker stacks!

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

Sorry to show my ignorance again, but do you mean the hotel doesn't have a resident disco, but recommends from a list or similar, with you at the top?

Not a list, just us.

[djsteve10]

If Ive done this right the photo is now on here!

Take into account that the light that shines around the room is coming from a very old unit that was screwed into the ceiling by the hotel, so at least there was some kind of lighting.

This was taken middway through the night,,,dj has again, gone for a fag.!:eek:

The hotel was the something or other grange...I`ll dig out the info and post in a mo!

wahey!

Shaun

Now I have seen it all,
People would walk into that room and say "Where's the disco then?"

[Jiggles]

You can just see the disco now! :D

[Javlingames]

Sounds like a nightmare, you'll have to post up a full account of it some time :sj:

LMAO

(sorry didnt quote properly) meant to include nigel wrights post above corabar steves quote.

[Vectis]

You can just see the disco now! :D

Good job the mirror's there... :eek:

[leighinstoke]

You'd think he's take the Purple and white stickers off his Maplin speakers......

[djsteve10]

You'd think he's take the Purple and white stickers off his Maplin speakers......

Thats why he was late, He had just bought them :)

[Penfold42]

Dare I ask? ....Without getting into a debate about it? ....Should I metion it? ....Is anyone else thinking it?......Or is it just me?....

:D

[Skins]

Go on, say it!!:) :)

Shaun

[Penfold42]

How much? .......:sofa: :whiteflag: :bag: :flog: :no: :hijack:

[dmckaraoke]

Hey nice setup perhaps thats why hes hiding...


Hes going for the.... If there is trouble he can pick all my gear up and run and still have one had free to open the doors..

[djsteve10]

Dare I ask? ....Without getting into a debate about it? ....Should I metion it? ....Is anyone else thinking it?......Or is it just me?....

:D

Cables :zip:

[dmckaraoke]

What was is music selection like?

[spin mobile disco]

Mastermix all night he already said.
Makes me cringe seeing this and not just a bit. Never leave my post during a gig unless its during a dinner dance and am caught short during meal (as I tend to use backing tracks at this point anyway) And the stickers still on the front of speakers no stands , no lights.. Popping out for a fag and playing mastermix cd's all night (or at all :) ) Sorry to sayI have seen very similar near me recently.

Did a wedding about 6 weeks ago me in one room another Dj in another room. Both weddings. First DJ sets up in wrong room so I have to ask him to switch. Sets up 1 t bar with 2 lights with speakers on floor. This is for a very nice venue near me (won't mention name) The venue pays top money for DJ's I put in 4K sound 10 effects 4.5 meter starcloth backdrop and provided haze and bubbles. For the same price this guy got payed for his show.
Both these rooms are the same size with 200 - 300 guests expected at each function.

And to top things off his mic was using same frequency as mine even though I had told him I was using a certain frequency and asked him not to.
When I went to tell him to switch again after he started tapping mic and it came through my system he said he didnt know how to change it.

Cant' say what kind of dj he was as didnt see him perform, but he was dressed in T-shirt and jeans all night for a full dress wedding.

Makes me livid when we put our all into a show for the same as someone like this and they do a half assed job but they get paid the same and spoil peoples evenings and the image of our profession in general.

[soundtracker]

Our P-R-O-F-E-S-S-I-O-N

[jimboylan]

And to top things off his mic was using same frequency as mine even though I had told him I was using a certain frequency and asked him not to.
When I went to tell him to switch again after he started tapping mic and it came through my system he said he didnt know how to change it.

I maybe missing a point but why did you not switch frequency?
He may not have been able to, I know I can't.
If I get something bleading over into my wireless channels I just revert to wired mics.

Jim

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Not quite sure what to say about this without being too nasty.
Firstly, I would blame the hotel for having that 'excuse' for a Disco there. Now, I would'nt normally say something that bad BUT.... We've already been told that he played Mastermix CD's all night so he does'nt have the excuse of 'It's not the gear that matters, it's what the DJ is like'. The equipment which has been described and is on show for us all to see in the photo is way beyond acceptable. If I was one of the hotel staff or the Bride or Groom, I would have been very tempted to say something like "Seeing as you are late anyway and have already spoilt our evening, I am sure we can wait another half an hour while you set up the rest of the equipment"... It would have been nice to know if he actually had more equipment with him or was that all he had?

Secondly, there would have been no way on earth that I would have paid full whack for what was provided. Ok, he turned up...BUT, he was late more importantly. If I were the Bride or Groom I would have told the hotel this and in turn I expect the hotel would have contacted the agent or whoever and told them the same.

Also, someone mentioned that hotels are out to make as much money as possible...that may well be true but without evidence, the statement is just a throw away one. I am resident at a hotel too, I probably do around 15 functions a year for them (including Christmas) and my fee is just a tad under what I charge for my private work. The reason they stick with me (as they have said in the past) is because I am reliable and put on a good show at a good price (I'm also literally 2 mins up the road). They pass me work and I try to pass them work too. The main reason though is that they have a lot of follow on bookings from weddings that I do there which means that I get all of them too.

Lastly, Nigel....as already said... We've heard your story enough times already, is'nt it about time you told us of another one of your stories? (I jest of course!!!).

[Skins]

Well after a quick nosey around the carpark, I found the DJ`s car with no other gear in. So one assumes, that was all he brought to the venue.

Plus the fact that he did mention that he didnt use lights to the hotel, hence them turning on their one and only light in the function room.

As for price, (and I double checked this), was £185 for a 5 hour disco.

It fair to say that yes, we can mock the gear, but coupled with the fact that we endured 4 hours of non stop megamixes kinda summed things up!

It was a bit like listening to jive bunny....

and again

and again....

and, well you get what I mean!

Shaun

[spin mobile disco]

I maybe missing a point but why did you not switch frequency?
He may not have been able to, I know I can't.
If I get something bleading over into my wireless channels I just revert to wired mics.

Jim

I couldnt change frequency at the time as they were being used for speeches. And as i have provided the frequencies I was using to him i would have though he would have told me if he didnt know how to change them rather than just using them and hoping. And as I started at 4pm and he didnt start until 8pm I could not know what frequency he was using until he started. And my mic was being used all afternoon for speeches , toasts, toast master also used them through my system as did I.
As I was a long distance from top table wired mics were not an option.

[deltaforce]

like the door at the back for quick exit :D

[Skins]

well spotted!!!

Bodgit and leggit discos!!

Shaun

[Twinspin]

Im sorry to say guys. By looking at that picture it just makes me think of a few djs that operate in Hull.

The Laptop boys!!! :eek: This city is plagued with them. They walk into a venue.

Stick their cheap laptop, mixer and amp on one of the venues tables and their equipment is usually Maplin specials. They then have the cheek to charge some people. At the very best you will find they have a couple of geni wildblaze things on top of their speakers.

With their music collections that have been bought on a copied dvd containing classic cuts, number ones, now cds, top 20 albums etc etc.
that they bought for five pounds!! from the local market.

[rob1963]

Im sorry to say guys. By looking at that picture it just makes me think of a few djs that operate in Hull.

The Laptop boys!!! :eek: This city is plagued with them. They walk into a venue.

Stick their cheap laptop, mixer and amp on one of the venues tables and their equipment is usually Maplin specials. They then have the cheek to charge some people. At the very best you will find they have a couple of geni wildblaze things on top of their speakers.

With their music collections that have been bought on a copied dvd containing classic cuts, number ones, now cds, top 20 albums etc etc.
that they bought for five pounds!!

You think the laptop boys are bad?

I've heard there are some cowboys who walk in with all their music on an ipod!

:Embarassed:

[CRAZY K]

You think the laptop boys are bad?

I've heard there are some cowboys who walk in with all their music on an ipod!

:Embarassed:

Interestingly for you Rob the bloke that invented the I pod was in the paper the other day--English guy who couldnt afford the patent so Apple snatched it!

Bad news is he was given a free one recently to use but it only lasted 8 months :eek: :eek: :eek:

CRAZY K

[colagirl]

That's quite a statement.

Do you have any info to back this up?

most of info is what would be hearsay and observation over the years. and all those who work in these hotels a question
how much do you charge hotel and how much do they charge thier clients for your services ?
ps wife wants me to point out this is not her posting !

[Twinspin]

You think the laptop boys are bad?

I've heard there are some cowboys who walk in with all their music on an ipod!

:Embarassed:

There isnt any djs that i know of or have ever seen with Ipods. Its just laptops:eek:

[Excalibur]

There isnt any djs that i know of or have ever seen with Ipods. Its just laptops:eek:

I know one! ;) ;) :D :D

[Dragonfly]

I know one! ;) ;) :D :D

i know 2 :D :D :D ;)

[Twinspin]

what i mean is the type of dj that plonks his laptop on the table with speakers and a couple of lights. thats what i get rather annoyed about.

but if you want to work with a laptop then fine. But i just dont like that approach. It made me feel like a cowboy on that night i had to use the laptop after i had a problem with my twin cd player getting wet.

[djsteve10]

what i mean is the type of dj that plonks his laptop on the table with speakers and a couple of lights. thats what i get rather annoyed about.

but if you want to work with a laptop then fine. But i just dont like that approach. It made me feel like a cowboy on that night i had to use the laptop after i had a problem with my twin cd player getting wet.

What about DJ's who equip the laptops up properly with external soundcards and media controllers?
Are they classed as cowboys then?

[Twinspin]

im talking more the type mentioned in this thread. Although the laptop approach i dont like in any shape or form. But thats just an opinion.

However if you wish to do it... as mentioned then fair play. Because at least it means an effort is been made for it to sound good. Unlike the type that just connect the laptop directly to their mixer.... it sounds terrible.

But can be fine... if used correctly. Its mainly the type that goes out with just a laptop cheap pair of speakers and amp. and two budget lighting effects.

one of them types of djs before tryed telling me a gig that because i worked with cds i was old fashioned and i should move over to laptop. I was tempted to tell him exactly what i thought of his approach. But i didnt say no more other than i prefer cd.

[CRAZY K]

However if you wish to do it... as mentioned then fair play. Because at least it means an effort is been made for it to sound good. Unlike the type that just connect the laptop directly to their mixer.... it sounds terrible.



You can actually get a decent sound hooking a lappy direct to a mixer amp
and then through the PA.

I have had to do that a few times when univited "guests" have rolled up with their laptops and asked to play them through my PA.

Surprisingly good sound---as Excalibur would agree;)

Im not a laptop DJ by the way--

Mini Disc or Cortex for me---or back up in an emergency CD walkman ( £5 in Asda sounds amazing )

CRAZY K

[Solitaire Events Ltd]

most of info is what would be hearsay and observation over the years. and all those who work in these hotels a question
how much do you charge hotel and how much do they charge thier clients for your services ?
ps wife wants me to point out this is not her posting !

How can you possibly make a statement based on hearsay?

I get recommendations and my venues make nothing on me. I do them a staff party for free and reduce my rates for Christmas etc.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Same as me Darren.
I do not overcharge for christmas parties at the hotel because I get a lot of bookings in the christmas period. I will also to their staff party for free just as long as I have notice and I am not booked to do something else already (this happened last year, you may remember me posting about it).

At the end of the day, I am not concerned whatsoever as to what the hotel may add on top for my services. As long as I am happy with the fee that I am getting then that's cool with me. Also, in reality...it's none of my business is it? They get a price from me to supply a Disco and I do it.

[CRAZY K]

Same as me Darren.
I do not overcharge for christmas parties at the hotel because I get a lot of bookings in the christmas period. I will also to their staff party for free just as long as I have notice and I am not booked to do something else already (this happened last year, you may remember me posting about it).

At the end of the day, I am not concerned whatsoever as to what the hotel may add on top for my services. As long as I am happy with the fee that I am getting then that's cool with me. Also, in reality...it's none of my business is it? They get a price from me to supply a Disco and I do it.

Its not always that simple where you have varying set ups within the Disco market---i.ie sound, lights, number of tracks available etc.

I dont get involved with Hotels these days---but I can remember problems in the past where DJs were getting paid say £250 and rip off merchants were charging the customer £500--the problem was sometimes the customers were saying---this set up isnt worth anything like £500--and start having a go at the DJ instead of the supplier.

Scenario--ive paid £500 for this Disco and you havent got any Abba:D

The rip off merchants were either agencies or Hotels.

Hopefully this doesnt happen anymore ?

CRAZY K

[theoloyla]

I have known it happen in the past and as Alan says usually with an agency involved. I will not work for these sort of people (nothing against agents as I have done loads of work for good ones). My regular hotel recomend me and often book me on their behalf but suggest that the client pays me direct as otherwise the hotel will have to add VAT onto my fee.

[rob1963]

This thing about how much the hotel or agency charge the clients compared to how much they pay the DJ is an interesting one, and is something where I'm completely on the fence.

On one hand, I can understand DJ who says they are happy with what the hotel or agency are paying them, so it's irrelevant what the client is being charged.

However, I can also understand the other argument (which happened to a friend of mine) where someone paid him £250 to do a disco which he was initially happy with as this was his normal rate. However, he then discovered the client had been charged £500 for the disco...and the agency had made £250 (the same as he got for doing the disco) just for a few minutes work involving taking the details over the phone & passing them onto my friend. He said he's been ripped off big time & would never work for this guy again.

[theoloyla]

This thing about how much the hotel or agency charge the clients compared to how much they pay the DJ is an interesting one, and is something where I'm completely on the fence.

On one hand, I can understand DJ who says they are happy with what the hotel or agency are paying them, so it's irrelevant what the client is being charged.

However, I can also understand the other argument (which happened to a friend of mine) where someone paid him £250 to do a disco which he was initially happy with as this was his normal rate. However, he then discovered the client had been charged £500 for the disco...and the agency had made £250 (the same as he got for doing the disco) just for a few minutes work involving taking the details over the phone & passing them onto my friend. He said he's been ripped off big time & would never work for this guy again.

Exactly and just what I said. I dont mind paying an agent his 10 or 20 % but I wont work for agents who take the ****.

[rob1963]

Exactly and just what I said. I dont mind paying an agent his 10 or 20 % but I wont work for agents who take the ****.

Indeed...and I think charging 50% commission is DEFINATELY taking the :Censored:

[Shakermaker Promotions]

I don't work through agents. Never have and never will. If I can't get the work myself using my skills, experience, advertising and customer service then I should'nt be in the business....neither should the agents in my opinion as they are simply middle men and I don't understand why people use them. I get all of my work myself and now and then I may get something passed on from someone else in the same business if I am free on a certain night. All of my hotel work is booked via me and me only. If it is part of the wedding package then I get paid by the hotel. If I am booked privately then the fee changes slightly.

[theoloyla]

Traditionally people used entertainment agents because they had expertise and contacts to be able to supply suitable entertainment at the right price. Nowadays with the internet etc everybody thinks they can book everything direct themselves.

[Vectis]

I don't understand why people use them

My folks-in-law ran a large-ish holiday hotel on the IoW until recently and I asked them this very question over lunch a while back.

The basic response was that a good agent has a variety of acts on his books, and hoteliers have a lot of entertainment schedules to fill. They could either choose to employ someone to continually search around looking for different acts, calling them up, negotiating prices, checking diaries etc. or they could 'sell' the slots to a trusted agent for a pre-agreed price and let them get on with it.

That's why it works around here, anyway. Call it 'outsourcing'.

[rob1963]

Nowadays with the internet etc everybody thinks they can book everything direct themselves.

The reason they think that is because they CAN!

[theoloyla]

The reason they think that is because they CAN!
Yes but this also leads to all the paranoic clients who then want to see you work, read all your testimonials, dont trust you to play the right music; so give you a running order, want to have long meetings and teach you to suck eggs and are generally so worried about whether they have made the right decision that it may possible ruin their, their guests and even our evening. We've had loads of threads on here about it.

[Excalibur]

You can actually get a decent sound hooking a lappy direct to a mixer amp
and then through the PA.

I have had to do that a few times when univited "guests" have rolled up with their laptops and asked to play them through my PA.

Surprisingly good sound---as Excalibur would agree;)

Im not a laptop DJ by the way--

Mini Disc or Cortex for me---or back up in an emergency CD walkman ( £5 in Asda sounds amazing )

CRAZY K

Acceptable sound on mine, no question. Nowhere near as good as with my USB Sound blaster, but certainly acceptable.



I get recommendations and my venues make nothing on me. I do them a staff party for free and reduce my rates for Christmas etc.

The preferred option for me, which seems to be a lot like Darren's in some ways, is that the punter pays me direct. The venue makes the contract, and the punter sometimes pays the venue, who then pass it on to me, with no stoppage to me, or surcharge ( oops, used the S word again! ;) ;) ) to the punter.

Many years ago, when I worked in a Golf Hotel, the more astute ( Tight? ) customers worked out that there were big savings to be made by removing the Hotel from negotiations. ;) ;) :D :D

[rob1963]

Yes but this also leads to all the paranoic clients who then want to see you work, read all your testimonials, dont trust you to play the right music; so give you a running order, want to have long meetings and teach you to suck eggs and are generally so worried about whether they have made the right decision that it may possible ruin their, their guests and even our evening. We've had loads of threads on here about it.

Fortunately I rarely get these kind of clients.

This year I've only had one person wanting to see me work, none who have wanted to see any testimonials or give me the running order and only three who wanted to meet me (and none of those meetings were more than 15 minutes). Most of my clients don't even want to speak on the phone before meeting me on the night.

[Excalibur]

Fortunately I rarely get these kind of clients.

This year I've only had one person wanting to see me work, none who have wanted to see any testimonials or give me the running order and only three who wanted to meet me (and none of those meetings were more than 15 minutes). Most of my clients don't even want to speak on the phone before meeting me on the night.

Strikes me as a good plan Rob. If I were booking you, I'd make as little contact as possible. :p :D :D

[rob1963]

Strikes me as a good plan Rob. If I were booking you, I'd make as little contact as possible. :p :D :D

Wow...so you WOULD book me?

I think I love you.

:Embarassed:

[Excalibur]

Wow...so you WOULD book me?

I think I love you.

:Embarassed:

Rob, you've got to start evening classes in English Language.

" IF I WERE" not "When" :p :p :D :D

[rob1963]

Rob, you've got to start evening classes in English Language.

If that were true, most of the other people on the forum would be a lost cause!

[Excalibur]

If that were true, most of the other people on the forum would be a lost cause!

Rob, brace yourself. I apologise. :eek: While my statement was technically correct, yours is undoubtedly absolutely unassailable logic. :( :(

[rob1963]

Rob, brace yourself. I apologise. :eek: While my statement was technically correct, yours is undoubtedly absolutely unassailable logic. :( :(

:D :D :D