You know it will be a tough night when...

[Ryu]

Had a night of hard work and constant requests/genre changes and 'play this next' type comments. The night went well, but it certainly wasn't one of those nights where the next song picks itself. I got to thinking why that might be and have come to the conclusion that, there are some crowd mixes which make our jobs harder. Last night, as example, every guest seemed to have strong opinions on what would work, and that was one type of music only. Every time I had a full floor I knew I'd lose at least SOME of them on the next one.

Another one that can be tricky is an 18th/21st with a 50/50 split of young and old...especially if the older ones want standards, the young ones want chart and both don't want the others choices...

Anyways, the question to you...is there a certain audience which is harder to play to than others?

[mattydinx]

I personally find 18th and 21st parties easier to please.

I don't think its necessarily down to the type of event, be it a Wedding or a Birthday, more down to the families and guests invited, some are easier to please than others.

If the guests are there to get up and dance, they'll do so, if they're not that way inclined, they won't. It's not necessarily a poor selection of music on our part.

I've had gigs in the past which I thought were terrible, struggled to get people on the dance floor all night - yet people come up at the end telling you how much they enjoyed it - baffling!

[Mark Wild]

Weddings are the hardest and most challenging by far, especially when the two families haven't got a clue how to mingle with each other !

[Ryu]

See I've found wedding crowds to be more tolerant, there's an expectation, to a certain extent, that you have to play the most 'please all' tracks. 18th/21st where the young ones want dubstep and the old ones want the Bee Gees can test your mixing skills to the max!

[mattydinx]

*looks for Bee Gees Dubstep on YouTube* :D

[Ryu]

*looks for Bee Gees Dubstep on YouTube* :D

:D Was going to ask what that missing link track could be!

[Eski75]

I've had gigs in the past which I thought were terrible, struggled to get people on the dance floor all night - yet people come up at the end telling you how much they enjoyed it - baffling!

I think alot of DJ's are very hard on themselves in this area. I don't really do weddings and private party's but I often think of my own wedding 5 yrs ago. A locally established DJ who also did sound for a band I was in at the time did the honours and did great job in terms playing a bit of something for everyone, didn't make everyones ears bleed etc but approached me two thirds of the way through the night apologising for the fact that very few were dancing and that he didn't know what else he could try.

I felt sorry for him because the fact of the matter was that at my wedding there were loads of family that hadn't seen each other in years and loads of mates and work colleagues that hadn't seen each other in a long time. They didn't want to dance, they wanted to be in each others company chatting and catching up over a pint.

The point being is that I am sure many of the events you guys do are exactly the same and therefore the number of folk on the dancefloor [I]can[I] be a very misleading indication of whether or not one is doing a quality job.

www.ceremonyonline.com

[Ryu]

I think alot of DJ's are very hard on themselves in this area. I don't really do weddings and private party's but I often think of my own wedding 5 yrs ago. A locally established DJ who also did sound for a band I was in at the time did the honours and did great job in terms playing a bit of something for everyone, didn't make everyones ears bleed etc but approached me two thirds of the way through the night apologising for the fact that very few were dancing and that he didn't know what else he could try.

I felt sorry for him because the fact of the matter was that at my wedding there were loads of family that hadn't seen each other in years and loads of mates and work colleagues that hadn't seen each other in a long time. They didn't want to dance, they wanted to be in each others company chatting and catching up over a pint.

The point being is that I am sure many of the events you guys do are exactly the same and therefore the number of folk on the dancefloor [I]can[I] be a very misleading indication of whether or not one is doing a quality job.

www.ceremonyonline.com

Good post, and something I do try remind myself of that on nights like last night. You can lead a horse to water...but the horse may end up just enjoying the water and toe tapping to the DJ instead :D

[CRAZY K]

Had a night of hard work and constant requests/genre changes and 'play this next' type comments. The night went well, but it certainly wasn't one of those nights where the next song picks itself. I got to thinking why that might be and have come to the conclusion that, there are some crowd mixes which make our jobs harder. Last night, as example, every guest seemed to have strong opinions on what would work, and that was one type of music only. Every time I had a full floor I knew I'd lose at least SOME of them on the next one.

Another one that can be tricky is an 18th/21st with a 50/50 split of young and old...especially if the older ones want standards, the young ones want chart and both don't want the others choices...

Anyways, the question to you...is there a certain audience which is harder to play to than others?

My first rule---please the person that pays you--unless you feel their views are completely against what your Professional judgement tells you.

This does happen.

I did a Wedding which incorporated Barn Dancing with Red Hot Chillis--:eek:

The way forward was to point out that to deal successfully with this we had to have a separate session about 10pm when I had tired out the Barn Dancers and then gave the Peppers a slot for 15 minutes.

Perfect--everyone got what they wanted.

Tricky---hmmm I have an 18th next week--Barn Dance to start--old and young generation join in and have fun together-- then older people go home home happy == and then the youngsters get the dreadful music they want and will be choosing for the rest of he night .:D :D :D :D :D :D :D

Everyone happy.

I can see your problem though--Weddings are often difficult for the same reasons--massive age range--I suppose you have to mix and match with sessions aimed at the specific tastes and not keep changing to please the odd bod who makes a request--otherwise you will have the problem you describe but above all please the person that pays you--just my view.

I suppose I am am in the lucky position of having a massive range of all age party dances at my disposal--which might be an area to explore perhaps?

[katman]

... at my wedding there were loads of family that hadn't seen each other in years and loads of mates and work colleagues that hadn't seen each other in a long time. They didn't want to dance, they wanted to be in each others company chatting and catching up over a pint.


I think that is EXACTLY what happens at family events such as weddings etc.

Families are now often spread over a wide geographical area and it could be 20 years or so since they last met or even spoke in some cases.

My mum died recently and at the funeral last week, my sisters godparents were there. I hadnt seen them since 1969 when I was 9 years old !!!

[CRAZY K]

I think that is EXACTLY what happens at family events such as weddings etc.

Families are now often spread over a wide geographical area and it could be 20 years or so since they last met or even spoke in some cases.

My mum died recently and at the funeral last week, my sisters godparents were there. I hadnt seen them since 1969 when I was 9 years old !!!

I would think at Weddings which usually start hours before the Dancing there is time for people to chat and catch up--so by the time the DJ starts those conversations would be over and then its down to choice of music and whether people are in the mood to join in.

Cold start events like Birthdays I agree are a problem early evening because most people turn up late as well as chatting---as they did last night at my event.:daft: :daft: :daft:

[DJ Paulie]

Most people here don't go out til about 10:30/11:00pm so birthdays are sometimes very slow to start. They chat, drink, eat & smoke then wonder why they didn't get thier songs played after requesting them 30min before the party ends !

[Eski75]

........and whether people are in the mood to join in.

That is more to the point. It is the same anywhere. What percentage of people in your average town centre club are dancing compared tothe percentage stood drinking and talking? Is it because the DJ is playing the wrong stuff? Absolutely not, it's just that that is what those people came out to do that night.

Same thing applies to private party's/weddings. We have already had a thread on here about who actually dances at do's and there were many that didn't, regardless of the DJ's song selection. I'm not saying it's not important, it's vital but (and I'm going to get some stick for this but hey-ho) if you've done a party and nobody has anything remarkable to say about you then you've done a good job. My logic? They will rarely remember you when your good but ALWAYS remember you when your cack!

[chrispeacock]

i had an engagement friday where the girl whose engagement it was wanted no cheese but wants charts. i was fine with that.....but her mother demanded i play cheese all night. ended up playing both and each would come up to ask why the other genre was being played. was head work to be honest. They told me at the end of the night that they had a great time and that i was the best dj they had ever had and they wanted me todo the wedding. I dont know whether i would want to after last nights head ache