Pro's and Con's of music selection

[Andy P]

Another thread got me thinking about an idea. Looking at musical selection for the party and how it will affect the night what do you feel the pro/cons are for:

DJ selected music

Casual Playlist submission

Strict Playlist submission

Limiting/Selecting Genre

[funkymook]

Another thread got me thinking about an idea. Looking at musical selection for the party and how it will affect the night what do you feel the pro/cons are for:

DJ selected music

Casual Playlist submission

Strict Playlist submission

Limiting/Selecting Genre


DJ selected music - with no input from client the DJ could be caught out by not having the right tunes with them.

Casual Playlist submission - gives you a good idea of the clients tastes without being restrictive.

Strict Playlist submission - impossible to play a DJ set with a strict playlist, you’re just the equipment operator. The sort of scenario it can work is a cocktail party where music is only at background levels.

Limiting/Selecting Genre - themed or specialist nights can be great if all the audience are into the same music - nightmare if they’re not and the client won’t budge. DJ needs to know the music very well.


The way I work is to discuss the music before taking the booking to make sure we’re a good match. Then ask for a dozen or so ‘must play’ tunes, a ‘fit in if you can’ list, and a ‘do not play’ list of songs and artists - that gives me enough guidance to meet the clients expectations and the freedom for me to DJ.

[Nakatomi]

Another thread got me thinking about an idea. Looking at musical selection for the party and how it will affect the night what do you feel the pro/cons are for:

DJ selected music

Casual Playlist submission

Strict Playlist submission

Limiting/Selecting Genre

DJ selected music.. that depends on how much contact I've had with the client before the event - which is generally none. I like having at least a basic idea rather than it being suck-it-and-see all night. Being given a slight idea of what the client wants helps a lot.. and is certainly better for my nerves

Casual Playlist submission.. Great for giving me an idea about what the client (and maybe their guests) likes.

Strict Playlist submission .. now that depends. Are we talking a shortish 'must play' list or an authoritative 'play all these in this order' list? I've never had anything like the latter & I would refuse to work with such a list if I had the option. There've been a couple of times I've heard of people dishing out lists as long as their arm then moaning & refusing to pay the venue when they didn't work. A 'must play' or a 'it'd be nice if you could play' list is always welcome.

Limiting genres isn't always a bad thing. "No cheese".. no problem, but if they're saying "only banging trance allowed".. there may be trouble ahead if the audience aren't all fans, or if it's a genre I'm not well versed in - e.g. hardcore bounce crap.