I've been involved in the dj culture for over 20 years, have traveled the globe, seen many different elements of what a dj is supposed to be, and definitely what a dj isn't supposed to be. I will say this though, a dj is a fine tuned instrument, like a guitar or piano, and he/she is a mirror reflecting the numerous flavors of sound on sound created by the original artists and musicians. I started out as a musician first and branched over into being a dj while in the Marines. It gave me an edge over other dj's because I knew music theory, so I developed a feel of exactly where the break was going to be without having ever listened to the song, so I knew where to come in and out of a song.
I treat the tables like 2 seperate instruments and my hands are the keys, the strings, the valves that bring forth the musical piece waiting to be heard. A dj is an instrument when you are playing in front of a crowd, they are waiting for that improvisation that those musicians could only dream of, because you can remix, remake, and redo a song to satisfy that hunger for a newer sound landscape..
I don't believe in or hold myself to genres of music or a style of dj'ing. I am comfortable mixing back and forth from cultural to house music, just as much as hip hop or retro, or blending a mozart piece with a rap vocal, a James Brown backing instrumental with vocals from a house record, ect... I have seen too many dj's lock themselves into a genre, and thereby killing their earning potential from opportunitites that come up. There is nothing wrong with that, and I commend all fellow dj's of their skills and talent, so I'm not berating anyone, hope you didn't think that. I did a night at Prince's Glam Slam, where I played the traditional music of the world, music from China, Germany, Jerusalem, Africa, America, South America, ect... People were so surprised that I had vinyl records from all of those different countries. I have a house, garage, storage room, full of records, from every country, and genre of music you can name. I am a vinyl junkie and always will be.
I have nothing against the latest technology that allows a "true dj" to expand their skills, and them having that capability to draw from a much larger catalog of music at the press of a button. What I do have a problem with is the dj who started out with this technology and hasn't "paid their dues" by going through the trial and tribulations of carrying that vinyl, working with vinyl, and having that knack to overcome that technology if it ever fails them.. Just as a kid working with software and calls themself a producer, but never picked up any instrument, and don't know what music theory is if it bit them in the rear.
Yes it may be much easier to carry a few things vice carrying the equipment and a number of crates, but to tell you the truth, I carry both. A dj should always be prepared for a mishap. Computers and digital machines do fail and crash. I've seen it happen at a club before. The dj put on his mixes from a pc, and left. The pc crashed in the middle of the night. I being the resident dj, was prepared when it did. The promoter never hired him again. So fully prepare yourselves for anything. Yes that drunk can knock over your tables, bump into them and scratch a record. But what can you do if you haven't brought vinyl with you, and that software or digital machine crashes, or you don't have a backup plan?
I will speak on one more thing and I am done. My fellow dj brothers and sisters we have got to stop accepting any and everything as payment just to satisfy the urge to be spinning in a club. I can see working with people and their budgets when playing out at private parties, but in a club, festival, or large type event, you kill yourself and other dj's that follow behind you by accepting anything to play. I've been at a club at the end of the night and have seen them count out over a quarter of a million dollars from the bar alone, and a dj walks out with a few hundred dollars. You are "talent" bottomline, just as an artist that comes to perform at the club, you are just as equally or even more important. The artist performs a half hour set at best, but you are spinning for at least 5 to 6 hours, and you should get properly compensated for it. A trend started in Miami a few years back when a few eager young dj's (very well known today) started accepting just a few hundred dollars to dj on South Beach and other places. This in turn would cause club promoters and general managers to tell the top drawing dj's, "Why should I pay you a large sum of money, when I can get "so and so" to spin for a hundred dollars"? This killed the dj culture here in Miami. We had a dj coalition meeting about this very subject at the very last "How Can I Be Down" conference, but dj's were just not hearing it because of their egos. We are all in this together, so let's stick together, and stand up for each other by not accepting just anything to dj at these clubs.
You can find me on myspace at http://www.myspace.com/djgiovanninsane and numerous other sites, just google my dj name dj giovanni nsane. I am available for booking for all events at 305-321-2895
To hear some snippets of my mixes go to: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?v=app_2405167945&ref=profile&id=100000016396134
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