There are lots of elements to being a DJ, but with a good foundation of learning to put you on the right track, the skills are all picked up on the learning journey. The initial foundations are actually very simple but are missed by most people when learning online which creates huge confusion & frustration in your learning process.
Take Looping for instance.
This is a great invention which allows us DJ's to do so many creative things when performing - not just elongating a track to get you out of trouble.
There is a space between two tracks where the DJ is set up waiting to cue the next track.
The next track has been chosen, tempo set, and now we wait for the perfect point to set the next track off. A hand-warming moment? To have a chat or drink? No! If we are a hard working DJ, we cn utilise this space to perform a creative mix!
This mentality does not always work, for instance when you are playing Metal or Rock or any open format music. But with Techno, House, Drum & Bass etc, this space can be used to create something amazing the listener has never heard before. It’s what I like to call the 'creative mix', compared to the solid mix when you are approaching the cue point.
We can have lots of fun in this space. Playfully and creatively, taking the listener on a journey they were not expecting, helping to raise the anticipation and expectation on the floor of the next track dropping.
You can tease a track in using loops, filters, and effects without the intention of fully bringing that tune in but introducing the next track to the crowd. Conscious of never losing the energy of the base track, it can fill the audience and DJ with new energy ready for when the new track finally drops.
Everybody loves a DJ that’s working hard, getting it right and smashing it out of the park.
This is where the importance of planning and preparation comes in.
That’s a subject for another day!
