digimixer
I know this will be a touchy subject, and i start this thread to encourage healthy debate.
My views listed below are my own opinions and perceptions. I don't believe them to be fact, but i think there is a good chance that they are :)
Personally i hate it when DJs get on the Mic, at weddings, birthdays or whatever. I don't mind the occasional interruption, for example in a club when DJs say hi to the crowd and jeer em up. What bugs me is the DJs at the smaller events, weddings, bars etc that feel compelled to talk inbetween almost every track.
I've seen posts of people expressing how important they think it is to do good mic work at these kinda events, but as far as im concerned a DJs job is to offer a continutiy of music for others pleasure, not to repeatedly interrupt it.
I would ofcourse exclude childrens parties from this and any MIC work that is actually requested by clients, but i think too many DJs just like the sound of their own voice!
I've yet to speak to anyone at a party which has a chatterbox DJ who hasn't ended up grumbling about him, it really grates people. If people liked it that much Record Labels would release CDs with people talking inbetween every track.
Let the music do the talking!
Feels so good to get that off my chest! :)
My views listed below are my own opinions and perceptions. I don't believe them to be fact, but i think there is a good chance that they are :)
Personally i hate it when DJs get on the Mic, at weddings, birthdays or whatever. I don't mind the occasional interruption, for example in a club when DJs say hi to the crowd and jeer em up. What bugs me is the DJs at the smaller events, weddings, bars etc that feel compelled to talk inbetween almost every track.
I've seen posts of people expressing how important they think it is to do good mic work at these kinda events, but as far as im concerned a DJs job is to offer a continutiy of music for others pleasure, not to repeatedly interrupt it.
I would ofcourse exclude childrens parties from this and any MIC work that is actually requested by clients, but i think too many DJs just like the sound of their own voice!
I've yet to speak to anyone at a party which has a chatterbox DJ who hasn't ended up grumbling about him, it really grates people. If people liked it that much Record Labels would release CDs with people talking inbetween every track.
Let the music do the talking!
Feels so good to get that off my chest! :)
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 4:07 pm
Wedding Dj's get paid for Bridal Party Introduction, Dance announcements (father, daughter etc.) cake cutting, boquet toss, garter etc. Total time a Dj really gets to play dancable music and not talk is about 2 hours, for most of the Wedding the Dj needs to have a good Mic Voice
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 4:14 pm
digimixer
Kayle wrote :
Wedding Dj's get paid for Bridal Party Introduction, Dance announcements (father, daughter etc.) cake cutting, boquet toss, garter etc. Total time a Dj really gets to play dancable music and not talk is about 2 hours, for most of the Wedding the Dj needs to have a good Mic Voice
Yes, i understand that part, there are times when Mic work is neccessary, yes they need a decent voice, but it's the ones that carry on chatting when they don't need to that annoy me. I'm sure these people got into DJing not through a passion of music but through a passion of talking!
I'm not having a go at Wedding DJs, i do weddings myself, and i arm myself with a Mic, but i use it only when absolutely positively neccesary. The DJ shouldnt be the centre of attention, the ( music / ambience / event ) should.
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 4:23 pm
tayla
digimixer
don't know whether to call you a condescending git in one breath or say well done in the other but i agree with you some djs totally go over board loving their own voice, where i'm from its known as a party city throughout the world and has been voted in the top five destinations by travellers around the
world for the last ten years if not longer, therefore we have to use the mic a lot to greet people, loads of stag and hen nights, birthday shouts takin' the piss etc as well as drop ins from people who are from europe, australia, america, canada, asia you name it and i've givin them a shout, but there are two djs i used to know could talk a shell fish to sleep what a waste of time those two were they just wanted to hear and let everyone else hear their voice so yeah i agree with you only use the mic when need too...
Tayla
don't know whether to call you a condescending git in one breath or say well done in the other but i agree with you some djs totally go over board loving their own voice, where i'm from its known as a party city throughout the world and has been voted in the top five destinations by travellers around the
world for the last ten years if not longer, therefore we have to use the mic a lot to greet people, loads of stag and hen nights, birthday shouts takin' the piss etc as well as drop ins from people who are from europe, australia, america, canada, asia you name it and i've givin them a shout, but there are two djs i used to know could talk a shell fish to sleep what a waste of time those two were they just wanted to hear and let everyone else hear their voice so yeah i agree with you only use the mic when need too...
Tayla
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 5:36 pm
Dazmax
Got to agree with Digi here.
I know that there must be a happy medium between doin what you gotta do on the mic to make announcements or get the party started and rabbiting betwen every track. I think some guys use the mic as a lazy way of covering poorly planned changes of music style or just because mixing aint their thing.
Probably get smacked up by a rampageing mob of dissgruntled mic abusers now .
But hey, thats life in the contraversial fast lane for ya.
DAZ
I know that there must be a happy medium between doin what you gotta do on the mic to make announcements or get the party started and rabbiting betwen every track. I think some guys use the mic as a lazy way of covering poorly planned changes of music style or just because mixing aint their thing.
Probably get smacked up by a rampageing mob of dissgruntled mic abusers now .
But hey, thats life in the contraversial fast lane for ya.
DAZ
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 5:40 pm
fatkatzdj
I think the mic work hog probably came from the " hypeman " sound. They feel that if they use the mic like DJ Clue, Funkmaster Flex, Scribble... just a couple of examples. They could be and sound like those hype man. I personally can't listen to CLUE's music because I get tired of hearing his voice throughout the song and into the next song. But that's just me.
OR
It's power struggle to have the mic in hand and music at your fingertips... HEY LOOK AT ME, I'M A DJ!!!!
OR
It's power struggle to have the mic in hand and music at your fingertips... HEY LOOK AT ME, I'M A DJ!!!!
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 6:09 pm
djcurtist
Heh .. yep .. im a mic abuser & wouldn’t have it any other way.
I use the mic to change up music styles … tell jokes … flirt … make announcements .. sing along with songs .. order drinks .. tease people .. And all around have fun.
Some people hate what I do .. but more seem to like it .. my 3 residencies are always packed when I play.
And honestly .. it really wouldn’t matter if everyone hated what I do .. I do it to have fun .. Once I stop having fun .. I will stop spinning records.
I use the mic to change up music styles … tell jokes … flirt … make announcements .. sing along with songs .. order drinks .. tease people .. And all around have fun.
Some people hate what I do .. but more seem to like it .. my 3 residencies are always packed when I play.
And honestly .. it really wouldn’t matter if everyone hated what I do .. I do it to have fun .. Once I stop having fun .. I will stop spinning records.
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 6:31 pm
DJ Marcel_1
I have a great time at work - I don't talk terribly much - I have to call drink specials, I have to advertise other nights. I've actaully stoped calling birthday shout outs cause I get inundated with the the damn things. (I'd always be on the mic then.)
I also have to watch for fights and direct doormen if nessesary
I also have to watch for fights and direct doormen if nessesary
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 8:07 pm
bagpuss
I'm of the view that less is more, depending on the event, some events such as weddings do require a lot of chatter, nightclubs genreally don't require too much, it's dependent on the demands the club manager places on the DJ and the DJ's style/preference.
Birthday shouts in big commercial clubs are a nightmare, you literally get one every two minutes, sometimes to do them all means to ruin the entertainment of the majority who's birthday it is not, so in this case it's a good idea to read out the big ones (i.e 18, 21, 30, 40 etc) and put the "less special" ones on the screens, in this case, get the VJ to enter all the birthdays and have them scroll across the bottom of the screen on a continues loop, adding to and deleting every half an hour or so, before playing the first one, get on the mic and tell people what's happening, so you don't get any come backs or complaints, if you were really creative you could make it better by taking a photo of the birthday girl or boy and have their picture on the screen with the announcement, of course the DJ wouldn't have time for that, but the VJ might.
Personally I don't like the sound of my own voice, I'll do anything to avoid using the mic, but if I'm to last in this business I've got to start changing my ways, and I think once I do get on that mic I might just like it..but the music will always come first.
Birthday shouts in big commercial clubs are a nightmare, you literally get one every two minutes, sometimes to do them all means to ruin the entertainment of the majority who's birthday it is not, so in this case it's a good idea to read out the big ones (i.e 18, 21, 30, 40 etc) and put the "less special" ones on the screens, in this case, get the VJ to enter all the birthdays and have them scroll across the bottom of the screen on a continues loop, adding to and deleting every half an hour or so, before playing the first one, get on the mic and tell people what's happening, so you don't get any come backs or complaints, if you were really creative you could make it better by taking a photo of the birthday girl or boy and have their picture on the screen with the announcement, of course the DJ wouldn't have time for that, but the VJ might.
Personally I don't like the sound of my own voice, I'll do anything to avoid using the mic, but if I'm to last in this business I've got to start changing my ways, and I think once I do get on that mic I might just like it..but the music will always come first.
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 8:51 pm
Tear Em 'Up
Well, I never met a mic I didn't like. That being said there is a balance to be maintained. Yes the music is key, but you also want to let everyone know you are not a jukebox. Blending songs is one way, using the mic is another. I have seen a lot of DJs who need to shut up, and I have seen some who need to say something, anything. Announce you take requests, the drink specials, the wedding party, whatever. Please do not over do it. A lot of the use of the mic is depending on the crowd, some crowds like a DJ on the mic, some don't. So mic use is a personal thing, personal to the DJ and to the crowd. Not to mention the management of said event/location.
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 9:40 pm
goapmr
Well you have record players and you got djs. The first have a mic and the dj does not. I do not want to start a riot but in my opinion folks who just play song ,talk (about whatever), and play next song are not djs! They are record players. djing is something different.
Posted Fri 13 Jul 07 @ 11:48 pm
bagpuss
A DJ is someone who plays pre-recorded material to an audience. Whether they do or don't talk, mix, scratch etc is irrelevant, the standard is also irrelevant.
The biggest responsibility any DJ has is music selection.
The biggest responsibility any DJ has is music selection.
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 2:56 am
DJ EL
My $0.02...it IS possible to talk too much. Other than announcements for weddings, sweet sixteens, club specials announcement, it can get irritating. For the most part, I want to hear the music. I can be forgiving of a bad mix, if the music is good. I can't be forgiving if the music is good, but obscured by a talking head. Bottom line, make sure to read the crowd to make sure that any "extra" talking isn't annoying.
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 5:06 am
androidi
If it was a bar/club and DJ talked every few minutes then yeah that'd be really annoying. Also I'd think the mic usage isn't that popular in events that are more about the music with DJs dedicated to particular style of music. Having DJ use mic often in the electronic music oriented events around here (northern europe) would be pretty rare infact as the music isn't that popular here and the party goers have good amount of music enthuasist regulars which probably wouldn't take it too well to have regular speaking during a mix.
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 7:40 am
androidi
Adding to my previous reply:
If there's going to be talk during the mix it's announced on the flyer by showing who is the MC ...
Half-jokingly though:
If there's already way too much talk and announcements etc in your place maybe a bit of reverse psychology so to speak could be applied: Use enough mic on top of good songs to get someone to complain and maybe if you won't get fired you have a chance to change the course of the place for less mic usage :-) Or find some better way to get the people to communicate how they prefer it - I have real hard time imagining birthday announcements every few minutes are worth it unless like more than half the people there have a birthday always...
If there's going to be talk during the mix it's announced on the flyer by showing who is the MC ...
Half-jokingly though:
If there's already way too much talk and announcements etc in your place maybe a bit of reverse psychology so to speak could be applied: Use enough mic on top of good songs to get someone to complain and maybe if you won't get fired you have a chance to change the course of the place for less mic usage :-) Or find some better way to get the people to communicate how they prefer it - I have real hard time imagining birthday announcements every few minutes are worth it unless like more than half the people there have a birthday always...
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 8:00 am
bagpuss
It's about presence and hospitality, but in some venues it's also for fun and regular communication, it's not a matter of if the mic should be used, it's how the mic is used, like anything else, it's a tool that can be used wrongly.
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 11:23 am
wildcountryclub
one of the best nights i ever had ever had at work = the flu, severe allergies, and a massive sinus headache. could barely talk and i don't think i said 3 things on the mic with 1100 people in the building. i HAD to let the music do all the talking.
so yeah there's always gonna be somebody who thinks the dj/mc talks too much, but if they find the balance then more power to 'em.
shutting up now.
so yeah there's always gonna be somebody who thinks the dj/mc talks too much, but if they find the balance then more power to 'em.
shutting up now.
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 11:27 am
digimixer
tayla wrote :
digimixer
don't know whether to call you a condescending git in one breath or say well done in the other
Tayla
don't know whether to call you a condescending git in one breath or say well done in the other
Tayla
Hi Tayla
I hope i'm not a condescending git, i don't think i am. (But can see why you might think that!)
Most Threads i start, i do so to encourage debate. I never pretend to know more than i do or assume i know more than others, hell.. i know there alot of way more experienced, knowledgable & talented DJs on this forum than me. I frequent these forums to learn, sometimes i express my opinions on here and people argue against them and they convince me to change my mind on things.
This particular thread i started because i do geniunely have a dislike for the above mentioned. But this really comes from a time before i even started DJing, so it's not a high & mighty "i think i'm better than everyone else" statement . Just a result of me being a disgrunteld guest at too many parties where i think the DJs ruined what was potentially a good party.
Bey hey, i know many different people have many different opinions, i was interested to see the debates that would follow my opening remarks
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 5:27 pm
tayla
yo digimixer
as the opening line also says 'or say well done' the point i was trying to make using the mic depends on the enviroment that you are in on the night, i have to and am expected to use it quite a lot for the bars & clubs that i work in where its more of a party atmosphere every night of the week so you gotta be able to use it well but if you got no personallity to go with it your sunk.
the two kids i was on about have niether but would just drone on all over the track BORING, funny enough have'nt seen them working the bars for a while so as i said in some respects i agree with your post you should only use a mic for when the situation dictates and don't do an over kill on it...
cheers
Tayla
as the opening line also says 'or say well done' the point i was trying to make using the mic depends on the enviroment that you are in on the night, i have to and am expected to use it quite a lot for the bars & clubs that i work in where its more of a party atmosphere every night of the week so you gotta be able to use it well but if you got no personallity to go with it your sunk.
the two kids i was on about have niether but would just drone on all over the track BORING, funny enough have'nt seen them working the bars for a while so as i said in some respects i agree with your post you should only use a mic for when the situation dictates and don't do an over kill on it...
cheers
Tayla
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 7:07 pm
digimixer
Tayla
yeah it's cool, i knew you weren't having a digg, your post just made me realise that some other people might of perceived me as being a condescending git, so thought i best try and justify my motives.
Anyway hope it worked otherwise i'll be changing my name to DJ GIT !! :) actually that has a ring to it, hmmm ......
yeah it's cool, i knew you weren't having a digg, your post just made me realise that some other people might of perceived me as being a condescending git, so thought i best try and justify my motives.
Anyway hope it worked otherwise i'll be changing my name to DJ GIT !! :) actually that has a ring to it, hmmm ......
Posted Sat 14 Jul 07 @ 9:27 pm
