How to develop Career as Disc Jockey

Disc Jockey aka DJ is a person who plays the recorded popular music for people. If you like vinyl discs, headphones, turntables, psychedelic lights and churning bodies and of course, music that fires your enthusiasm, career as a DJ calling you. DJ is a performing art that overlaps music production. This type of career involves remixing music composition arrangement and production. A professional DJ entertains revelers at clubs, does private shows for media houses and event management agencies and also performs at radio stations and a few TV channels. Apart from this, India has a huge market for freelance DJ. Such a DJ can get 15 to 20 bashes per month in the party season. Disc jockeying as a profession is witnessing the fastest growth in terms of youth participation. With an explosion of nightlife in urban life, the DJ can be the star of the evening in Gen Y gathering. Established names in the circuit believe that glamour lures youngsters to the console.

Clockwork:

11.30 am: Sit and check the playlist for the night. Review the performance of the last night.

1.30 pm: Spend sometime in music production, reviewing music news and catch up with DJs and collect new songs.

7.30 pm: Go to the venue or night club and starts playing for the early crowd.

9.30 pm: Warms up. In a night club things start getting warmed up by about 11.30 pm. But, only five-star clubs have the permission to play till 2.30 am.

1.00 am: Start winding up and have dinner, then say good night.

Getting There:

What you study in your high school does not matter as long as you want to be a DJ. However, you enroll for the DJ course after class X, but it is suggested that take it after school only. Once through the basics, you can assist a professional DJ or musician to learn the tricks of trade. You can get graduated from any institute and approach nightclubs and event organizers to demo CDs of your music.

Skills/Traits:

• Passion and good ear for music.
• Basic knowledge of sound recording and tools.
• Creativity with sound and rhythm, required to stay in this career for a long time.

The Payoff:

The average salary for the Disc Jockey at the initial level is 10,000 to 20,000 Indian rupees per month. But, it can vary as per the party and venues where you are playing. The hike in salary depends on clubs, music and your creativity and popularity.

Institutes and URL:

• School of Spin and Elite School Station, Mumbai, India- http://www.djsuketu.co.in
• Spin Guru DJ & Remixing Academy, New Delhi, India- http://www.spingurus.com
• Dubspot, New York, USA- http://www.dubspot.com
• Scratch DJ Academy, New York, USA- http://www.scratch.com

Pros and Cons:

• Party while earning money.
• Innovative and hard work.
• Involves extensive travel.
• You will have to work at night that could be difficult to adjust.
• Can be physically taxing.