If you are a good DJ you probably often ask yourself a lots of questions. One of the most important ones is ‘Am I a good DJ?’ You probably tried to think of a way to feel the pulse of the dancers and find out can you make some adjustments to improve.
If you have not come up with a consistent method – here it is. If you already have one, maybe this will help you make it sharper.
I have a tango DJ friend who once told me a funny story. I can not tell if it is true, but I imagine it might be.
He was playing music in a local milonga in a small cafe and the night was great. The couples danced non stop and the dance floor was full. It was a DJs dream: no one sitting around, no one going out to smoke a cigar, no one drinking on the bar. But, not everyone was satisfied.
– Can I ask you something? – the guy said to him.
At first I thought it is some of those nuevo dancers trying to ask me if I can play electro tango or Piazzolla, my friend joked. But then, the guy introduced himself:
– You see, I am the owner of this cafe. The tickets people pay to come to this milonga are not enough, they have to drink – he said with a worrying face.
– Yes, I know that – my friend answered.
– Than, I have a request. Could you please play at least one bad tanda, so they can come to the bar to get some drinks? – the owner asked.
[Tweet “Some signals are subtle, some are not; but look for them – and you will know if you are a good DJ”]
Even the owner of the cafe understood – when people do not like the music, they go to the bar and drink. This gives us one of the clues: the DJ should be aware how much work the barmen has and when 🙂
In this post I am going to give you the four most important ways to find out how can you know if your DJ set is good. Pay attention to this four points and you will be aware of the constant feedback people give you about your work as a DJ.
1. The dance floor is full – And the chairs are empty. An obvious signal! People can tell you that the music is very good, but if no one is dancing that might be not the truth. There is no better compliment for a DJ than full dance floor. This tells him/her ‘We love your music, it is inspiring’.
I had music sets in places with very strange dancing habits. Milongas with great venues and full with people, but I could not get them dance. I always feel guilty when the dance floor is empty during my set. It does not even help when the organizers tell me that in their milongas people always behave like that: few hours before they start dancing, they just sit, talk and drink. They do not even sit around the dance floor – they are all in some corner of the venue, usually the one where the drinks are.
If the dancers are sitting around the dance floor, ready to dance, but they are not dancing – there must be something wrong. Most of the time – there is problem with the music.
When the opposite happens: when people are dancing non stop, when the chairs are empty and no one goes for a drink – it is almost certain signal that you are doing a great job.
2. People talk a lot – I used to be very unsatisfied and nervous when I could not hear my music because of the loud talking on the dance floor between the songs. I felt that as disrespect towards my music and I often felt under valuated when that happened. In time I learned that this was a wrong reaction. A DJ should be happy when this happens. Why?
When people are in a good mood they talk, they smile, they hug, they do a little dance with the hips when they recognize the song, they jump, they rise their hand, they sing… They become extroverts, showing their feelings openly. They also tend to become louder than usual. When they do this, it means that the DJ succeed to create a great mood and that the people are really having a good time. Mission accomplished!
A piece of advice: If people are loud, do not try to make the music louder. Do not fight for attention. Just let them talk and let them decide when the talking time is over and the dancing time begun.
The form you have selected does not exist.
3. They ask you the name of the track – From time to time people will approach you during the milongas, to ask you about the name of a track you play. This means that they like it and they want to listen to it again sometime.
In my post ‘How the DJs use their superpower?‘ I explained that one of the functions of the DJ is to educate. Good DJs do not play just hits. DJs are tango community leaders and it is important to lead them from a state of not knowing to a state of knowing. This means that from time to time you have to introduce to them music they are not familiar with. The DJ has to do this educational function with great care and paying attention not to go too far.
Check out my post about the tricks the DJs use
When the new track is introduced to the crowd, it should be in between well known music so they do not feel in unfamiliar territory. If all what the DJ is done well, dancers will accept the new music.
Sometimes even the hits might seams different if a DJ puts them in different context. The crowd might forget about some tracks and putting those songs in different tandas might get people feel them in a fresh way – rediscovering the old jewels.
4. They connect with you – If the dancers like your music they will notice you and interact with you in some way. This is the most direct signal that they can give to you.
The reactions can vary depending on their mood, their character and how good you are. Some people will send you a glance while they dance, one that tells ‘Thank you for this song’. Others might just smile and give you thumbs up. The most of the times people express their gratitude for your good music with applause when they hear some track that was right on time when they needed something like that. This is the most obvious signal that you are doing a great job.
The reactions can go even further. I have seen people did not wanting to leave or stop applauding after ‘La cumparsita’, so the organizer was forced to ask the DJ to play few tandas more. In one of my sets in the international events in Italy, a very influential local teacher interrupted the milonga to ask people to give me bigger applause for the great mood my set created. Those are the moments when all your hard work on your DJing skills pays off. No money can buy that feeling when you see how happy the people are because of what you do.
If you are a DJ and you have different experience than mine we all are going to be thankful if you share it with us in the comments or you can send me a private message, so I can share it in some of my posts. If you want more tips like those you read in this post please subscribe to my mailing list. Share this post with your friends and make sure they benefit from the tips explained here.
I see the point of talking people.
Everytime when the milonga is at the beginning, people are usually quiet, they do not talk too much. This is ok at the beginning, but if it lasts too long, something is wrong with the music. As soon as I hear people talking between the tracks, my fears stop and I tell to myself “ok, now you are on better track, they are having fun, continue” 🙂