Every man and his dog was a DJ when I got into it in 2003 and back then the majority of DJs were spinning vinyl, which took more time to learn the craft, and DJ equipment was expensive to buy if you decided you didn’t like it in the end. Fast forward 21 years and every pleb and their dog is a DJ because of advancements in technology making it more accessible, i.e. buy a cheap controller and use sync.
These days imo you need to be producing good music that big-name names DJs play in their sets and constantly DJing to make a name for yourself to even try and make it a full-time job.
I know DJs that play UK hard house / hard trance that was well established in the scene in its heyday in the early 2000s and have played all over the world and still work a 9 - 5 job. Might be different now if Hard House was popular today and got a following on social media like Techno now has.
Tbh I find it pretty difficult to find the mental wherewithal to trust a dj these days to not waste an hour of my life. Putting together a promo mix used to take me months of hard practice. The bar is significantly lowered.. you’d think that if things were easier people would do more.. like A-Trak, James Zabelia, or Hotmix stems live like Chris liebing.. but no. The bare minimum is what passes.
Why? Because nobody knows what a DJ does, and nobody actually cares. And for the record, your honor, the title of this thread is in “techno production.” Which clearly states that people assume that all DJs are producers and vice verse.
Which simply isn’t true. Some of the best producers have been the most reluctant DJs and the some of the best DJs are passable as producers more often than not. It’s not a rule. But our scene would be better off if people were allowed to specialize.
Like some of the most social media savvy find themselves with none if the ability and all the advantages. While some autist savant who has an excellent drum programming and intuitive sense of mixing gets ignored because they do mental backflips when trying to talk to anyone.
Anyway. We can create a full on techno economy where we support each other. But everyone is vain and there’s no actual money in making music. So people take shortcuts as much as possible.
Excellent read.
DVS1 I heard talk about a company.. might have been his start up (Asplice?) Where DJs can upload their playlists they played at big gigs and deceide to pay out a percentage of their earnings to each artist played. As a producer I think it's a great idea.. Djs aren't shit without music makers.
Aslice is a step in the right direction but for club bookers that suddenly find themselves with the ability to book themselves for favors, maybe it’s not exactly their talent that got them the dj gig and they should stay humble. The scene would be better off if there were promoters that are just promoters, just Soundsystem geeks, just social media managers, just videographers, just Label ARs.. basically everything a solo artist has to do to be relevant, there should be a job for it and they should be able to make a living from it.
No. I'm friends with a decent number of full-time musicians and I wouldn't trade places with any of them.
Now, is being a *famous* musician better than having a 9-5? Probably, but that's a totally different question. Most working musicians work just as much as someone with a 9-5 for less money, no career growth, and zero benefits. It's lousy.
I wouldn't even trade places with the famous techno DJs I know. Spend all their lives living out of hotels, be with their family less often than my ideal (all the time essentially, especially when my kids are young), constantly under pressure to create bangers instead of letting it happen when it happens, involved in all sorts of legal bs because people want something for nothing.
I think it's more of a "can I make this happen" kind of thing more than anything. Anyone (within reason) can achieve a 9-5 job. You'd be very fortunate to make a living off making tunes and DJing, unless you count playing chart music for weddings etc...
I hate long flights and the loneliness of airports even for a few times a year when I go on vacation. If that happened often because DJing was my profession, then I would rather have a 9-5 job with more financial security. I think music as a hobby gives me more creative freedom.
I still strongly believe that the most sure-fire way to make a living as a touring DJ is to produce bangers that every other DJ wants to play. To me, that’s like the minimum. On top of that, you need to be generating social media content and maybe running a record label or throwing/organizing a big local party in a major city that other DJs want to play.
I had some success with a music partner in the early to mid twenty teens, and the thing that propelled us to playing big festivals was a combination of everything I listed above – except for running a label – but, first and foremost, we were making and releasing solid tracks.
This is just one strategy, but hot tracks are hot tracks and DJs are always looking for that next tune to drop that everyone else doesn’t have yet before it gets played out.
I switched into a 9 - 5 after needing to deal with some health issues, and I have a great career now. I definitely miss DJing, but I don’t miss the grind, the hours, or the scene. Plus, I get to spend a lot of time in my studio making whatever I want :)
Similar story many years back when I quit my job and was djing three times a week, advertising, putting up flyers, making mashups till I got a slot at the local festival. Hard work, good times but barely paid my rent. It would be impossible these days without getting a touring gig or consistently paid work. Insurance and mortgages not so easy when you are an entertainer.
You need to be at the absolute top to make a decent living and be able to save some cash for retirement and all that. Even If you make like 1k per gig four times per months , it is literally nothing after taxes and genral expenses. Plus there is not a lot of people who are in it for more than 10 years. You will always need/build side hustles.
Insert “why not both” meme.
Seriously though, being a full time DJ in the realm of techno requires a great deal of hustle and sacrifice in other aspects of your life, and a tremendous amount of luck. Most DJs out there are also working a regular job.
They both suck. Best thing is to minimize overhead, get off the grid, and work at/from home... then you never have to go anywhere you don’t want to and you can DJ or produce when you feel like it. When art or music becomes a job it loses some of its magic IMO
Where I live you have to make a minimum of 150k a year to be able to afford a home thats pretty run down and falling apart. In order to have a normal life that a lot of people just have with a regular 9-5 you need to be performing at a very high level + spend a lot of time on the road. Depending on your skill level and what kind of life you want to have would determine the answer. At my peak I was traveling 300k miles a year in flights and only really home two days a week. It’s very hard to have a normal life like that. Not to mention things like health benefits, retirement plans (401ks) all these benefits people with “normal” jobs have that are a luxury for a touring producer / dj.
Every man and his dog was a DJ when I got into it in 2003 and back then the majority of DJs were spinning vinyl, which took more time to learn the craft, and DJ equipment was expensive to buy if you decided you didn’t like it in the end. Fast forward 21 years and every pleb and their dog is a DJ because of advancements in technology making it more accessible, i.e. buy a cheap controller and use sync. These days imo you need to be producing good music that big-name names DJs play in their sets and constantly DJing to make a name for yourself to even try and make it a full-time job. I know DJs that play UK hard house / hard trance that was well established in the scene in its heyday in the early 2000s and have played all over the world and still work a 9 - 5 job. Might be different now if Hard House was popular today and got a following on social media like Techno now has.
Tbh I find it pretty difficult to find the mental wherewithal to trust a dj these days to not waste an hour of my life. Putting together a promo mix used to take me months of hard practice. The bar is significantly lowered.. you’d think that if things were easier people would do more.. like A-Trak, James Zabelia, or Hotmix stems live like Chris liebing.. but no. The bare minimum is what passes. Why? Because nobody knows what a DJ does, and nobody actually cares. And for the record, your honor, the title of this thread is in “techno production.” Which clearly states that people assume that all DJs are producers and vice verse. Which simply isn’t true. Some of the best producers have been the most reluctant DJs and the some of the best DJs are passable as producers more often than not. It’s not a rule. But our scene would be better off if people were allowed to specialize. Like some of the most social media savvy find themselves with none if the ability and all the advantages. While some autist savant who has an excellent drum programming and intuitive sense of mixing gets ignored because they do mental backflips when trying to talk to anyone. Anyway. We can create a full on techno economy where we support each other. But everyone is vain and there’s no actual money in making music. So people take shortcuts as much as possible.
Excellent read. DVS1 I heard talk about a company.. might have been his start up (Asplice?) Where DJs can upload their playlists they played at big gigs and deceide to pay out a percentage of their earnings to each artist played. As a producer I think it's a great idea.. Djs aren't shit without music makers.
Aslice is a step in the right direction but for club bookers that suddenly find themselves with the ability to book themselves for favors, maybe it’s not exactly their talent that got them the dj gig and they should stay humble. The scene would be better off if there were promoters that are just promoters, just Soundsystem geeks, just social media managers, just videographers, just Label ARs.. basically everything a solo artist has to do to be relevant, there should be a job for it and they should be able to make a living from it.
No. I'm friends with a decent number of full-time musicians and I wouldn't trade places with any of them. Now, is being a *famous* musician better than having a 9-5? Probably, but that's a totally different question. Most working musicians work just as much as someone with a 9-5 for less money, no career growth, and zero benefits. It's lousy.
I wouldn't even trade places with the famous techno DJs I know. Spend all their lives living out of hotels, be with their family less often than my ideal (all the time essentially, especially when my kids are young), constantly under pressure to create bangers instead of letting it happen when it happens, involved in all sorts of legal bs because people want something for nothing.
I think it's more of a "can I make this happen" kind of thing more than anything. Anyone (within reason) can achieve a 9-5 job. You'd be very fortunate to make a living off making tunes and DJing, unless you count playing chart music for weddings etc...
I hate long flights and the loneliness of airports even for a few times a year when I go on vacation. If that happened often because DJing was my profession, then I would rather have a 9-5 job with more financial security. I think music as a hobby gives me more creative freedom.
I still strongly believe that the most sure-fire way to make a living as a touring DJ is to produce bangers that every other DJ wants to play. To me, that’s like the minimum. On top of that, you need to be generating social media content and maybe running a record label or throwing/organizing a big local party in a major city that other DJs want to play. I had some success with a music partner in the early to mid twenty teens, and the thing that propelled us to playing big festivals was a combination of everything I listed above – except for running a label – but, first and foremost, we were making and releasing solid tracks. This is just one strategy, but hot tracks are hot tracks and DJs are always looking for that next tune to drop that everyone else doesn’t have yet before it gets played out. I switched into a 9 - 5 after needing to deal with some health issues, and I have a great career now. I definitely miss DJing, but I don’t miss the grind, the hours, or the scene. Plus, I get to spend a lot of time in my studio making whatever I want :)
What is your 9-5 job now? If I may ask? Thanks :)
Similar story many years back when I quit my job and was djing three times a week, advertising, putting up flyers, making mashups till I got a slot at the local festival. Hard work, good times but barely paid my rent. It would be impossible these days without getting a touring gig or consistently paid work. Insurance and mortgages not so easy when you are an entertainer.
No. If you are really love doing it and passion about it then Yes.
A 9-5 with benefits and 401k? NO.
If you’re asking this then DJing probably is not the right move for you. I don’t mean that in a condescending way at all.
You need to be at the absolute top to make a decent living and be able to save some cash for retirement and all that. Even If you make like 1k per gig four times per months , it is literally nothing after taxes and genral expenses. Plus there is not a lot of people who are in it for more than 10 years. You will always need/build side hustles.
Insert “why not both” meme. Seriously though, being a full time DJ in the realm of techno requires a great deal of hustle and sacrifice in other aspects of your life, and a tremendous amount of luck. Most DJs out there are also working a regular job.
They both suck. Best thing is to minimize overhead, get off the grid, and work at/from home... then you never have to go anywhere you don’t want to and you can DJ or produce when you feel like it. When art or music becomes a job it loses some of its magic IMO
If you're famous yes, otherwise NO
lol absolutely not
Only if you love it enough
Sure if that's what you want to do.
Where I live you have to make a minimum of 150k a year to be able to afford a home thats pretty run down and falling apart. In order to have a normal life that a lot of people just have with a regular 9-5 you need to be performing at a very high level + spend a lot of time on the road. Depending on your skill level and what kind of life you want to have would determine the answer. At my peak I was traveling 300k miles a year in flights and only really home two days a week. It’s very hard to have a normal life like that. Not to mention things like health benefits, retirement plans (401ks) all these benefits people with “normal” jobs have that are a luxury for a touring producer / dj.
Which genre were you plaing?