An in Depth Interview on How to Become a Female DJ
It is indeed true that the old saying of ” music is what makes the world go ’round”. But how often is it that there is a female dj that is spinning the music? I wanted to take a closer look at female dj’s, so I interviewed my best friend, a female dj that goes by the name of “Trust”.
It was fun sitting down with Trust to talk about the various aspects of being a female dj in a male- dominated profession. Trust stated that she was interested in becoming a dj because, ” I wanted to make music to where people want to dance and have a good time. As a kid I used to play all the different music from my parents and friends record collections, and play with the record player. ” Many people believe that it is difficult to become a female dj, and as any other male-dominated profession, Trust stated that it is indeed difficult to look for jobs as a female dj. There are various pointers for women that want to become djs that Trust wanted to share. She states that you must ” keep going to places, especially clubs. Go to places that have open mic night, and different djs play. You can go to raves or parties..sometimes they will let local people play too, or you could do it broadcasting you music online..there’s a lot of different things you can do!”.
There are several female djs out there that are currently headliners. For example, Trust mentions who she thought is a good female dj : DJ Irene. ” I think of DJ Irene because of all the years of experience that she’s been doing it. Every time she does it, she really does capture a crowd. Her music always stays true to herself.” Some individuals think that it takes a significant amount of time to become a dj, but for Trust, it was just a matter of going to a club and trying out. When asked how long did it take for her to have her first gig, she said that she ” just went and did it…they were having it at a club ..they wanted different djs to spin…it took about a month. It really didn’t take that long. “
It is indeed true that practice makes perfect! There should not be a free moment that a female who is truly serious about dj is not practicing. AS a matter of fact, Trust says that “It’s best to practice as much as you can”! The speculation about it being harder being a female dj rings true for Trust. When asked if is is harder, easier or about the same for a woman to be a dj, Trust responds by stating that it’s “harder, because it is male dominated, and male oriented…by saying that, it’s not so much that you have to prove yourself as a woman, but you have to prove your skills for sure! All of the big headliners are usually men. But there’s Mistress Barbara, Mistress Psycho Bitch…but they are hardly coming up…but it does take a long time. People like ATB, Carl Cox, Paul Oakenfold – they’ll always be higher up until some woman finally takes over! “.
It may not be easy for individuals to just up and buy dj equipment, though. So, I asked for Trust’s advice on where she could suggest a beginnner without a lot of money should purchase their equipment from. Trust offered some excellent advice. “Just like a used car, used products can be used problems. The best thing to do is to buy a total beginner’s set. You can get lucky and find it in a pawn shop, but when they buy that from someone, it’s marked up 3 times, so it’s better to buy a cheap beginners kit. There’s places like www.idjnow.com and Sam Goody that have beginners kits. If you dont have a lot of money, that’s your best excuse to buy it..if you are working one job, get another to help support your dj stuff. You’ll still have to supply the music! A dj kit comes with headphones, but you’ll find that you’ll have to buy your own that are much better. You also have to build your music up..sites such as dancerecords.com, thrift stores, music and record stores are going to come into play for places to buy music. Try to buy as much music as you can, and try not to stick to one genere. There are lots of dvd video tutorials, books, tutorials with records for acutal scratching, that have tutorials for how to scratch with beat mixing and matching. It does cost a lot of money. You also need something to put your records in. You’ve got to protect them from extreme cold and extreme heat. Another pointer is to have copies of original cds, so if they get scratched, it ( the music) won’t be so bad.”
Not everyone can just go into a club and ask to work right away. So I asked Trust on how you should ask a club owner if they can be your first spinning experience. “The best thing to do is to look in the paper. Get friendly with the managers, dj’s, and find a time that you can talk to them, and show them what you’ve got. Show them the music line up, and keep yourself skilled on what they are playing, and what is in the charts.” Staying on top of the game when it comes to music will be beneficial for you as you can know what type of music is in great current demand. Knowing what to play at different clubs will bring in many people to the club, driving up sales in the bar, and definitally keep you coming back for more play time!
There is a lot of advice that can be given to female djs that are just beginning. There is no one better to give advice to others than a female dj. When asked what is advice that anyone gave to Trust that she’d like to share with others, she states to “keep doing it! The more you practice and the more you play for your friends such as have a party,the better your chances are. That is all you pretty much can do. Keep playing; you can do the mobile dj thing..play at a party, or a wedding. Keep trying!”
Keep trying is wonderful advice for any situation that someone by be striving in, especially as a female dj. With the right amount of support and practice, as well as a wonderful set of mind, becoming a female dj is not as hard as it may seem. With given thanks to Trust for her professional insight, there is sure to be many more female djs that can benefit from her advice.
