Spaces between dances

I've found that this topic has the widest divergence of opinions, but it's still worth mentioning.  How long of a space (silence) do you have between dances?

Some dancers prefer to linger with their last partner for a little bit, if only to assure them that they had fun dancing with them, instead of rudely dropping them to search for someone new.  That might be as long as a one-minute break between songs.  Those who prefer this pace mention the sociability of lingering with your last partner.  In the days of live music, the break between dances was even longer.

Other DJs like to keep a party moving so they space about ten seconds of silence between songs.  They feel that ten seconds is enough time to say thank you, then dancers can start looking for their next partner as the next music begins.  They say an advantage with the ten-second timing is that the dancers then know what kind of dance it's going to be, upon hearing the music, before they start looking for their partner for that dance.  I would agree.

Personally I recommend avoiding any formula, and instead, truly watching the dancers as they're finishing a dance.  You'll be able to tell how much time to wait before starting the next song.

The pacing to avoid, at a social dance party, is no break at all, with one song blending into the next.  The reasons not to do this are so obvious that you might ask why any DJ would ever do that.  And the answer is often iTunes and other laptop playlist software.  The default setting is based on raves and other nonstop dances that segue tunes together.  DJs who play music from their laptop find that just as one song on their playlist is finishing, the next tune is commencing, before the first one is finished.

To turn this feature off in iTunes, go to iTunes Preferences (under the main iTunes menu), click the Playback menu at the top, then uncheck the "Crossfade Playback" square.  If you play from a laptop or iPod and just let the playlist run, consider software that automatically adds ten seconds (or so) between tunes, or make many ten-second blank mp3s and place them between the tunes on your playlist.

Crossfade beatmatched music is great... for grinding.  Social dancers would much rather know their dance is over, have a chance to say thanks to their partners, catch their breath, and look for their next partner without being rushed into it.

Exceptions:  Some dance groups like segued dance music, like retro seventies disco for example, so as always, find out what your dancers prefer.

Hands Up Night

HOMEDUST RECORD PRESENT
Hands Up Night

DJ HEADLINERS

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Peppen
Enrico & Echa
Dheelo
Electricat
Eiza

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Killer DJ Promotion 6

Use video editing software

This is first and foremost. I have seen too many folks just record and upload. That might have flown in the past, but with the easy access to editing software, you have no excuse. Windows has Movie Maker. Mac has iMovie. Even YouTube has an editing suite built into the web browser. Get acquainted with what’s available to you, learn the basics, and utilise the tools. I use an old copy of Sony Vegas, and it wasn’t very hard to get the basics of editing down. A DAW is way more complex in my book.

Use multiple cameras or do multiple shots

Dave Young’s video could have been improved if he tried a few camera angles. Had things change up in the video as opposed to just looking at straight-on, then it might have been more enticing. If you have access to extra cameras, set them up to record multiple videos at different angles. Do the straight-on, then maybe an angled one from a lower viewpoint, or even set one up above the gear so it looks like you’re looking down at the DJ set-up. If you don’t have multiple cameras, then do multiple takes with your one camera. Cutting around won’t show that you performed multiple times. Trust me.

Try other visual elements. It doesn’t have to always be just you performing. In fact, you don’t have to show yourself performing at all. Take your camera and do other things. Walk around town, shoot yourself playing at a club, drive somewhere with the camera on the dashboard, record a pretty girl (or boy) dancing etc. The only limit is your imagination.

Record and lay in a soundtrack

This is a big pet peeve I have with many videos I see. I’ll see a video from a festival or club, and the sound is blasting, all distorted, and you can’t tell what is going on. That or the DJ is in his/her bedroom, and he/she is using the microphone on their camera, thus the sound is low, canned, and you can often hear sliders moving, buttons being pushed, and other unnecessary noises.

If you’re using a software-based DJ program, then you should have the ability to record audio. Use it. Press record and get a good audio recording of the music you want to put in. When you use your editing software you can lay in the sound only, or intermix it with the sounds picked up by your camera’s mic. It’s up to you, but in the end we’re all music people, and it won’t reflect well on you if your sound is terrible.

Don’t forget branding

If you’re recording, editing, and making a super-awesome video for your promotional needs, then why aren’t you sliding in your branding? In my experiences putting in text or even imagery has been nothing more than just making PNG files of the items and layering them on top of the video with your editing program. A promotional video is like a flyer. It’s media that highlights you, entertains, informs, and thus should have in there some means for viewers to recognise and remember you. Your web address also helps, as many might encounter this video without ever seeing your website.

Thinking beyond performance…

If you’re diving into making promotional videos for yourself, always remember the goal is to gain viewers and eventually lead them to your website, or somewhere that they can get more information about you. Your end goal should be quality, but also to a certain extent quantity. One great video of you performing can only go so far compared to a plethora of video content covering many avenues.

One of the best examples of this is Armin Van Buuren. Go on YouTube and search for him. You’ll find live DJ performances, interviews of him and from him, music videos of his releases, previews of upcoming releases, his podcasts, and even Top 10 charts that are nothing more than a visual of his logo with song titles appearing. So here’s a few ideas if you want to think beyond just you DJing:

1. Blogging – Nothing to it. Just pop on your webcam, and speak your mind. You could be serious, silly, or informative. Anything you like. Even if it’s not DJing, it can still put your face and name out there, thus making you recognisable
2. Tutorials – If you have the skills or trickery you think you want to share, record it. Show how to scratch, do controllerist tricks, basic DJing, or even production tips. Videos get shared and people will remember you
3. Charts/podcasts – I mentioned AvB doing this, but I’m seeing many other DJs jump on board. It’s simply taking 10-20 snippets of tunes you’re rocking, putting them into an order, and have the visual be your branding with the names of the songs as they play. You would be surprised how much this can promote a DJ as an influencer in music… even land you more promos
4. Montages – If all else fails, then make a montage with one tune playing. Capture shorts of yourself performing at an event, get the crowd, girls, etc. You could even just make them five-minute memoirs of recent events, or just collages of clips for entertainment. You could go reverse and use this to promote upcoming events. Video flyers basically