Spinning Success: A Comprehensive Guide to Pursuing a Career as a Disc Jockey (DJ)

Do you love to listen to music and are highly passionate about music? Is it music that is your constant companion? Do you love to listen to all kinds or genres of music like Bollywood, Indian pop, hip hop, pop, rock, rock and roll, etc?  Have you ever been to a music concert or DJ show and just got fascinated with the work of the DJs? The way they make the audience rock? Are you like someone who is serious about doing nothing else but music? Well, if you are not into playing any musical instrument or singing, yet, want to live with music, DJing is a sure shot way for you. Read on and rock.

A disc jockey is a person who mixes different sources of recorded music for a live audience in a nightclub or dance club. Disc jockeys are also called DJs. DJs typically perform for a live audience in a nightclub or dance club or a TV, or radio broadcast audience. DJs also create mixes, remixes, and tracks that are recorded for later sale and distribution. In hip-hop music, DJs may create beats, using percussion breaks, basslines and other musical content sampled from pre-existing records. Disc jockeys play remixed versions of popular songs in the music industry.

Why become a Disc Jockey (DJ)?

As a Disc Jockey, popularly known simply as DJ, you will play a variety of recorded music for entertaining a live audience or for television audiences. If you play music for radio audiences, you will be called a Radio Jockey or RJ.

You may play music to live audiences at various places and on various occasions. For example, you may play for audiences at a pub, nightclub, disk, hotel ballroom, private residences, music concerts, etc. DJs are called to celebrate various occasions right from office parties and house parties to marriages and even religious occasions.

You will be using various digital and analog electronic gadgets to play music such as turntables for playing vinyl records, CD/DVD/MP3 players, DJ Controllers, DJ Mixers, DVS Systems (Digital Vinyl Systems, which convert vinyl sounds into digital sound), DJ effects units (for adding various effects such as a drum beat, bass effects, etc. into recorded songs), DJ Soundcards (for connecting laptop or mobile into a DJ Mixer), DJ Monitors (sound boxes on stage; but many DJs use headphones) etc. Many DJs use various online digital platforms as well. 

You will use various electronic equipment to play two sources of recorded music simultaneously to mix and play tracks together. You will create beats using breaks and bass line from pre-existing records. Disc jockeys play at concerts, nightclubs and parties. 

As a Disc Jockey, you need to understand the choice or interest of the target audience while selecting the songs or tracks to be played. You might also be playing as per a pre-decided list or a plan, especially when you work for a television channel or a radio channel.

Popular specialization in this career

1. DJ (Television): As a DJ (Disc Jockey), you will be responsible for playing songs on the television and often chat with live audiences. You will make a playlist as per the nature of the TV show that you host and play the songs. You will also play advertising commercials and make various announcements.
2. DJ (Live Music): As a DJ (Live Music), you will be mixing and playing different music in a live concert for creating a certain feel, entertaining the audience, and maintaining the dance floor active.
3. RJ (Radio Jockey): As an RJ (Radio Jockey), you will be responsible for playing songs on the radio and often chat with live audiences. You will make a playlist as per the nature of the radio show that you host and play the songs. You will also play advertising jingles and make various announcements.

What does a Disc Jockey do?

As a Disc Jockey, you will:

• Ensure that the program is running smoothly by interacting live to the audience.
• Create your own tracks for pleasing the crowd by mixing or remixing the songs.
• Need to consider the audience’s preferences while selecting the songs or track to be played.
• Use electronic equipment for playing two or more sources of recorded music simultaneously by mixing and playing tracks together.
• Create beats by using breaks and bass line from pre-existing records.
• Need to understand DJ equipment, music technologies, and sound systems and the ways to operate them.

How to become a DJ – Educational Requirement

If you love playing music, have knowledge of different genres of music and if you have musical intelligence, then after completing classes 11-12 in school you may start obtaining training for becoming a Disc Jockey. You need not pursue any specific career or you need not obtain any specific degree for becoming a DJ.

You may also enroll for a Bachelor’s degree or Diploma in Performing Arts (Music/Music Technology/Similar) after completing classes 11-12 in school.

Job Opportunities

To become a DJ, you have to begin playing for small audiences, say, at your school, college, at a relative’s place, etc. With experience, you may get calls to play for various occasions such as private parties, marriages, etc.

After you have learned the tricks of the trade and acquired critical DJ equipment, you will get calls to play for larger audiences and also in clubs, disks, nightclubs, hotels, private parties of wealthy individuals, etc.

With more experience, you may get contracts from nightclubs, hotels, disks, etc. as a Resident DJ. You may also get a contractual job offer from a television channel or a radio channel.

You could also take part in events like DJ Hunt by a television or radio channel and attempt to win. This could be a sure-shot way to become a DJ without much prior experience. You got to be super talented for this, somebody like who eats, drinks and sleeps music.

Salary of a disc jockey

At the beginning of your career, you may not make anything but just perform for gaining experience.

Once you make a little bit of a name among your known friends, contacts, and relatives’ circles, you may expect to earn a little bit of money, such as Rs. 2,000 – 5,000 per gig or performance.

Once you are known to a larger number of people, you may make about Rs. 5,000 – 10,000 or more per gig.

As a resident DJ in a club, nightclub, hotel or disk, you may get about Rs. 5,000-12,000 per night, making a cool Rs. 40,000 – 100,000 or more per month, depending upon your reputation.

Once your reputation is built in your city, over a region or over the country and especially if event organizers know you well, you may get Rs. 10,000 – 50,000 or even more per gig. If you are really famous, you can make anything between Rs. 2,00,000 – 8,00,000 or even more per gig.

In television and radio channels, you are not paid so great in the beginning, but you can surely take home anything between Rs. 30,000 – 50,000 or more per month. Senior and reputed DJs and RJs are paid much more. Some make more than Rs. 10 lac or even a month.

Career Progression in this Profession

In this career, you grow as you gain more popularity. There is no other way. You might be lucky if you win a DJ or RJ Hunt competition and straightaway become famous. Otherwise, you will have to build your career gig by gig, literally.

The more entertained your audiences are, the more reputation you build. The more reputation you build, the more money is paid by the club, nightclub, hotel, tv and radio channels, event organizers and individuals. It is a highly competitive field. You may remain a small-time DJ throughout your life and might be forced to take up another occupation. But if you are really good, the sky will be your limit.

Making it into a television and radio channel gives you the maximum exposure and offers you great chances to succeed. 

What does industry trends say – future prospects

The Entertainment industry is growing at a fast pace. With more nightclubs opening up and people being exposed to different music from across the globe, the demand for disc jockeys is increasing. As the population is also increasing and more and more people are visiting pubs and nightclubs due to the adoption of western culture, there is an increasing demand for disc jockeys playing different types of music.

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