Help me achieve the following DJ goals

[Broken Home]

So here's what I want to accomplish:

1. Get a chart on Beatport
2. Play a good slot at a good party out of state
3. Get a really impressive affiliation (doesn't have to be like "Def Jam" but something that people recognize)
4. Monthly residency somewhere like Fur, Love, Ibiza, other smaller club side rooms.

So help me -- what do I need to do to get there? I know there are people on this board that had a Beatport top 10 (Sleaze for example), I know people here play out of state, I don't know if anyone here has an awesome affiliation but maybe you do and I just don't recognize it. But either way, I want to come up with a concrete SMART GOAL. As you know, SMART means:

Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant
Time-bound

I think #2 I could get within the next 12 months easy. #1, I just need to get in on that somehow, probably relies on me getting #2 and 3 done. #4 is probably easy if I butter up the right people (:ramiro:? ) #3 probably requires me to start producing (not interested).

[zarbizarre]

1. you need to be well known in the DJ world, and for the most part a well known producer too....
2. See #1
3. See #1
4. Play hip hop.

[Broken Home]

1-3 So let's talk about how I can get there
#4 that's no problem, I love playing hip-hop

p.s. I would absolutely love advice from people who've actually accomplished any of these

[Master Miguel Lush]

i think the easiest way to get a beatport chart is to have tracks on beatport for sale....
the out of state gig, is not THAT hard to accomplish.... and the affiliation... the easiest way to do that, is make a list of which affiliations would you like, and then start working from there....
that, or tap a supermodel and tell brit tabloid that you are a DJ

[zarbizarre]

1 - 3, write tunes, get signed, have them released, get reviewed in big magazines (DJ Mag etc), get airplay on Radio1, etc

4. suck promoter cock

[zarbizarre]

1. Get well known
2. ????
3. ????
4. PROFIT!

[MURAMASA]

Support other parties.

Don't get frustrated when you don't get your way. Be grateful for the opportunities you're given and work hard to make them shine.

Don't expect things to happen on a timeline. You're in a long waiting line of DJs, and no matter how good you get there's always going to be someone in front of you with more experience, more brains, and/or more talent. Figure out what makes you different from others and push that.

Don't start threads on the buzzboard twice a year asking for everyone to help you and then not offer anything in return, lol. Most (but certainly not all) people in this scene are sitting in the same boat as you, and will not genuinely help you unless you have something to offer them in return... so start throwing parties that people want to get booked at, start making tracks they want to play, etc.

Accept that there is no rulebook for getting what you want, and that even if you do everything right you may still not get these things. What one person gets rewarded after 10 years of hard, honest work sometimes gets matched by someone else who tells the right joke at the right time to a group of coked-up promoters at an afterparty. Accepting this, resolving not to get bitter about it and maybe learning some new jokes will greatly help your chances at making better contacts and getting noticed.

[Broken Home]

Man I hate that everything involves me writing tunes. That makes me genuinely sad.

Charly, about the starting threads on buzzboard -- look, of course nobody is going to publicly come here and outline for me the step-by-steps, but I think these are good topics to discuss especially since a lot of people are in the same boat as me. So why not talk about it? :)

I also don't buy the "no rulebook" thing. I'll bet we can come up with a formula that works (almost) every time.

But back to the first thing: looks like I should start a PRODUCTION CREW and have someone produce and just let me put my name on it, and I'll pay them off like 50%.

[zarbizarre]

So you want to become a superstar DJ? Make it to the big time? You want you're name to be embroidered in that super club in Ibiza or Miami? Getting bored of just jockeying in your bedroom? Well, here are some tips for the perseverant newbie that wants to break out of the bedroom and into the club atmosphere.

[FONT=verdana]1) Learn to Mix[/FONT] if you already haven't (Obvious tip I know, but some people don't know how to mix songs and want to DJ). Check out Beat Matching Tips.

[FONT=verdana]2)Network.[/FONT] Go to your favorite clubs, bars, lounge, and chat up the people. Be friendly and get to know the staff or promoters. Notice if your style of music would match the vibe of the place.

[FONT=verdana]3) Make a mix CD.[/FONT] When you network, you obviously need a calling card. They won't just let any hibbity-whoo spin in their club without hearing any of their stuff. Make sure you keep it in your style. If you've never made a mix CD don't throw in every song you've ever liked (Unless of course that is your style).

[FONT=verdana]4) Practice anywhere.[/FONT] Well almost anywhere that will let you. If you can't get into the clubs, how about friends' parties, maybe even work parties, or show openings. Some of these will probably be painful, but sometimes it's an experience to learn from(ie: "Do you have the new Britney?"). You'll start to notice which songs hit and which ones don't (even when you have to drop a very annoyingly cheesy song to get the crowd going). Remember, you are a DJ because you want to liven the crowd not necessarily to go off and do your own thing. Or at least you are not there yet.

[FONT=verdana]5) Produce and remix songs.[/FONT] Do you know a superstar DJ that doesn't produce his or her own music? Exactly. Get down with the programs, and start learning how to create or remix music. Making a great remix is a surefire way to get noticed. When I mean great, I mean maximum exposure great. Look at Tiesto, his remix of that Delerium/Sarah McLachlan song shot him straight to the top. As for producing, Justice's Cross album made them a phenomenon. Now, they are booked across the board, DJing tons of events. I saw their name top billed in Southern California like 5 or 6 times this past year. Acidplanet holds contests all the time. You can also do bootleg remixes, I am not telling you to do this, but there have been many famous bootleg remixes that were so great that labels signed off on it (after some agreenment over payment of course). Danger Mouse did a bootleg remix of that entire Jay-z album. Some say, it became more popular than the actual album, thanks to the digital age.

[FONT=verdana]6) Attend major events[/FONT] like NAMM or Winter Music Conference and network your balls off. Make sure you have your marketing material with you. After all, you are spending all that money to be there, it would be retarded if you didn't bring any promotional items.

[FONT=verdana]7) Niche. Niche. Niche.[/FONT] There's a billion trance DJs and house DJs. What sets you apart from the others? Make sure you have a definitive style, not just trying to be a clone of someone else. Especially make sure your style brings people to the dance floor (bedtime sleepy music isn't going to cut it).

[FONT=verdana]8) Get on the internet.[/FONT] Promote yourself, blog, Myspace, Facebook get the promotion going.

[FONT=verdana]9) Get on the air.[/FONT] If you can get your material to radio DJ's like BBC's Radio One, or even internet radio would be a huge step. If you are in Los Angeles, KCRW might be worth a try.

[FONT=verdana]10) Perseverance.[/FONT] If you still haven't made it big after being successful in all these tips. Then well, it's either your DJing sucks or your music does. It's time to hang up those turntables. You just have to keep working harder to get to the audience that suits you. You have to gain an audience over time, not over night.

That's all the tips I have for now. Now get out there and become a Superstar DJ. Just give me my 10 percent for following my advice. That's all I ask.

[FONT=verdana]Bonus:[/FONT] Once you make it, you have to work on your signature hand move. You can do the god-like hands in the air, or the one finger in the air, or maybe make a heart with your hands together. Oh wait that's all taken.

[Master Miguel Lush]

[FONT=verdana]Bonus:[/FONT] Once you make it, you have to work on your signature hand move. You can do the god-like hands in the air, or the one finger in the air, or maybe make a heart with your hands together. Oh wait that's all taken.

THIS IS SO FUCKING IMPORTANT!

I need to start working on mine

[MURAMASA]

Man I hate that everything involves me writing tunes. That makes me genuinely sad.

Charly, about the starting threads on buzzboard -- look, of course nobody is going to publicly come here and outline for me the step-by-steps, but I think these are good topics to discuss especially since a lot of people are in the same boat as me. So why not talk about it? :)

I also don't buy the "no rulebook" thing. I'll bet we can come up with a formula that works (almost) every time.

But back to the first thing: looks like I should start a PRODUCTION CREW and have someone produce and just let me put my name on it, and I'll pay them off like 50%.

I was being facetious. The trick to the 'formula' thing is that this is an ever-changing industry. By the time someone figures out a 'formula' for making it big, they're usually on the way out. Adaptation is important.

[Broken Home]

FUCK, I forgot about going to WMC and all those. I never go to the big things. I gotta get on that.

[Broken Home]

I was being facetious. The trick to the 'formula' thing is that this is an ever-changing industry. By the time someone figures out a 'formula' for making it big, they're usually on the way out. Adaptation is important.

How is making it big today different from making it big five years ago? Is it that today you have to be a producer and five years ago you didn't have to be?

[Cortex]

Start your own regular party. That will easily take care of everything except for #1. Number 1 is very difficult to do unless you are a producer with tracks on Beatport.

[Cortex]

How is making it big today different from making it big five years ago? Is it that today you have to be a producer and five years ago you didn't have to be?

Five years ago, being a good producer was a GUARANTEED way to get big. Now, it only helps a little.

But for local gigs (and a lot of out-of-town ones), the best way is, and has always been, to have your own party. Trust me on this.