It’s not all about using two decks to avoid silence. It’s an artform that takes practice. And you can design your own unique style by DJing with different approaches to each mix you do. Check out a few ways to improve your DJ skills by approaching the mix differently.
Single out performance features
One way to approach your next DJ mix is to decide that for a certain track, you’ll be using only a certain effect to its full potential without layering in different effects. There are so many ways to spice up a track - reverbs, delays, slicers, hotcue triggering, filters - that it becomes tempting to flick around from one to another. Don’t! Make it a practice to say, ‘OK on track B I’m only using the beatmasher’ this time. Limit yourself. Limitation forces you to be creative. Then, for the next track, only use the next feature.
Experiment, practice, hone
There’s more to DJing than mixing track A into B. You might get your kicks just nodding along to a basic A-B mix, but at some point you’ll want to improve your looping and sampling. Remix decks are a good way to get away from the beginner stuff. They’re designed to allow playback of stems rather than mixdowns, and really crack open some amazing possibilities. The best way to get good? Spend a few minutes a day repeating what you did yesterday and taking it one step further.
Cross-mixing genres
You know what happens when you switch genres mid-set? You take a risk. The crowd might hate it and leave the floor. But you know what else happens? People notice you. And if it’s an artfully done and well-rehearsed move, most people will assume you have some taste. It’s almost always an energy shift which you can use to your advantage. Flip the switch by going half time (playing an 80bpm tune over a 160bpm tune) or double time. Make sure you’ve practiced your major cross-genre mix moments beforehand. Software can be unpredictable when you break the format.
Controlling the energy is what it’s about. You’re a vibe creator. Challenge yourself to create unusual flow in your set and go beyond the temptation to simply be normal. Eventually, you’ll want to make a name for yourself, which means taking a chance. On yourself. Get more into DJing with one of the three Advanced DJ Techniques courses offered by DJ Courses Online today.
John Bartmann is a music producer and DJ