The DJ: Your Playlist – Your Voice
January 29, 2018
DJ’s, what does it mean to be in the “Music Industry?”
Take a second to think about it.
As a DJ, you wield tremendous power. You literally have the ears of millions of people on your dance floor, or listening to your mix shows every week. But what are you doing with this power you have? Are you programming music that can uplift and empower the people? Or are you just a human jukebox? Do you ever think about the music you are playing? The hits you are creating? The influence you are extending?
The dance music community was built on the backs of DJ’s that rejected what radio was serving and played the tunes that made the crowds on their dance floors scream! When was the last time anyone screamed on your dance floor?
Experienced DJs who have clocked millions of turntable rotations will tell you of dancers raising the roofs off the clubs as they sang along to their favourite tunes. When was the last time anyone sang on your dance floor?
Dance floors don’t sing anymore. Many jocks will blame the music but is the music really to blame? Again, do you ever think about the music you are playing?
How is a record company to know what you NEED to rock your dance floor? How is a record company to know what the people really want to hear? Well, one answer is your playlist. Your playlist is your voice. It tells the record companies the kinds of releases that are working for you and the people and what you want or need more of. But it does one other thing, too. It reclaims your power and influence!
Right now there are music labels who will tell you the DJ has no influence; the DJs are no longer breaking records. These labels have lost their confidence in the DJ, and turned to streaming services and their data and metrics to tell them what the people are listening to. A DJ can tell a music label that too. And a DJ can tell a music label what is needed.
The question still remains. Why has the DJ lost his/her status as an influencer?
As a DJ, you know the music labels are wrong. But where is your proof? The proof is in your influence. The proof is in your playlist. Your playlists are charts where your collective voices as DJs can be heard.
Your voice is not just the hits everyone knows. It is also the music releases you have chosen to play that are not hits….yet. They represent your cutting edge. And so, the next time a hit comes out of nowhere, people will remember that YOU were playing that before the mainstream jumped on it.
Now, you can read this and do nothing, and that is fine. But for those of you who want to reclaim your power, reclaim your voice, reclaim your DJ status, start by sending out your playlists. If someone asks you for a chart or playlist, send it. Send it to the label reps. Send it to anyone you know in the music industry.
It is not a pain in the ass to do it; it is a privilege!
Assert your power!
In 2018, it is time for DJs to take back their dance floors!
This will be your line in the sand and your chance to reclaim your place in the music industry.
To help, zipDJ will be reaching out to a number of DJs to build an army of chart reporters.
DJ’s, if you are feeling what we are saying, share this.
Let it be said this was the year DJs made their voices heard!
It’s your dance floor.
It’s your mix show.
It’s your playlist.
It’s your voice!
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