DJing and confidence issues.

[Astral]

Well, basically I thought It was time I'd start trying to get out there a little more, I havn't explored the DJing side of things before and I think It's time to take that route along production. However, I suffer (how dramatic) from slight confidence issues, I'm talking full on shakes giving a 2 minute presentation to 3 people -.-.

Has anyone else been through this kind of thing and can share their experiences' and advice, Im hoping that by the time I've played through friends house parties and small things like that, I'll be ready for a bigger audience.

Makes me sound like a bit of a pussy but meh.

[setspeed]

i don't really have major confidence issues, although i've had plenty of nervous moments. I generally find that once I've taken a step up, the ones below aren't so nerve-wracking after that - so the first time you play in front of 200 people you might be crapping it, but after that you can play in front of 150 people no problems.... it's difficult sometimes doing the real biggies (i once played a packed out 1500 capacity space when the biggest crowd i'd played before that must have been about 350 - i was so tense i couldn't really speak for hours before!) but again, once you do them (and you usually find that 2 or 3 mixes into your set you're happy as larry anyway) it's not a problem in the future

[legend4ry]

once you drop the first tune you're fine. I don't really tend to look at the crowds (due to I am such a wanker, if someone is irritating I get annoyed and lose concentration) - most people say that helps and as setspeed said above, theres like tiers - you gotta slowly go up them.

[narcissus]

yeah, there's nothing like practice... but aside from that.. weed? usually helps me

[Basic A]

If your confident with your skills, it will show.

Dont do anything you know you cant nail 100% of the time if your near a recorder or a crowd. I have alot of tech. that Im only 99.9% confident in, and therefore, Ill just opt too not do it where others can hear until I practice more.

[vries]

Man, there's so much I'd want to say on this topic, but it's kinda hard to make sense at 4:50AM, so bear with me here. I recognize what you're saying about being nervous with public presentations and all that from back when I was younger [I'm just 25 now, don't mean to sound condescending or anything], but I've found the way of dealing with that is making sure you're doing something that you love.

Just make sure you're playing tunes that you absolutely fucking love. You'll get so drawn into figuring out ways of putting it together with the next tune, or just be so busy enjoying how those tunes sound on that system, that you won't even have the time to worry about what the people are thinking. [Even if that would be your main objective, the best way to look good imo is still to do the best job you possibly can, and from my experience you can only do thát when you're enjoying the fuck out of it, instead of fucking up on your timing because you're too busy worrying about that douchebag standing in the corner.]

Don't waste your energy on what people think of what you're doing because:
a. there's always going to be people that bitch and
b. if people see you out playing, and you're loving it so much that you can't can't see straight because of the sweat in your eyes and you can't stop bouncing all over the stage, they'll find it hard to resist partying themselves.

I dunno, I used to do pro-wrestling, and wearing spandex and shiney leather boots in front of hundreds of people will quite quickly cure you of your insecurities in front of a crowd. And what I've learned is that the trick is in loving what you're doing. Sure you'll fuck up sometimes, and there will be sets where you wreck every mix even when you're sober, but fuck it, those nights only help you to understand some of your mistakes, get better, and enjoy it even more when you do hit that sweet spot when you suddenly realize you've already played for almost an hour.

[vries]

If your confident with your skills, it will show.

Dont do anything you know you cant nail 100% of the time if your near a recorder or a crowd. I have alot of tech. that Im only 99.9% confident in, and therefore, Ill just opt too not do it where others can hear until I practice more.

I'm not even necessarily disagreeing with you, but I think it's much more about "if you're having fun, it will show." I've seen so many sets where the dude playing couldn't beatmatch two tracks to save his sister, but because he was having so much fun it drew people in and they went wild. Shit, I've seen GaslampKiller just hit stop on tunes after 30 seconds and people loved it.

Skills are essential if you care about challenging yourself and reaching higher levels, absolutely, but at the same time I've seen too many sets where the dj played a technically really tight mix, but people didn't give a fuck because his body language didn't show that he cared to even be there. I don't know, it's not like I've got hundreds of gigs under my belt at all, but I'd much rather fuck up awfully once in a while, while at the same time pulling off some double drop shit I've never even tried at home and have an absolute fucking blast, than spend that precious time making sure I nail everything 100% of the time.

[Sharmaji]

Vries is completely on point--have fun and play with guts but most importantly HAVE FUN, and it will show.

If you can play that shackleton track that you love AND get people dancing AND make eye contact w/ that hottie across the room and thus get her friends to dance, you win.

BTW i'm officially pronouncing Vries

I used to do pro-wrestling

the new hero of the production forum.

rock

the fuck

on.

[Astral]

Cheers for the feedback guys, guess its all about a braveface for that first tune and then enjoy it.

Hope I dont shake enough to twat the first record across the room >.<.

Now...to huntdown a cdj 'n' mixer combo for <£600.

[Basic A]

Cheers for the feedback guys, guess its all about a braveface for that first tune and then enjoy it.

Hope I dont shake enough to twat the first record across the room >.<.

Now...to huntdown a cdj 'n' mixer combo for <£600.

Numark, Denon, kapow.

[faultier]

I dunno, I used to do pro-wrestling, and wearing spandex and shiney leather boots in front of hundreds of people will quite quickly cure you of your insecurities in front of a crowd.

PIcs !

seriously.

pics.

[tripaddict]

practice lots, and play as often as you can

this will eventually go away

i used to get the shakes (along time ago) ... but perseverance pays off

the more you practice the less there is to go wrong b/c your always ready to cover your mistakes

[lowpass]

First time I played out my hands shaked so much I couldn't put the needle down on the record, in this situation use both hands

- Practise hard things at home (mixed tempos like 140/144 etc, double drops) then when you play out just do easy things and it will just be really comfortable.

- Always try to get at least one of your own tracks in even if you think it's crap, I still struggle with this lol.

- If you feel your starting to trainwreck and there's no way out then just quick mix into the new track, in time you'll be able to quickly get it back on track but there's nothing worse than when it's your first set, your tracks are slowly going out and there's nothing you can do to stop the oncoming horror.

-Planning a mix can help with stress because you know exactly what you need to put on next and when to put it on.

[jaydot]

I've been messing around with VDJ and absolutely can't wait to start DJing eventually, I think it's the next big step in the hobby for me.... But I go through spates of low confidence issues in my production so no doubt it will happen if and when I start DJing. Practice makes perfect though, and I think like people say as soon as the first tune drops then you'll settle.

If you get asked to play again you know you've done good regardless of if you think you have or not,

Keep it up.

J.

[thrush]

got my first rave in just under 2 weeks should be mean fun

[the dub lemon]

The thing with getting nervous is its the worry about cocking things up, what I realized a long time was what the repercussions of fucking up actually amount to and that is exactly fuck all, especially with DJing...if you cock up a mix most people don't notice and the ones that do have forgotten by the next tune...when you accept that the nervousness goes and when the nervousness goes something bizarre happens.....you stop fucking up.

Depending on the person this might be harder or easier to do but what you need to do is just remember that if you fuck up it really really doesn't matter.

PS that doesn't mean go off and become one of those super confident "DJs" who think they're amazing but can't actually mix for shit...that's the extreme opposite end of the scale.

[Mushroom Buttons]

Just did my first set couple of days back!! Was nervous as shit too. And the fact that I didn't have any background in DJing made it worse. Figured I'd just go with the medium I'm comfortable with, midi controller! So I started assigning knobs and pads to act as a basic mixer (didn't have enough knobs of course) and did loads of practice within a week. Loads of fuckin up during practice as well.

But they are right, once you play the first one, you'll just keep going. I did it without any major error.

[Mad_EP]

A lot of good advice in here...

...something I would add, is to know that things go wrong. Not just to be beginners - to EVERYONE. If you know this - then it is easier to deal with in the moment, because the fact is: often times what you think is a devastating mistake, most people will miss anyway. Keeping your cool helps keep your secret.

I once did a live gig where I set up a clip to activate, but I was really sweaty and accidentally hit the stop button. Not just stopping a single clip, but ALL of the active clips. Silence. But instead of looking embarassed, I put on a huge smile and let the silence sit for a second or two (felt like an eternity), then started a drum beat for 4 beats, then purposefully stopped it again. Repeated it a few times, and then built everything back up - and everyone in the crowd thought I did the whole thing on purpose as a huge breakdown and they went wild.

[manuel]

Pretty much what everyone else has been saying in here.

Remember, YOU are YOUR biggest critic. Not saying this in a bad way but you probably will mess up a few times but what your forgetting is 90% of the people there are drunk/intoxicated and wont even notice.

As long as your having a good time its cool! First time I played out (Havent played out much) my hands were shaking so much I could barely take the needle of the record lol.
A few tunes in though and Im fine.

For some reason I dont mind playing out infront of people. Which is weird as I HATE public speaking etc.

[lodestone]

A lot of good advice in here...

...something I would add, is to know that things go wrong. Not just to be beginners - to EVERYONE. If you know this - then it is easier to deal with in the moment, because the fact is: often times what you think is a devastating mistake, most people will miss anyway. Keeping your cool helps keep your secret.

I once did a live gig where I set up a clip to activate, but I was really sweaty and accidentally hit the stop button. Not just stopping a single clip, but ALL of the active clips. Silence. But instead of looking embarassed, I put on a huge smile and let the silence sit for a second or two (felt like an eternity), then started a drum beat for 4 beats, then purposefully stopped it again. Repeated it a few times, and then built everything back up - and everyone in the crowd thought I did the whole thing on purpose as a huge breakdown and they went wild.

oh man this story made me laugh. i've been using vdj to make mixes and can't wait to get a set of turntables. what everyone is saying is right. sometimes i'm not totally happy with the way tracks mix but i think that's just being super critical of myself. still gotta have fun with it! same goes with bands, having tons of energy goes a long way.