Can you be a DJ and not own a label or make music?

hint

party record with a siren
I think you're reading too much into it - comes up quite often on Dissensus, I think, this kind of second-guessing peoples' motivations in music.

DJs start labels because they think they'll be good at it. If they didn't think they were good at picking tracks people might like, they wouldn't be DJing, would they? It's a natural fit. If you DJ for a while and talk to people, sooner or later you will be passed some unsigned music that you think should be released.

It certainly doesn't make much financial sense to start a label just to get more gigs.
 

benjybars

village elder.
There are plenty of DJs out there making a living without releasing tunes or running labels. They just don't get written about or hyped. They're the ones holding down residencies in places that you'd never go to.


yep.

especially true in suburbs / outside of big cities
 
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continuum

smugpolice
can you be a DJ if you also run a blog? I'm a DJ first but my blog has got me more coverage. I'd even say that posting on forums over my blog being the thing I do most. A forum poster isn't the greatest career choice but still :p
 

outraygeous

Well-known member
I think the blog/dj thing is linked now. Popular bloggers could potentially get more bookings from it

I remember a DJ called Prancehall who got alot of play-outs in the grime thing
 

benjybars

village elder.
yeah what happened to him?

he used to post on here a bit years ago

his blog was pretty funny aswell. and the archives of his blog were an interesting bit of history from the 04/05 grime/dubstep/fwd crossover period..
 

Dr Awesome

Techsteppin'
How can you be a DJ and not wear a hat while mixing?
How can you be a DJ and not wear plaid shirts?

All these questions constantly spin around my head.
 

leamas

Well-known member
Jimmy Saville.

I actually can't think of a single other example.

Edit: although he definitely wore a hat and / or plaid shirt while mixing.
 

outraygeous

Well-known member
I saw in the metro about the butterz crew

'fans-turned bloggers-turned leading djs'

they called grime 'avant garde' aswell

i saw prancehall play a few times, maybe i caught him on off days
 

jimitheexploder

Well-known member
can you be a DJ if you also run a blog? I'm a DJ first but my blog has got me more coverage. I'd even say that posting on forums over my blog being the thing I do most. A forum poster isn't the greatest career choice but still :p

lol I'm also in this game and I'm starting to get more interest for sets. Just started doing one of our radio shows on Hivemind too hopefuly that will help too. I'd be well up for more bookings and forum postings, wait...
 

luka

Well-known member
i listened to a prancehall mix once. it was shit. sloppy and jarring and wacky, like grime acappellas over kylie insrumentals like some timmy malley childrens entertainer, balloon-manipulating, whoopee cushion guy.
 

Phaedo

Well-known member
Joe Nice is another name who has managed to do it. Only really down to the fact he knows and gets tunes off pretty much all the original dubstep crowd.
 

benjybars

village elder.
Joe Nice is another name who has managed to do it. Only really down to the fact he knows and gets tunes off pretty much all the original dubstep crowd.

yeah true. and it must have been even more difficult him being so far away from the scene he was pushing..
 

Dr Awesome

Techsteppin'
JOE NICE.

he is the only example of this imo.

no label, no production, just strictly DJing.

HA, but I've found him wearing a plaid shirt!

joenice54.jpg


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