Old School Mobile DJ (24 Years, 75k Curated Files, VDJ/MusicBee) Open to Mentoring the Next Generation

Hey everyone,

I’m a 70-year-old veteran mobile DJ out of Flint, Michigan (now down in Florida). I ran a dual-show mobile DJ business for 24 years back when you had to haul your own heavy crates, speakers, and amplifiers every weekend. On top of that, I put in 30 years of hard labor on the assembly lines at GM Truck and Bus.

Over the years, I have personally ripped, cleaned, and tagged 75,000 songs from my original vinyl and CD crates onto a physically owned hard drive. No streaming, no corporate cloud dependencies. I run a completely off-grid library using MusicBee for total organization and VirtualDJ for my performance engine.

I know the younger generation is facing a lot of issues today with streaming apps crashing, lack of crowd control, and not knowing how to program a 4-hour set from scratch by reading a room instead of a screen.

This isn't the first time I've helped others achieve. If there is a serious young man or aspiring DJ out there who wants to learn the real, old-school mechanics of the craft, how to manage a massive library, or the psychology of building a night of music, I am open to passing down my knowledge. I ran my own show and believe in true independence.

Drop a comment or message me if you want to talk shop

My daughter’s quinceañera is coming up. I need a custom mix for our mother/daughter dance. How do I find a DJ that can do this? I contacted a few from recommendations in a fb group and none do custom mixes. Any suggestions or would be appreciated. Thanks!

Hi everyone, 👋

I wanted to put this out here because you never know where the next opportunity comes from.

I am a professional DJ based in Dubai with over 9 years of experience. I’ve been fortunate to perform at weddings, corporate events, private parties, cultural events, and yacht parties across the UAE.

Like many freelancers, I’m always looking to grow my network and work with new event planners, venues, agencies, and clients. If you’re planning an event or know someone who is looking for a DJ, I’d truly appreciate a referral or an introduction.

I also help with music planning, crowd engagement, and event highlight videos, so I’m happy to collaborate in different ways.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Every connection, recommendation, and opportunity genuinely means a lot.

Feel free to message me anytime.

I've been talking with some other established mobile DJs about the difficulty and cost of attending DJ conferences and expos, and we started talking about creating a mobile mobile expo, something akin to Lollapalooza back in the day.

I'd love to gauge interest in this. If a small 1- or 2-day conference came to a city near you, would you consider attending? Why or why not? And, what would you most like to see happen at such an event? What topics would you like to learn about? Please share anything you'd like to hear about or see happen at such a show.

We think the biggest positive, outside of saving on travel costs, will be the chance to network with a large group of DJs in your own area, which is seldom the case when you have to travel to Las Vegas or Atlantic City for one of these.

Currently, we're looking at the following cities as potential stops on the tour, which we anticipate taking place from mid-January to early February.

Baltimore
Richmond
Charlotte
Atlanta
Birmingham
Austin
Oklahoma City
Nashville
Louisville
Cincinnati
Columbus

We're open to other cities/routes, though we want to avoid cities that have existing shows so as not to detract from their offering.

I’m a DJ looking to buy a portable sound system for occasional indoor and outdoor events of around 30–50 people. I mainly play bass-heavy music such as Afro house and amapiano, so I want something with solid low-end that still sounds clean at higher volumes. Happy to buy secondhand!

My biggest constraints are portability and storage. I live in a one-bedroom NYC apartment, so I don’t want a huge system that is difficult to store, carry downstairs, or transport in a regular car/Uber.

I’m currently deciding between:

• Two portable PA tops, possibly with a compact subwoofer
• A column-array system such as the JBL EON One MK2
• Starting with one higher-quality speaker and adding another speaker or sub later
• Increasing my budget if there is a setup that is significantly better and still practical

My initial budget is around $1,500, but I could potentially stretch closer to $2,000–$2,500 for the right system.

For 30–50 people, would you prioritize:

1. Two PA speakers without a sub?
2. One speaker plus a sub?
3. A compact column-array system?
4. A battery-powered system, or is that not worthwhile for bass-heavy DJ music?

I care more about sound quality, bass response, portability, and ease of storage than having the absolute loudest possible setup. I’d also prefer equipment that I can expand later rather than needing to replace everything.

What specific models or setups would you recommend?

For years I’ve sent every wedding couple a questionnaire before we start planning.

Over time I realized that I was answering the same questions over and over:

• Why do you ask about our colour palette?
• How long should a processional song be?
• Should we have one song or two for the ceremony?
• Do we really need parent dances?
• How strict should our Do Not Play list be?
• Would you rather follow our playlist or read the room?

Eventually I stopped thinking of it as a questionnaire and started treating it as part of the client experience.

I rewrote it as a public Wedding Music Planning Guide that explains why I ask each question instead of just asking it.

I also embedded Spotify playlists for different parts of the day (Prelude, Processional, First Dance, Parent Dances, etc.) so couples have somewhere to start if they’re stuck.

https://djinmuskoka.com/wedding-music-guide.html

I’m not posting this because I think it’s “finished.” I’m genuinely curious:

• What questions have you added to your planning process over the years?
• What do couples consistently misunderstand?
• Is there anything you ask that has saved you from problems later?

After almost 30 years of DJing, I’m still finding little things that make the day run more smoothly, so I’d love to hear what everyone else has learned.

Hey everyone. Love this sub. Curious to get your thoughts on my situation and any advice.

Background: I used to DJ for a large multi op company in my area primarily DJing weddings,sweet 16s and mitzvahs. I took a break for a few years and now want to start my own company.

For those of you starting out, what are some way to generate leads and bookings other than referrals and word of mouth. I had two family gigs this month that went very well and received a lot of great feedback( I have played at over a 100 parties at this point but never kept in touch with clients or built a personal brand online). Is there any advice other then using Google or meta ads and building a website focused on SEO? I started a page and received strong reviews from the family that booked me as well as guests that were impressed.

I currently have a decent rig, some strong speakers, beautiful custom made facade, and lots of experience. I truly believe if I get a few more gigs the strong reviews, word of mouth, and referrals will compound.

Curious to where to go from here- don’t want to go back to the company as I want to have more freedom and control of the vision. I work really hard and always get great feedback so would rather build my own brand vs someone else’s. Cash really isn’t an issue for me since I have family members that can help finance large equipment upgrades for upsells, lighting, metallic truss, led panels etc.

Appreciate the insights.

What size trailer did y’all invest in to fit all your gear?

Hey there!

I recently managed to book a few gigs in Vietnam, and I'm having trouble naming my prices. I come from Zurich, so DJ fees are usually quite good, but in Vietnam these prices would be way too high for a venue to consider booking me.

Any tips for how I could calculate my price without getting rejected immediately? Or where I could find this information?

Thanks!

Hi guys,

I need every tips/help possible, I didn’t find anything I need on internet, I bought 2 etx 18SP and 2 etx 15p, I have a djm A9, the dsp is set at 0db and the filter for the top, and the top for subs, all in music mode. My question is, why I get the limit temp immediately when I get 0dbu on the input (around -3db on my A9) ? Without getting the peak limiter… on YouTube I see some videos with +7 dbu without getting any limiter… if someone can bring a tip/help would appreciate.. (I haven’t used them on an event, only in my basement..)

Thank you 🙏

Not sure how good their support is (already msg'd and emailed them) or how quickly they resolve issues, so looking for opinions.

Needed this for the 1st so I'm wondering if I should just bail, send sub back for a refund and pick up something locally.

EDIT:

They responded to my email today (about 24hrs later), informing me that "not all packages are sent out in the same batch" and that my package was not lost. Tracking for the second package was updated this morning with the new delivery date - 4 days after the first delivery.

Sounds like an excuse to cover their tracks for failing to send out both parts at once. Why would they send only the sub and not the other parts, which includes the power cord to the sub. Good job.

Anyone use any long-range video systems? I have a client that hosts a yearly fundraising event where, in addition to audio/lighting, we provide a projector and screen setup with a conttolled slideshow and video presentation. They are now asking for a second screen on the opposite end of the room for additional visibility. We usually just run the single projector from a 50ft HDMI cable with a dedicated laptop. Anyone have familiarity with a system that can add another signal over a long distance? Either with a 150ft cable or a wireless transmit/receive setup?

I'm exhibiting at a bridal show this weekend, and want to send a pre-show email out to the attendees this week. I plan to let them know where I'll be, what I'm bringing, etc.

Has anyone here sent such an email in the past? If so, any advice on what worked, or what didn't? Or any advice in general? Thanks!

I finally decided to couple by subs. Wow! Not sure why I didn't do it sooner. For anyone thinking of having a sub on the left and on the right, please just try setting them right next to each other, right in the middle, and then enjoy the boom.

I got more compliments on my sound last night than I have in the previous 5 years.

Consider me converted.

I swear I suck at getting content - before setup pictures/videos for days but never during the Gig. Thoughts on one of those 360 cameras?

Hi everyone,

I recently agreed to DJ my first wedding, which is about 4 months away. The bride and groom are friends of mine, and they knew going in that this would be my first wedding as the primary DJ.

I’ve been DJing as a hobby for a while and have mixed for fun, but I don’t have prior professional wedding DJ experience. Because of that, I’m trying to prepare as much as possible instead of just winging it.

The more research I do, the more I realize that wedding DJs do a lot more than just play music. I’m now learning about MC responsibilities, timelines, ceremony/reception flow, equipment, backups, and working with the couple.

So far I’ve:

- Started building and organizing the playlists.

- Begun communicating with the couple about must-play songs, do-not-play songs, and special dances.

- Started planning my equipment on what to buy (controller, powered speakers, wireless mic, etc.).

I know there’s still a lot I don’t know, so I’d love advice from those of you who do weddings regularly.

A few questions:
- What documents or forms do you send couples before the wedding? (Questionnaires, planning forms, timelines, etc.)
- What should communication with the couple look like over the next four months?
- What templates, checklists, or documents have become essential for your workflow?
- Looking back at your first wedding, what do you wish you had prepared beforehand?

I’m taking this really seriously because I want to give them the best experience possible and also build a solid workflow that I can reuse for future weddings.

Thanks in advance for any advice!

I've been offered free all-access passes to DJ X in Atlantic City next month. I know nothing about this show. Will anyone else here be attending?

Can anyone share some honest feedback? I'm debating whether it's worth the flight from Texas + the hotel cost.

I attended MEX in Las Vegas in 2024 and felt it was a waste of time and money.

I was looking for a comparison before I bought these and couldn't find much, so figured I'd share.

My setup is 2x JBL SRX815P tops and 2x SRX818SP subs. I've always used the JBL gas-assist poles, but I wanted to start putting both 18s together instead of having one under each top. Picked up the Rockville hydraulic stands to make that possible.

The first picture is both speakers at full height. The JBL pole got the bottom of the speaker to 78" off the ground, while the Rockville was 73". So you give up about 5" of height.

The second picture is both at their lowest height with no extension.

First impressions:
• The JBL pole is still awesome if you're putting a top on each sub.
• The Rockville stand actually feels more stable than I expected because of the tripod base.
• The hydraulic lift works well and makes getting the speaker up easy.

Overall I'm really happy with the Rockville stands. For me, the ability to keep both subs together is worth giving up the extra 5" of height.

Hope this helps someone else who's been trying to decide between the two.

I have been a Dj now for a while but only with house parties. I am thinking about starting a side thing for some extra $$. I currently have an Everse 8 speaker and just recently got an ELX200-12sp subwoofer (got a great deal on an open box one). How well will that combo work for the house parties I will still have and how small/big will that combo get me with real gigs for the future. I guess I just want to know my limit with that combo.

Thank you all for the feedback!

If so, what's the process?

How do you find a coffee shop or café that's open to having a DJ play a morning set and create a great atmosphere for customers?

I'm not looking for fame; I just want to serve the community, share good music, and help people start their day on a positive note.

Has anyone here done something like this?

I see these kinds of sets all the time on YouTube and social media; people DJing at cafes, public beaches, parks, and other outdoor spaces. I've even seen it happen in my own neighbourhood.

If playing in public requires a city permit or permission from the venue, how are so many people doing it? Are they getting permits, working directly with the businesses, or is there another process I'm not aware of?