Some New Years parties are well planned out and sometimes they come last minute. Got to make sure you have a location then you have to secure the food.  Then once that is secure than its time to find the dj. What happens if a dj is not available on that busy night?  Then its possible to rent some gear to play your own playlist.

  Some folks do not know where to start? What kind of music would be good to play? It all depends on your guest list. What ages are they? It’s a safe bet to go for pop rap and some dance music. If there is enough time, then get song requests from the guests. If you are using blue tooth for the playlist, then you can skip songs that are killing the energy or not happening for the moment.

Also you can get a app to help you with the countdown. If it’s a DIY party, then you can turn on the TV and you have the countdown do it for you. But If you are going   by your phone you   can turn off the music a minute before midnight. When Midnight strikes then you can cue   up

Auld Lang Syne. You can play it for a short period. Then the next song you play has to be one of the biggest hitters of the day. When I played NYE at clubs I would go with the best song of the year.  Everyone is a celebratory mood so your energy of music has to be high.

It is a big responsibility hosting NYE party. Its best to have a dj do it so as the host you can enjoy the party instead of being worried about being off in the counting.

DIY Versus Hiring a Pro DJ

Anyone with a phone and a Bluetooth speaker has the potential to be appointed a DIY DJ at your next event. But being a DJ is more than simply playing music. That's why when you are choosing between a DIY DJ or hiring a pro DJ, you should consider the pros and cons.

Pros of Being a DIY DJ

There are numerous advantages to being a DIY DJ. Those benefits primarily revolve around saving time and money, but only a limited amount of time and money.

Save Money

To hire a Los Angeles DJ, you'll need to fork over approximately $750 for a four-hour event. If you decide to take the reigns, you can save money, as you'll only have to rent audio-visual equipment.

You could get a subwoofer for about $140 per day and a portable speaker for $60 per day, saving you nearly $550 for the day. Then, you'd save time looking for and vetting a DJ but not much time on the day of the event as you'd need to control the music and the AV equipment you've rented, leaving little time to enjoy the show.

Save Time Vetting DJs

Regardless of the event, you'll typically have to spend a few hours vetting DJs you've shortlisted before you hire someone.

Vetting DJs requires listening to their portfolio, calling previous clients for testimonials, and creating a contract agreeable for you and the DJ.

Cons of Being a DIY DJ

Despite the pros, there are far more cons, but we'll only focus on three of the most significant drawbacks.

The Moment isn't Memorable

Since DJs are the most significant entertainment for most events, their impact on the event extends far beyond music selection. Instead, they shape the event with music that dictates the mood and atmosphere. This mood can make moments within the event memorable and far more enjoyable for guests.

As a DIY DJ, you have zero experience shaping an atmosphere or environment to get a crowd — drunk, sometimes hostile, often tired or disinterested — to get engaged in the event and entertainment.

Music Becomes Monotonous

DJs have to enjoy a variety of music and genres. If you're controlling the music, the tracklist becomes monotonous. The music will reflect your taste with a likelihood of some trendy songs. Even if your music taste is more eclectic or trendy a DJ will always know more songs and how to incorporate these songs to add to the kind of event you're hosting.

There's an obvious line between tasteless and tacky placement and selection that's far more appropriate. A professional DJ represents the latter.

There's No Room for Last-Minute Changes

If the playlist isn't drawing the response you want, as a DIY DJ, you likely won't be able to make a last-minute change to your playlist without ruining it. A DJ can make necessary changes to the playlist and often uses the response from the audience to determine the direction the playlist should take.

Unless you want your event to be the but of any joke, don't skimp on your entertainment budget. Because the nominal savings you make on doing it yourself will lead to a lackluster event. The better choice is to hire a pro DJ. You're guaranteeing your guests — and yourself — a great time.

There is a new phenomon happening in the dj world. It is the ability to stream songs in the dj set. So djs can find a song not in their library and be able to play it at events. 2020 was the year to dj from the home and folks could take advantage of using their own internet to play virutually. They could rely on their home internet for stable internet use. 

Well now that the world is semi open. Folks are now getting calls to do events. Some places more than others and now Djs have this in their arsenal. How safe is it to Dj outside the home with this streaming service? It all depends on how strong the wifi is at the venue. If one is doing an event at a residence then the internet can be strong but if the venue is out of nowhere then internet maybe spotty. There is nothing worse than getting the beach ball of doom while waiting for a song to come on or if the song is cutting in or out while playing. 

Streaming might be the answer for the people who don’t have a music library. They wont need the time collect their music but all they would need is to type the song in the search bar. 

There are a few services that can work with your dj software. I prefer to use serato and have used beatsource and tidal. Tidal does have a bigger library and a bit cheaper than beatsource. But what makes beatsource different is they have dj friendly edits. That means they have an intro to make it mix friendly if that’s something someone is interested.

Learn2Dj Part of Black and White Affair Dj Services

In California, we are not allowed to have any dj events more than 10 people currently. Some djs are doing zoom parties for households in the comfort of their own home. So during this down time, I have been organizing my music library and my dj education service. I always had dj lessons but it was on a different site and running multiple sites at one time can be a handful. So I decided to combine my dj lessons with my dj business website so I can get all inquiries in one area. People are stuck at home looking to learn a new craft. This is the time to do it since it is recommended to stay home. Different parts of the country are slowly opening up but coronavirus cases are still picking up. 

  As a dj, I am always doing research on the latest equipment and dj software. It is important to know all the tricks of the trade. Through many years of learning I want to share what I know. I know when I was learning I had to learn through the hard way through trial and error. I want to eliminate that experience and help find success sooner rather than later. 

 Maybe someone does not want to be a full on dj but rather learn how to set up gear for any event since events right now in California can not be too big this service can be for you also. We go over how to set everything up and what you would need. We can also break down the music playlist. It would be better to have a professional dj there but at these times there has be be different options. 

Feel free to check out Learn2Dj on this website and check out the blog area where we go over tidbits to make dj easier. We can do instruction virtually. It does not matter that I am based in the Bay Area in San Jose. We go over everything to beat matching to setting up your dj business. 

Check out Learn2Dj.org which leads you to my site for dj instruction. 

Throwing the bouquet has always been a tradition but with time brides have opted not to do it. Their reasons are that they want to keep the nice bouquet or they think that everyone does it so they don’t want to be cliché. Another reason is maybe they do not have too many female guests that are single. Weddings are what the bride and grooms want and it is not a cookie cutter event. No two weddings are the same. 

  If the bride decides to have the bouquet toss, I always suggest the bouquet two suggestions. The first one is to get a special bouquet to toss. Brides want to keep their original bouquet so why not toss one that is not your special one? The second suggestion is to to the bouquet fake out. The dj invites all the single ladies to the floor and he counts, one, two and three and the bride goes through the motion and does not throw it. Meanwhile the photographer is capturing everything on film. Then the second time the dj does the countdown the bride does throw it and the photographer captures more of the images. It does build a lot of anticipation and more action shots.