Now its easy to prep for a dj night. Well I cannot say too easy but we definitely have to carry less to events. We used to play at the clubs 3 nights a week. We would have the latest tracks on record and we had all the classics. We would bring 6 crates every time we did events. We would have the classic hip hop and the latest hip hop and the current pop and funk. We would always focus on the current music but we would always dive in the older stuff in the beginning of the night.  Why not play some 80s new wave then jump into some funk? 90’s hip hop was always a hit and then once the crowd started to show up then we would go with the current music.  Once it hit midnight, I would have to go with the midnight mix.  From 12 to 1 we would go hard with the biggest hits. That had to be the peak of the night.  Then from 1 to 130 we would tone it down a bit. I would always do a slow song   as the last song of the night.  There was one club that would always wants Journey at the end of the night.  No matter what that had to be the last song of the night. But I would like to do a r&b  song to end on. The greatness of vinyl is you can only play what you bring. Never have to download any track and you just say you   don’t have it on record.

Vinyl Djs are not as common as they were years ago! (Bay Area Dj serving San Jose, Morgan Hill, Palo Alto, Sunnyvale, and Gilroy)

With technology it has become very easy to become a dj. Djs do not need to carry milk crates of heavy records to an event. Now they can carry usb sticks or laptops with so much music. Newer djs never had the struggle of carrying 6 boxes of records upstairs to a venue and the worry of forgetting their needles!

Cost is a big difference. With digital djing, djs can get libraries of music by joining digital record pools. When djs in the late 90s and early 00s had to get music they had to go to stores to find tracks. Sometimes they would have to spend 50 to 300 dollars in one shopping trip.

The skills of mixing vinyl compared to mixing digitally is way different. Mixing digitally can be taught pretty quickly and you can use digital tracks that make it easy to mix and there are ways to automatically sync the beat so they are the same speed. With vinyl you have to mix by ear and it’s a more difficult skill to learn.

You can call random 20 djs to do a digital mixing and all of them could do it. But if you called the same 20 djs to do a vinyl set then maybe 1 out of the 20 may know someone who does it. It is not easy and most old school djs sold their collection. But a few still kept their collections and still want to share their love for vinyl with the world. Give Black and White Affair to do your vinyl event.

  Recently I received a call to do a Latin event over in Granada Hills. The client sent me a list and I was digging the vibe. It was a lot of reggaeton and some cumbia. Artist like Bad Bunny, and  Karol G filled up the list.  A really popular artist was Los Socios Del RitmoOther artists like Ozuna, J Balvin, Rauw Alejandro There were a few English songs and even went as diverse as some country songs by Morgan Wallan. What I noticed about Latin parties that they really and I mean really love the cumbias. You can not go wrong with the classics and get the party going.

Originally we are going to play at a house then they got a studio over in North ridge.  It was small venue in a retail area.  They had a bar and a table to have dinner and a small dance floor. It was quite an intimate space. You can easily have around 25 folks to have dinner there and then they can let loose on the dance floor. Once I got there they had a musician who was jamming on a guitar and singing covers everyone knew. I set up next to the guitar player and I was ready to go. I was going to play 15 minutes ahead of schedule but I was prepared to start anytime they needed me. They started to eat then I started to play more music to get the party vibe then they cut the cake then it was time to get down. 

  Did two events in one mall this past Saturday. It is always exciting to play somewhere new and it is hard to prepare accurately since we have never played there. Are we going to play something old or new or do we do Spanish Music? I know in the Brea mall what to play but this Mall is not Brea. So what I did was play all kinds of music and a little bit of everything. Some folks play the same kind of music the whole time but I like to play everything to make as many folks as happy as possible. I  started with  some old school r&b then went to 80s  and 90s pop then went to  disco. We play as many songs as possible and rarely let the whole song play. The goal is to not have any dead air and to get the toes tapping when folks are shopping.

 We played for 4 hours then took the set up like 40 feet and played for a fragrance company, Creed. They were having a celebration where they had some delicious appetizers and drinks. The playlist was pretty much pop music and playing instrumental covers of famous songs. Overall it was a fun day and when I was putting everything away the employees thanked me for the diverse music selection. I do love playing at Nordstrom’s since their employees are fun natured folks who provide good customer service and they provide their own do booth. Anyone who has their in house dj booth does not play! It’s a culture thing!

Djing in retail stores does not just happen in Christmas time. It can happen anytime and I played in May at the Brea Mall last Saturday by the Make Up Area. Love playing at Nordstrom since they have a booth of their own so it just makes it easy to set up. The staff is very helpful and let me borrow a cart to load my gear on so I can do everything in one shot. Love the energy of the staff since a lot of them love the music and sway with the vibes. They even gave some cool requests to. Songs that seemed to be big hits were the funk and the Spanish songs. Why play the same tracks everyone else plays? Its best too go against the grain and not be the same cookie cutter dj who plays the same songs every time.

  The theme was flower that day so we made sure we played a couple of different edits of Miley Cyrus Flower song. Lots of people did stroll by but the goal was to get the heads bobbing. I did all pop and feel good songs and I threw in some Latin songs in the mix. I think we did play over 10 Latin songs in the 5-hour session. If you think about it, California is full of latin people so why not throw some Latin flavor in the mix. Why not throw some reggaeton and come cumbia songs? Speaking of 5 hours, it felt like 15 minutes since playing music for me is super fan and trying to be creative with the mixes and playing songs that go together.

It is a fact that not too many djs can honestly say they can do an all vinyl set. With the day and age of streaming and just playing mp3’s, it seems to be more economical and easier on the wallet. Anyways who would want to carry around heavy records and better yet store all that vinyl at your home when you can have way more music on your laptop and take way less space.

   Why would anyone spin on vinyl if its way more expensive to maintain? One reason is its cool to see visually and it connects with the past. In the 70s and 80s that is what all the djs used to at parties. For those djs who learned on record had to learn how to mix by ear as opposed to having a computer help you beat match. There is something nostalgic about flipping through records while looking at the cover of the song. It is a good way to stand out over all the other digital djs out here.

 A lot of folks do not like the new music out coming out now but love the classics from the 70s, 80s and 90s and 00s. A lot of djs who went the digital route got rid of their beloved collections and went for the cash for their collection. But a few had a deeper connection with the vinyl they collected or maybe they ignored their partners request to get rid of their vinyl and they can pull them out for special occasions. This is an instance of old school being cool. Bring vinyl back and call Black and White Affair for your all vinyl event.

Not everyone can do Silent Disco. Most djs I have asked have never tried it and only seen it happen. A few actually own the gear. It is usually the bigger dj companies who do purchase the gear which can run from 3 to 5k. They have to buy the receivers and the head phones and the manuals it comes with. Or you can go through a rental company that can send it via mail and you can return it via mail. We have used two different companies and both the gear all worked the same.

What I recommend? Do I trust the djs who own the gear versus a dj who never has done it but you know they are good?

I am not saying big dj companies are bad but the quality of djs are a little different when it comes to smaller dj companies. I worked for a big company for a year and the djs were great people but they didn’t sleep, eat and drink dj life. A lot of them did not keep up with the latest music nor did they know about the latest gear. Out of the 8 djs maybe 2 can really mix like a club dj. With smaller companies, it is easier to make sure the djs are skilled. I worked clubs for years so I know how to quickly mix songs and get similar songs ready.  So my recommendation is get a dj that you know can get down and have them use the slient disco gear. Its easy to set up and it’s a higher chance they will rock it.

Vinyl records have had a resurgence in the last few years, but there are still many people who don’t understand why they’re so great. However, if you ask any music lover, they’ll tell you that playing records at parties has an unmatched charm and energy. Let’s take a look at why playing records is a lost art—and how you can bring it back to your next gathering.

The Experience of Listening to Vinyl Records

Listening to vinyl records is an entirely different experience than listening to digital music. With digital files, there are no physical artifacts involved—no artwork, no liner notes—just the sound of the music itself. With vinyl, however, you get the whole package; from a visual standpoint as well as an auditory one. You get to appreciate all of the artwork and liner notes that come with an album, which makes for an immersive experience that digital files simply can’t provide.

The Quality Difference

Vinyl also provides superior sound quality when compared to digital music. Because vinyl records require more data storage than CDs or digital files, they contain more information and details about the audio than their digital counterparts. This means that when played on a good system, vinyl recordings often sound clearer and fuller than their digitally-recorded counterparts. And because vinyl requires more careful handling than digital media, it also offers less distortion and noise interference than CDs or MP3s do.

The Social Aspect of Playing Records at Parties 

Finally, let’s not forget about the social aspect of playing records at parties! There’s something special about having friends over and sitting around while someone plays some tunes on a turntable. Not only does it provide everyone with something unique and interesting to talk about (especially if you have some rare albums!), but it also creates an intimate atmosphere that just isn’t possible with streaming services like Spotify or Apple Music. Plus, if you have any friends who play instruments or DJ themselves, they might even join in by bringing along their own equipment!

Playing vinyl records at parties is a great way to bring people together while enjoying some top-notch sound quality. From the visual aspect of admiring all of the artwork included with albums to sharing stories about rare releases with friends and family members alike, there's nothing quite like spinning wax for your next gathering! So bring back this lost art today—you won't regret it!