The One Question I'll Never Answer
As a DJ, prospective clients have a lot of questions for me before they sign that contract and become simply “clients.” There’s one, however, that I’ll never answer:
“So, what do you usually play?”
I know what you’re thinking: what possible problem could I have with such a straightforward and seemingly important question? After all, if you want to hire someone, don’t you want to know what you’re getting?
Here’s the punchline, though: I won’t answer it…because I can’t. Because, quite frankly, “usually” doesn’t exist.
In the DJ game, much like any service-based business, taking a one-size-fits-all approach to your clients is a massive misfire. We’ve all been to weddings where it seems the disc jockey is sleepwalking through an evening that’s a carbon copy of every other night that came before it, right down to the cheesy, between-song jokes.
You see, “usually” doesn’t exist because every crowd is unique. Because every person is unique. Because YOU are unique!
(Congratulations, by the way. Being unique is the best!)
You like a lot of different kinds of music. Collectively, one crowd, compared to another, does, too. Yes, of course, there’s overlap — popular songs in any genre can find their way into many different DJ sets. But nothing is guaranteed. Nothing’s a usually.
Before we work your event, we make sure to talk, get to know each other, and develop a good understanding of the types of music you and your guests will want to hear…and those that you’ll want us to stay far away from. Armed with that knowledge, in we go. Sometimes the tastes stay pretty much like our clients say they’ll be; other times, things take a hard (and also fun!) left turn. But one thing they’re never...is “usually.”
