Djnyc Funk n' Soul, nyc dj

top 10 things to look for when hiring a dj

We've met a lot of people over the years doing different events and it's interesting that most people fear the part of hiring a dj, whatever kind of event it is, for the general perception the world has of djs. It's a warranted perception, especially when you go to a wedding or private party out on Long Island and hear the macarena blaring through the speakers and think to yourself, of all the music in the world, why do we hear these same 300 songs everywhere? (many of which are bad) 

For us we dj for fun and for our passion for music and feel that New York City is the ultimate place to dj because you meet so many different people with different tastes and thus get exposed to  a lot music you otherwise wouldn't.  It's also interesting to note that many people don't really want to spend anything over the minimum for a dj yet of any business in the world, the one to be most fearful about cutting corners when spending money is djing.  There are endless high school and college kids djing without insurance who put up a website and will undercut everyone. 

With that I'll add my two cents to the top ten things you should look for when looking for a dj:

1) Talk to them about the music you like, see what they know and don't know.
2) Make sure you meet them face to face if possible before hiring them and that it will be them at your event.
3) Make sure they are willing to take requests and customize the night for your guests (the worst is when you hire someone who is only comfortable with one or two genres and after 1/2 hour everyone is bored yet he or she doesn't know what else to try)
4) Make sure they have (and can prove) that they are insured

5) Try to find someone who has been doing it at least 3-5 years
6) If price is all you are going on and the person was not referred to you prepare to be disappointed.
7) Make they have a backup dj available and for larger events backup equipment
8) Give them a playlist and it's also fun to send your top 25 most played list from your ipod
9) Ask for references, if they can't provide any, specifically an event planner, don't hire them
10) Ask them what genres of music are their favorite to spin

There are some great acoustic tracks here

Found some nice cover tracks on this blog.  Saw Into The Wild last week, a beautiful soundtrack by Eddie Vedder, standout tracks are "Rise" and "Society", which I think is the best one. 

Top 20 songs ruined by commercials

After djing for a while in New York City and Los Angeles we always try to be sensitive to songs that people are just sick of hearing.  Nothing can signify the death of a song faster than it being dropped into a national television advertising campaign.  For me numbers one and two are a tie, I remember hearing Curtis Mayfield's Pusherman while some suburbinator with shades was driving his Izuzu SUV through the woods. Pink Moon as well by Nick Drake playing through the speakers of a convertible Volkswagon.  Once the context of the song changes from formative childhood experiences to subliminal messages of KFC chicken buckets and Carnival cruise ships, you should take the song and bury it permanently.   Listen here!

1. Curtis Mayfield - Pusherman (Isuzu)
2. Nick Drake - Pink Moon (VW Convertible)
3. Johnny Cash - Walk the Line (Levis)
4. Johnny Cash - Ring of Fire (Burger King)
5. The Jam - Start (Cadillac)
6. The Killers - Mr. Brightside(Target)
7. Clash - London Calling (Jaguar)
8. Iggy Pop - Lust for Life (Royal Carribean)
9. Led Zepplin -  Rock and Roll (Cadillac)
10. AC/DC - Back in Black (Gap Ad for face crap)
11. Scorpions - Rock You like a Hurricane (Chili's)
12. Lynyrd Skynyrd - Sweet Home Alabama (KFC)
13. Creedence - Fortunate Son
14. U2 - Sunday Bloody Sunday   (NFL)
15. Violent Femmes - Blister in the Sun (Wendy's)
16. Iron & Wine - Such Great Heights cover (M&Ms)
17. Röyksopp - Remind Me (VW)
18. James Brown - I Feel Good (Laxatives)
19. Nancy Sinatra - These Boots are Made for Walkin' (Frozen Pizza)
20. John Coltrane - My Favorite Things (Martha Stewart)

Dance Floor Killers (Cont'd)

Getting back to the original list of music that can be considered the death of any party, there are a few tracks which deserve honorable mention as djnyc dance floor killers.

1) Patrick Swazi - She's Like the Wind
2) Billy Joel - We Didn't Start the Fire
3) Michael Bolton - How Am I Supposed to Live Without You
4) Pat Boone - Tutti Frutti
5) Billy Joel - Tell Her About It
6) Peter Cetera w/ Cher - After All
7) Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You
8) Starship - We Built The City
9) Beach Boys - Kokomo
10) Color Me Badd - I Wanna Sex You Up

Djnyc's Top Ten Dance Floor Killers

During our search to scour the earth for the world's best music we've also been blessed to encounter the world's most terrible music. It was a tough list to compile as it was necessary to comb through endless Montavani, Anne Murray and Engelburt Humperdinck records to come up with the top 10. 

This is music that can be considered a "waste of hearing" in that if you're alloted a certain number of human hours on the planet with the ability to hear, these songs would be on par with the sounds of a lawnmower next to your bedroom window, nails scraping along a  chalkboard, the subway rider next to you chewing his Bigmac with his mouth open, and the sound of barf splatting against the pavement.   Actually hearing one of these songs at the right moment may incite the last sound, in which case you'll have come full circle.  When the song first comes on the initial thing that should pop into your head is "damn, that really sucks."  You might be on a boat with the wind blowing through your hair, or at Gina's wedding in Pawtuck. 

If in the heat of the moment you whipped out one of these gems and were courageous enough not to duck behind the dj both you're almost guaranteed a mortifying experience.  The flipside, of course, is if you're able to work one of these tracks into a set and "bring it to another level" you would be considered a king of kings amongst many dj circles.

HERE'S THE LIST

Listen here!!!

1. How Can We Be Lovers - Michael Bolton
2. Songbird - Kenny G      
3. Hip to Be Square - Huey Lewis & The News   
4. Life Is a Highway - Tom Cochrane   
5. Restless Heart - Peter Cetera
6. When the Going Gets Tough - Billy Ocean            
7. You're Only Human (2nd Wind) - Billy Joel               
8. Wind Beneath My Wings - Bette Midler
9. Heartbeat - Don Johnson
10. The Shoop Shoop Song - Cher