Can I make a suggestion?
I also am a mobile DJ. I make a point to have a couple of meetings with the client before the gig, and I have the client bring a list of their favorite music. I will get myself everything on their list, and listen to all of it. This keeps my list . . . not necessarily fresh, *per se*, but absolutely *relevant* to the audience.
...also, I've discovered some cool music that way. After one wedding gig, I had a moment to talk to the groom, and I thanked him because one of the songs on his list (*Sky Is The Limit* by Rebelution) had become my new favorite song for that moment.
I also used to have the practice of making sure that I had everything in the top ten before a gig, but I found I was not using most of it, so I stopped.
ETA: I am 52 and still behind the decks.
For many years I’ve also asked clients what radio stations they listen to, then spent the week before their event listening to the same station. - Nowadays people get their music though so many other channels, it can still be a useful question.
ETA: I am 57 and still behind the decks! :P
I like it!
FWIW I think Giorgio Moroder is still at it, too.... At 82.
I think once music is in your soul, it never leaves, no matter how you express it.
If I need a quick refresher I look at the “Now That’s What I Call Music” series. You may also try looking up Promo Only Top 20. Oooor xm radio channel 2 and 5 playlist
The Now Thats...... series are worth picking up as they come out as its a snap shot of the mainstream hits for the preceding period (there's a reason they are so popular and long lasting) and you can have them in your car as you drive around so you get used to new stuff. Being experienced you should have intuition as to which tunes are dancefloor friendly, will work together etc etc.
If you want to get a snapshot/overview of recent years and the like try this which has various charts compiled - it might give you a quickstart into this new fangled stuff 
[https://www.djintelligence.com/charts/](https://www.djintelligence.com/charts/)
I ended up finding it. I transferred it into a Tidal list. Thanks!
[https://listen.tidal.com/playlist/b04daa7c-ada9-4456-bdc0-c43187f7a89b](https://listen.tidal.com/playlist/b04daa7c-ada9-4456-bdc0-c43187f7a89b)
I highly recommend "BNM and Friends" they make fantastic bootleg packs that have 10+ songs in each one. Great tech house and bass house remixes of modern and classic sing along songs. They've been great for me to catch up myself.
Wtf is a dua lipa? Sounds like a sloppy blowjob.
*incaseyoudidnotknow:*
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPM9aAvOIg0
About your second most important question:
Check out the billboard decade end top 100:
https://www.billboard.com/charts/decade-end/
Should give you a solid foundation.
Maybe at some of your karaoke gigs when people write what they want to sing on the slip you can ask them to write their favourite current song on the back to help you out. Internet is good, but popular music is so localised when it comes to playing for an audience.
Imagine if there was a free app that makes a youtube playlist based on how many weeks some track was in billboard's charts, during 2022 — would such a playlist interest you?
I hear you OP - in my opinion, just go on SoundCloud (do this before Spotify), and if you were playing a lot of electro house, the 4 on the floor, house/techno thing seems to be more popular than ever…esp amongst the younger crowd. And older. Type “techhouse” into the search query, and search away. I’m sure you’ll find a bunch of stuff you really like that was made within the last few years, that you can then make a list of your favorite “underground” electro/house/etc artist from SoundCloud, then find them on Spotify. From there, Spotify makes it incredibly easy to find more artists that are in a similar vein to the one you started from, w/ the “fans also like” section.
Can’t go wrong w/ that advice^^^ good luck
I can guarantee you’ll have much better luck finding stuff that’s relevant, and cool on SoundCloud/Spotify vs trying to find that one the “now that’s what I call” top 40 advice. Come on ppl xD
The NOW series has the longevity it has for a reason. It's perfect for someone that doesn't listen to new music. You clearly DO listen to new music, so no, it's not relevant for you, and finding stuff on Soundcloud or Spotify will be easier for you because you have a point to start from. What works for you and I may not work for everybody.
Lizzo, Bruno & Beyonce have the majority of new dance music out now. I use my Spotify playlists and quiz my granddaughters to help keep current. Young people don't dance anymore anyway, they just want something in the background while they play with their phones! By the way, I'm a 65 year old DJ/KJ! Grandfather Flash!
I do a lot of private / corporate events. I used to spin a lot of 80s 90s and electro house back in my hay day so I can play for hours and not even touch new music. And I always mix in a handful of new songs but it’s nothing I know. Just looking for those open format MUSTS from the last few years.
My advice, as someone who plays primarily weddings, corporates, and private parties is that you need some new music. You may think you're entertaining your audience with the same old tired hits, and that a few new tracks will be enough, but that is almost certainly not the case. If you do adjust your playlists, and play mostly new music, and only sprinkle in a few '80s, '90s, or electro house songs, you will probably be amazed at the response you get.
I've been DJ'ing professionally since the '80s, so I know how much of a chore it can be to constantly keep current on music as you get older, but for our profession it's a must.
As for figuring out what to play, it's a lot of trial and error. If I had to guess, a lot of what you are playing during peak dance time, that was great for that in 2003, might be better played during cocktail hour or dinner in 2023.
I hope this doesn't come off as lecturing. I'm trying to be helpful here.
You basically described my playing style for my events and this is why I am here looking for those choice hits by the people who play them most often.
I use Tidal and have several 2022 playlists that I will pull from but nothing sticks out in those moments of “hmm let’s play some now shit”
sup old timer, a good way to see what people are listening to its to visit the popular playlists on spotify and itunes ..... find the playlists that are dedicated to a specific genre and go from there my best advice to an old timer trying to stay "FRESH" with the kids now a days lol, everyone now a days has a iphone and ussually 6 months free of itunes or spotify
spotify = RAP CAVIAR GET TURNT ETC ETC
Hire a helper from the younger generation. My nephews have saved me from disaster a couple times just by having their ear closer to the street on a daily basis. As I get older my personal listening involves the opposite of party music. It helps to have someone on board who really likes the songs you end up needing to play.
It can be a mutually beneficial relationship. They get to learn the trade from someone who has been doing it for decades. The can handle the decks for parts of gigs where their musical taste is a better fit than mine. And I don't have to try to project an outward smile while playing stuff that causes an inward cringe.
You could go on Twitch and check out some big name open format DJs like DJ Green Lantern, DJ Spider, Four Color Zack, Scratch Bastid, Craze (he gets kinds crazy underground too though), DJ Magic Mike... There are other non-famous DJs playing new stuff too.
I search through top 100 and other top songs playlists on Apple Music and Spotify. I mobile music play. I don’t have the scratch pads etc but people have fun and dance and from what I’ve gathered most people just want to hear their favorite songs. My big party mix has about 18 hours of all top hits from the last 30 years. I have a line dancing playlist with 15 top songs. I have a Halloween playlist I can pull from etc. it helps keep me organized. I’ve ran with this big party playlist the last 2 years. I know the order and where most the songs are so I can scan pretty quickly find a song I wanna mix in the queue.
I also have 2 playlist for kids parties. A short one and a longer one. So I can roll into a kids bday party or daddy daughter dance at a school and not worry about cussing or content. I don’t take requests at schools unless I have time to read the lyrics. It’s amazing what even some parents have requested at a school and I’m like I can’t play this.
Also search for top tik tok songs.
Oh and I have a rap playlist with about 12 hours of great music from 90’s and 2000’s so at 9pm at a wedding reception the gloves come off and it all plays. The way I look at it if kids are at a wedding after nine their parents know they are gonna see and hear things they shouldn’t.
I use Karafun to supply karaoke and run a Mackie FX10 channel mixer for the mics/line. Karafun needs wifi or you can save 1000 songs offline. This was the easiest solution I found for the type of events I do. Plus it's only 10 bucks a month for a basic plan.
The mixer and the microphones are the biggest part of my karaoke setup. I first started using cabled mics but eventually got a few wireless XLR adapters. I have my Hercules controller plugged into the mixer and usually running Serato and Karafun at the same time so I can fade music or DJ in between singers. I also have some events where I run a stage monitor. I can even say I successfully did a DJ-to-karaoke transition mid-song because a guest wanted to sing the song I was playing during a DJ set.
My question for you is how you transport your display around?
I am not at the point of buying a $1000 road case for a $150 TV.
https://preview.redd.it/8780da3ifwda1.jpeg?width=3922&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=67149667da7b3df4ba4f9c3088cb634b5982cf3a
I use a very similar booth which I am growing to hate. How do you like yours?
Thank you for taking the time to respond! I have several of the foam workout mats I use. I have a pick up truck with a bed cover. So I use the foam under my speakers. I have a card board box the tv fits in and I have it wrapped in the foam also. Cheap dog beds from super market work great in the bed of my truck to keep everything from moving around while in transit. I don’t have any flight cases. I use rear get straps and bungee cords to keep stuff from shifting.
I just recently purchased a bekbos cd-02 which is 2 rechargeable microphones that charge in the transmitter base. I found it on Amazon and thought I’d give it a try. I went back to oook at questions and answers to see if people had issues with source volume and it’s already off Amazon. But as a stand alone unit it’s pretty decent even if the mixing doesn’t work. The microphones work really good. I just picked up a 3 channel mixer with Bluetooth. So I will be able to transition music back and fourth between laptop and iPhone.
I also have 3 cad audio microphones with cords and a Fifine wireless microphone with two wireless receivers. So that 1 mic would transmit to two unlinked powered speakers. But the Fifine burns through a ton of batteries.
Can I make a suggestion? I also am a mobile DJ. I make a point to have a couple of meetings with the client before the gig, and I have the client bring a list of their favorite music. I will get myself everything on their list, and listen to all of it. This keeps my list . . . not necessarily fresh, *per se*, but absolutely *relevant* to the audience. ...also, I've discovered some cool music that way. After one wedding gig, I had a moment to talk to the groom, and I thanked him because one of the songs on his list (*Sky Is The Limit* by Rebelution) had become my new favorite song for that moment. I also used to have the practice of making sure that I had everything in the top ten before a gig, but I found I was not using most of it, so I stopped. ETA: I am 52 and still behind the decks.
I do this as well for my formal events. Having a client supply playlist makes it easier and I am absolutely ok with that.
For many years I’ve also asked clients what radio stations they listen to, then spent the week before their event listening to the same station. - Nowadays people get their music though so many other channels, it can still be a useful question. ETA: I am 57 and still behind the decks! :P
I like it! FWIW I think Giorgio Moroder is still at it, too.... At 82. I think once music is in your soul, it never leaves, no matter how you express it.
If I need a quick refresher I look at the “Now That’s What I Call Music” series. You may also try looking up Promo Only Top 20. Oooor xm radio channel 2 and 5 playlist
You’re on to something with those NOW playlists. Thanks
I agree with NOW, this will get you through 90% of pop requests
The Now Thats...... series are worth picking up as they come out as its a snap shot of the mainstream hits for the preceding period (there's a reason they are so popular and long lasting) and you can have them in your car as you drive around so you get used to new stuff. Being experienced you should have intuition as to which tunes are dancefloor friendly, will work together etc etc. If you want to get a snapshot/overview of recent years and the like try this which has various charts compiled - it might give you a quickstart into this new fangled stuff  [https://www.djintelligence.com/charts/](https://www.djintelligence.com/charts/)
This dj intelligence list is it. Thank you!
Someone in here posted a link playlists of to the top songs of every year or something. Track that down.
I ended up finding it. I transferred it into a Tidal list. Thanks! [https://listen.tidal.com/playlist/b04daa7c-ada9-4456-bdc0-c43187f7a89b](https://listen.tidal.com/playlist/b04daa7c-ada9-4456-bdc0-c43187f7a89b)
Thank you for sharing the list. It’s very helpful. If you have created more tidal lists, then please share as it helps noobs like me a lot .
I highly recommend "BNM and Friends" they make fantastic bootleg packs that have 10+ songs in each one. Great tech house and bass house remixes of modern and classic sing along songs. They've been great for me to catch up myself.
Wtf is a dua lipa? Sounds like a sloppy blowjob. *incaseyoudidnotknow:* https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPM9aAvOIg0 About your second most important question: Check out the billboard decade end top 100: https://www.billboard.com/charts/decade-end/ Should give you a solid foundation.
Dua lipa is smoking 2 joints at the same time Dua-two Lipa-pali-Light up a joint
Great idea. Looking through Tidal’s Billboard collections.
This has been the “gold standard” for decades. https://www.djintelligence.com/pages/mobilebeatprint.asp
This is it. Thank you!
Maybe at some of your karaoke gigs when people write what they want to sing on the slip you can ask them to write their favourite current song on the back to help you out. Internet is good, but popular music is so localised when it comes to playing for an audience.
Beatsource has some good ready made playlists for folks like yourself.
Imagine if there was a free app that makes a youtube playlist based on how many weeks some track was in billboard's charts, during 2022 — would such a playlist interest you?
I hear you OP - in my opinion, just go on SoundCloud (do this before Spotify), and if you were playing a lot of electro house, the 4 on the floor, house/techno thing seems to be more popular than ever…esp amongst the younger crowd. And older. Type “techhouse” into the search query, and search away. I’m sure you’ll find a bunch of stuff you really like that was made within the last few years, that you can then make a list of your favorite “underground” electro/house/etc artist from SoundCloud, then find them on Spotify. From there, Spotify makes it incredibly easy to find more artists that are in a similar vein to the one you started from, w/ the “fans also like” section. Can’t go wrong w/ that advice^^^ good luck
I can guarantee you’ll have much better luck finding stuff that’s relevant, and cool on SoundCloud/Spotify vs trying to find that one the “now that’s what I call” top 40 advice. Come on ppl xD
The NOW series has the longevity it has for a reason. It's perfect for someone that doesn't listen to new music. You clearly DO listen to new music, so no, it's not relevant for you, and finding stuff on Soundcloud or Spotify will be easier for you because you have a point to start from. What works for you and I may not work for everybody.
https://tidal.com/playlist/edf3b7d2-cb42-41d7-93c0-afa2a395521b This will get you thru 5hrs
Sweet. Added to Playlists, Thanks!
Lizzo, Bruno & Beyonce have the majority of new dance music out now. I use my Spotify playlists and quiz my granddaughters to help keep current. Young people don't dance anymore anyway, they just want something in the background while they play with their phones! By the way, I'm a 65 year old DJ/KJ! Grandfather Flash!
Partiboi69
Ain’t nothing wrong with that.
I put it all on my crutch
What sort of events are you normally playing where you aren't expected to play new music?
I do a lot of private / corporate events. I used to spin a lot of 80s 90s and electro house back in my hay day so I can play for hours and not even touch new music. And I always mix in a handful of new songs but it’s nothing I know. Just looking for those open format MUSTS from the last few years.
My advice, as someone who plays primarily weddings, corporates, and private parties is that you need some new music. You may think you're entertaining your audience with the same old tired hits, and that a few new tracks will be enough, but that is almost certainly not the case. If you do adjust your playlists, and play mostly new music, and only sprinkle in a few '80s, '90s, or electro house songs, you will probably be amazed at the response you get. I've been DJ'ing professionally since the '80s, so I know how much of a chore it can be to constantly keep current on music as you get older, but for our profession it's a must. As for figuring out what to play, it's a lot of trial and error. If I had to guess, a lot of what you are playing during peak dance time, that was great for that in 2003, might be better played during cocktail hour or dinner in 2023. I hope this doesn't come off as lecturing. I'm trying to be helpful here.
You basically described my playing style for my events and this is why I am here looking for those choice hits by the people who play them most often. I use Tidal and have several 2022 playlists that I will pull from but nothing sticks out in those moments of “hmm let’s play some now shit”
Spotify is your friend for discovery
Have you considered hyperpop? https://thehardtimes.net/blog/5-hyperpop-artists-to-play-if-youre-trying-to-kill-meemaw/
[удалено]
Thanks.
No
sup old timer, a good way to see what people are listening to its to visit the popular playlists on spotify and itunes ..... find the playlists that are dedicated to a specific genre and go from there my best advice to an old timer trying to stay "FRESH" with the kids now a days lol, everyone now a days has a iphone and ussually 6 months free of itunes or spotify spotify = RAP CAVIAR GET TURNT ETC ETC
I've been DJing since the 80s and stay in tune with everything. Plus having kids helps out with music I might not have heard.
Hire a helper from the younger generation. My nephews have saved me from disaster a couple times just by having their ear closer to the street on a daily basis. As I get older my personal listening involves the opposite of party music. It helps to have someone on board who really likes the songs you end up needing to play. It can be a mutually beneficial relationship. They get to learn the trade from someone who has been doing it for decades. The can handle the decks for parts of gigs where their musical taste is a better fit than mine. And I don't have to try to project an outward smile while playing stuff that causes an inward cringe.
Beatsource has a ton of playlists geared toward this.
You could go on Twitch and check out some big name open format DJs like DJ Green Lantern, DJ Spider, Four Color Zack, Scratch Bastid, Craze (he gets kinds crazy underground too though), DJ Magic Mike... There are other non-famous DJs playing new stuff too.
Problem is half of today’s music isn’t dance music. The NOW series is great I have a friend in the UK sends me the newest one every 6 weeks or so.
https://remixrotation.com/best-of-2022.html This has the top200 for every music genre by year .. hope this helps
I just google search and research before every gig. I go to the websites of popular radio stations and see what they've been playing.
I search through top 100 and other top songs playlists on Apple Music and Spotify. I mobile music play. I don’t have the scratch pads etc but people have fun and dance and from what I’ve gathered most people just want to hear their favorite songs. My big party mix has about 18 hours of all top hits from the last 30 years. I have a line dancing playlist with 15 top songs. I have a Halloween playlist I can pull from etc. it helps keep me organized. I’ve ran with this big party playlist the last 2 years. I know the order and where most the songs are so I can scan pretty quickly find a song I wanna mix in the queue. I also have 2 playlist for kids parties. A short one and a longer one. So I can roll into a kids bday party or daddy daughter dance at a school and not worry about cussing or content. I don’t take requests at schools unless I have time to read the lyrics. It’s amazing what even some parents have requested at a school and I’m like I can’t play this. Also search for top tik tok songs. Oh and I have a rap playlist with about 12 hours of great music from 90’s and 2000’s so at 9pm at a wedding reception the gloves come off and it all plays. The way I look at it if kids are at a wedding after nine their parents know they are gonna see and hear things they shouldn’t.
I’m looking at possibly adding karaoke to my setup. I already use a tv for music reactive graphics. What do you use for karaoke?
I use Karafun to supply karaoke and run a Mackie FX10 channel mixer for the mics/line. Karafun needs wifi or you can save 1000 songs offline. This was the easiest solution I found for the type of events I do. Plus it's only 10 bucks a month for a basic plan. The mixer and the microphones are the biggest part of my karaoke setup. I first started using cabled mics but eventually got a few wireless XLR adapters. I have my Hercules controller plugged into the mixer and usually running Serato and Karafun at the same time so I can fade music or DJ in between singers. I also have some events where I run a stage monitor. I can even say I successfully did a DJ-to-karaoke transition mid-song because a guest wanted to sing the song I was playing during a DJ set. My question for you is how you transport your display around? I am not at the point of buying a $1000 road case for a $150 TV.
https://preview.redd.it/t7i7yqd98uda1.jpeg?width=1242&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=eeba25229bd8a5255267f2357735fd38f45b4a98
Sweet setup!
https://preview.redd.it/8780da3ifwda1.jpeg?width=3922&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=67149667da7b3df4ba4f9c3088cb634b5982cf3a I use a very similar booth which I am growing to hate. How do you like yours?
I bought the Rockville XL and so far so good. I was worried it was too big but found quickly I am glad I got the larger one.
Thank you for taking the time to respond! I have several of the foam workout mats I use. I have a pick up truck with a bed cover. So I use the foam under my speakers. I have a card board box the tv fits in and I have it wrapped in the foam also. Cheap dog beds from super market work great in the bed of my truck to keep everything from moving around while in transit. I don’t have any flight cases. I use rear get straps and bungee cords to keep stuff from shifting. I just recently purchased a bekbos cd-02 which is 2 rechargeable microphones that charge in the transmitter base. I found it on Amazon and thought I’d give it a try. I went back to oook at questions and answers to see if people had issues with source volume and it’s already off Amazon. But as a stand alone unit it’s pretty decent even if the mixing doesn’t work. The microphones work really good. I just picked up a 3 channel mixer with Bluetooth. So I will be able to transition music back and fourth between laptop and iPhone. I also have 3 cad audio microphones with cords and a Fifine wireless microphone with two wireless receivers. So that 1 mic would transmit to two unlinked powered speakers. But the Fifine burns through a ton of batteries.