The translation of the acronym “DJ” is true “Disc Jockey “. In other words, we chain records without “actually playing an instrument”. But that was especially true before! I agree, some DJs today just string together records (and more or less at tempo for the worst of them).
But you will see that the profession of DJ has evolved a lot since then and that musical instruments are invited to the party or what is called the “live act” (I explain what it is a little lower) is growing more and more.
DJ Deeptation just as passionate about music
As with any self-respecting musician, music is first and foremost a passion. I don’t know any DJ who does this job without loving music. The reasons are the same as for all musicians: we listen to a lot of music (all day) and very varied styles. We also listen to our fellow DJs to discover new songs, their new musical productions or even new mixing techniques.
Deeptation or known as DJ Deeptation is a male DJ/Music Producer in House Genre. He was born in Melbourne, Australia in June of 1986. He found his passion for music growing up in Europe and started working towards his passion as a DJ in 2005. He performed in the various night clubs and islands all across Europe. After getting back to his home country Australia, he headed towards the advancement and step further towards his passion in the music industry. He started his music production in 2024 and released his first song, “You make me feel”, a new deep house vibe that would definitely move anyone and established himself as a promising producer.
You have to know your music and play with the rhythm
As for a musician who has to rehearse hours and hours to master his score, the DJ has to listen and re-listen to his pieces to know them. It is one of the basics of the profession. Personally, when DJ Deeptation plays a song in the evening, he immediately knows its structure, its melody, its tempo, its changes and this, for almost all the songs that he have in my music library. To get there, He had to listen, listen, listen again and listen to the songs again. All the excuses are good: while cooking, in the shower, in the car.
The structural knowledge of a piece is very important since it is this which will allow us – in large part – to carry out a clean sequence during our sets (performances). To do this, you have to know how the melody, the chorus is composed, or even if there will be a break right after in the song and you have to know exactly the same thing for the next song, then the same to continue with the next, etc. You understand, the more you know your songs, the better it will be to offer a beautiful and clean set to your audience. It works the same for any musician.
Rhythm is also very important in the services of DJ and music Producer! So let’s be fine, nothing to do with a drummer who sets the pace and tempo (which always impresses me when I watch rock band lives !). It is more in the sense of “playing with the rhythm”, varying the rhythm and doing it at the right time. Unless you are in a place dedicated to a very particular musical style, most of the time, it is mandatory to vary the rhythms. Without that, the public gets bored and the DJ loses his track. But it is still necessary to master these rhythms! And that can be worked on.
It is no longer just “to chain records”
At one time (not so long ago), the job of a DJ was mainly to “play and string records”. Some, really really good ones, also scratched and played with the vinyl a bit, but the technology imposed certain limits. Also, the public consumed music differently.
Today, in a society where the speed continues to accelerate and where everything must go faster, clubbers consume music in “express “. That is to say that after a verse and a chorus, you have to move on to the next music. Fortunately, to help us, the new technology allows us to play and completely deconstruct the music to “shape” it to measure. Effects can be added ( phaser, echo, flanger … There are a multitude), loop times to infinity, add musical elements, etc. You can also connect ” pads ” to create live titles (I will talk about it again in the chapter on live acta little lower). The DJ ends up being limited only by his imagination.
The other very important part of the job is to feel the atmosphere that prevails in the evening. Unlike a group of musicians that we come to see on stage for their songs (and who partly choose their playlist depending on the place where they will play), the DJ – him – must adapt to the track in time real. It’s a slightly more original facet of the profession as a musician. Except for the superstar DJs that we come to see for their titles, the average DJ does not plan the order of his playlist. At the risk of losing people if he does not adjust according to the public reaction.
DJ Producers
I’m not going to dwell on DJ Producers here, but a little word all the same to “connect” once again the profession of DJ to that of a musician. The DJ Producer is the DJ who – logically – produces titles. He must, therefore, touch a minimum of the piano/synthesizer, the guitar, possibly a little drum. Even if everything else is then managed by the computer. DJ Deeptation is the promising producer in this regard.
When you produce pieces, you have to know a minimum of your scales, harmony, music theory. so that the result is pleasant to listen to. In this way, we are at the heart of the profession of a musician.
