How To Engage With The Crowd In A Fun And Professional Manner - Ep #22
May 27, 2024Episode 22
Ilia & Nino
Ever wondered how to turn a good party into an extraordinary one? Join Nino and myself as we reveal the secrets to commanding the dance floor and creating those euphoric moments that people talk about for years. Our latest discussion is like striking gold for DJs eager to electrify their sets and for music lovers fascinated by the wizardry behind the decks. We're laying out everything from the finesse of tuning into the crowd's vibe, to turning down the music at just the right moment for an epic sing-along. Remember that stag and doe where the energy level hit the roof? We're breaking down how moments like that aren't just happy accidents—they're crafted through skill and intuition.
But wait, there's more than just playlists in a DJ's arsenal. Our chat dives into the full experience of DJ performance, where I share how my experiments with singing and live instruments have added a whole new layer to the party atmosphere. Picture a DJ who can drop beats, breakdance, and belt out a tune—all while keeping the crowd pumped. We talk about the art of hyping yourself, handling live song requests with grace, and even navigating the tricky waters of social media interactions during gigs. Whether you're behind the turntables or just a heartbeat in the crowd, this episode is your backstage pass to the showmanship that makes a night unforgettable.
Ever wondered how to turn a good party into an extraordinary one? Join Nino and myself as we reveal the secrets to commanding the dance floor and creating those euphoric moments that people talk about for years. Our latest discussion is like striking gold for DJs eager to electrify their sets and for music lovers fascinated by the wizardry behind the decks. We're laying out everything from the finesse of tuning into the crowd's vibe, to turning down the music at just the right moment for an epic sing-along. Remember that stag and doe where the energy level hit the roof? We're breaking down how moments like that aren't just happy accidents—they're crafted through skill and intuition.
But wait, there's more than just playlists in a DJ's arsenal. Our chat dives into the full experience of DJ performance, where I share how my experiments with singing and live instruments have added a whole new layer to the party atmosphere. Picture a DJ who can drop beats, breakdance, and belt out a tune—all while keeping the crowd pumped. We talk about the art of hyping yourself, handling live song requests with grace, and even navigating the tricky waters of social media interactions during gigs. Whether you're behind the turntables or just a heartbeat in the crowd, this episode is your backstage pass to the showmanship that makes a night unforgettable.
Welcome back everyone to another episode of the Clever DJ with Ilya and Nino.
Speaker 2:
All right we are at episode number 22. 22. Wow, wow.
Speaker 1:
Look at that Double digits. Actually it's been double digits, but we're up to 20 already.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, yeah, we're getting there 22. Closer to 100.
Speaker 1:
I hope you guys could hear us. I completely forgot to lower down the music, so, yes, welcome back to another episode of the clever dj.
Speaker 2:
Uh, we are ilia and nino yes, in case you didn't hear that, because I completely forgot to lower the music.
Speaker 1:
Um, and yes, episode 22. We're gonna have a special episode for you guys because this is extremely important. Um, most of the stuff we speak about is important, though it's all important, of course.
Speaker 2:
What am I saying?
Speaker 1:
no, but this is, this is honestly. You need this skill or this set of skills as a dj yes and today we're going to talk about great ways for a dj to engage with the crowd. Yes, so the first one is obviously you need to read the crowd, right?
Speaker 2:
So, whatever you're playing, you got to pay attention to their energy, the body language, how they're reacting to the songs that you're playing. It'll really get them going if you're playing the right mix of songs, right? You've seen it first hand, right?
Speaker 1:
That's why I always say you're a great dj, because I have never seen a person do it that well. I mean real, like top notch. You bring people from the dead, especially for real, especially like thriller uh well, it's just let's say guys, photo booths are a killer of a dance floor. Yes, people are go, are going to the photo booth and especially when they start at the same time.
Speaker 2:
When the dance floor starts, they open it up. It'll kill the dance floor.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, almost always. Right, there are obvious, uh, exceptions, but yes, that's probably what's going to happen. Uh, but yes, that's probably what's going to happen. Uh, also, if it's bar by the bar. Remember how many times the photo booth was by the bar. Yeah, we stood no chance. Yet you like brought them back like zombies towards the dance floor because you just knew what to play.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, to get them going man, yeah, of course it was incredible.
Speaker 1:
And then you read them.
Speaker 2:
By looking at they were, they started like glancing back and you're realizing how many heads are turning yeah, but when I'm playing I'm like, okay, they're really, really feeling it, they're doing woohoo, so okay, they like this stuff, keep going or they start drinking more, like yeah, like furiously, like going crazy, right. So you let, yeah, you can engage the crowd that way. That that's the obvious reason, right? And that's the number one thing of being a DJ. It's reading the crowd playing the music that they like.
Speaker 1:
Yes, I'm just going to send a quick text here.
Speaker 2:
What the yeah, it was important, Priorities man.
Speaker 1:
So, number two get them to sing along. Get them to sing uh by playing sing-along bangers uh, and turn down the volume at parts where the crowd sings like sweet caroline.
Speaker 2:
Yeah and uh, that's like I love doing that man, it's, it's.
Speaker 1:
It's the best way to get people like it's also kind of cheesy, but at the same time they're waiting for it.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, yeah yeah, it's different when they're singing over the music, but when you, when they're, they're just singing like you. You turn it down and they're just singing like acapella, it's like whoa, but they just sing louder that that, like that.
Speaker 1:
I find it incredible, or because I'm kind of new to this right.
Speaker 2:
So, uh, dj, new to this yeah, you used to call me that yeah, yeah, that was, that was one of your names that's the name you were thinking about dj new to this and uh, I stuck with my name dj ilia, and it's not very common here in canada, so I like it.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, there you go, um, but um. Yeah, I may come up with like an alias at some point, but for now that's, that's what I'm going by. And um, what was I gonna say? You're?
Speaker 2:
talking about music, uh singing yes long.
Speaker 1:
I find, you find what I find it really cool where, towards the end of the night, when there's like 10 of the crowd left, yeah, that's the most fun.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, like whoever's. Whoever's there left is there to party right there. They stayed the whole night, right, so they're, they're gung-ho for anything.
Speaker 1:
Remember the stag and doe when the guy was doing the warm. Yeah, oh man, these people were smashed. Oh my God, they drank so much, it was fun, but great example of actually engaging with a crowd.
Speaker 2:
Next one so, alternatively, you can bring around a wireless microphone when you're playing those sing-alongs and actually give them to the singers. They'll actually grab the microphone and sing along. They're not waiting, they love it right.
Speaker 1:
Especially when they're drunk.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, especially when they're drunk, or Filipino.
Speaker 1:
Yes, filipino, he is Filipino, he gets to say it, so I can say it.
Speaker 2:
I bet that we are all singers, right? So we love to sing Talent shows.
Speaker 1:
Filipinos are such good singers. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:
It's true, it's true. So it's a great way to engage the crowd Getting out there passing the microphone around to them.
Speaker 1:
They'll go crazy over that. Koreans they love. They love uh karaoke do you do you, do you find it in korean weddings?
Speaker 2:
yes, you have that. Yes, I've done that. I've done that too as well. I've done to every, almost every genre, every crowd. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I remember you had some.
Speaker 1:
Uh, it works. Yeah, I remember you had ethiopian music. I'm like when did you have? You saw it in my crates, right. I'm like what? How did you get to that?
Speaker 2:
Bro, I've done every nationality out there, bro, I've done everything.
Speaker 1:
So that's a really good way to do this. Also, it's going to be a little expensive because those wireless mics are not cheap, but hopefully they don't drop it.
Speaker 2:
Don't use a corded mic yeah, don't use a corded mic. They will drop your entire gear. They'll pull it? Yes, not recommended.
Speaker 1:
Not at all, like fight for my gear, stay on the day on the on the table. Um, another one is get on the dance floor and teach them a dance, sort of like a dance instructor. Uh, this used to be done back in the day.
Speaker 2:
Yes, uh, that's what you said more, more back in the day. Um, djs used to do this, but now it's more cheesy, I guess.
Speaker 1:
But you were saying that in, maybe in certain, uh, yeah, in certain in certain countries, you know it's more um, an mc would be expected to actually do that stuff right, like really engage with the crowd. Um, especially if it's not an um first language, like english, native english speaking country, I can find a really cool, you know oh, this guy's american or canadian, yeah and they want to engage with him or her or her right so, and then he'll come on the dance floor and he has lots of other skills which we'll get into.
Speaker 2:
That's one of the other, yeah especially if you don't know the dance and he's there to teach them.
Speaker 1:
They really like that a lot of people don't dance because they don't, they just don't know how yeah and if you show them how simple it is, they'll they'll, they'll do it all night, and then you go from like five people to 25 30 60 people on the dance floor uh, let's see that's.
Speaker 1:
That's one that I like to do, mm-hmm, risky sometimes, but let the bride and groom or the guest of honor, if it's not a wedding, uh to mock play or press play. Uh on your decks, uh for guests to take pictures and hype the crowd.
Speaker 2:
We like, we can even upload some content yeah, yeah, I do this a lot for for weddings and events and stuff. Um, it's a great way to just type everybody up because they're all cheering for the bride or groom or the guest of honor. It's awesome. It's great for pictures, especially if the photographer and the videographer are there. It's yeah, goes without saying.
Speaker 1:
What I do. Let's say, if I support you when you're DJing, I'll go to the photographer and the videographer and I'll tell them listen, I'm going to do this. I may have already spoken to someone, I may be winging it right and I say listen, pay attention to the decks there, like to the booth, we're going to do something cool. And then that one wedding when we did together, like last year you know which one I'm talking about they loved it.
Speaker 1:
And the person who got behind the decks was actually like one of the more popular ones.
Speaker 2:
The one who got behind the decks was actually like one of the more popular ones, the one who brings everyone on the dance floor.
Speaker 1:
So this was a really good way of enforcing, like kind of supporting what you're already doing with reading the crowd, and everyone ended up on the dance floor, yeah yeah yeah, yeah, that's pretty cool, but big. But if they're drunk, if they're smashed out of their mind, you don't want them close to your equipment at all. Sometimes they invite themselves that one, that one wedding.
Speaker 1:
that was a fun wedding you gotta, you gotta be careful she was aggressively like I'm gonna be standing here and playing with your gear, and she was she was playing, literally touching the gear and stopping the music.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, don't do that, stop it. Yeah, you're playing with your gear too. Yeah, and you're right there I was like stop it.
Speaker 1:
I went to the bathroom for I'm like what's gonna happen? Let me just go for like 10 minutes in the break. I come back and I see you.
Speaker 2:
I see you like trying to dj, like like push her up, pushing her away, and her boyfriend was pulling her too man she was.
Speaker 1:
She had no idea what was going on. I've never seen someone this drunk. She was like mad drunk yeah mad, yeah angry drunk and you gotta be careful. You can manhandle a woman on on like you know. Yeah it, it is what it is. You, you gotta be careful with that stuff. So don't invite a situation which you, you know don't be in so be careful with this one.
Speaker 1:
So, yeah, so you can definitely uh invite people on the to your booth, but if you see that they're very intoxicated or something like that, you know that it's not a very good idea. Maybe skip. It also depends on the event, depends on the people. Maybe they'll be uncomfortable. Normally it works right. Normally it's a very good point. Yeah, it is all right. Uh, that's a very good one. Uh, if you're a decent dancer, get on the. Get on the dance floor and bust the move. Uh and show your show, your stuff. Play an instrument.
Speaker 2:
Drums like trumpet yeah, didn't you have a fire show?
Speaker 1:
yeah, that's the person who was teaching me before you and I ever, ever met what was his thing break dancer not like a professional one, but yeah, but good enough right decent that that people were like cheering, wooing and like you know. Um decent rapper oh yeah, right, like he was, uh, singing bust the move, like pretty, pretty nicely did he sing along with it while dancing? Oh, shoot.
Speaker 1:
And and then um michael jackson, he would do like the, he would do like the moonwalk and stuff like that and, and you know, people really loved it and it's kind of like a big guy yeah, and you wouldn't expect him to to move like that. Yeah, really cool, and you should have seen just the energy. I can't describe it. I need to find the video.
Speaker 2:
It's electric when you, when you, when you see someone doing something like that right, and it's out's out of the blue too, so people will gravitate toward that and just make noise.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, so we sing right. Nino is more of a professional singer. I do it as a hobby and I play guitar, piano.
Speaker 2:
I can confess, back in the day when I first started DJing weddings, I used to sing in packages too, as well.
Speaker 1:
But not anymore. Uh, I know some people who have like, um, they play the violin, or yes, they're break dancers or something right yeah that's other ways to make money and engage with the crowd and show off yeah, your skills right. You're not just a dj the ones who bring, like a drum machine, along with, uh, their decks right I know guys that do that yeah, for like samples and stuff yeah, so it shows your versatility.
Speaker 1:
You're not just a dj, you can play instruments right, so it's it's cool and you're good at this one playing games with a crowd. Depending on the on the event, you won't do it in like a celebration of life yeah, especially right you mostly do this at like corporate stuff, uh, weddings and stuff, yeah, birthdays, birthdays.
Speaker 2:
So it's.
Speaker 1:
It's a good way to yeah it's a nice breaker.
Speaker 2:
Get them warmed up for dancing right, and you want to do that definitely um mic control.
Speaker 1:
Yes, sir, you go. Yeah, mic control literally a thing. Yeah, well, it's, it's like a your own hype man, right so getting Um my control.
Speaker 2:
Yes, sir you go, yeah, my control, literally. Yeah, well, it's. It's like a your own hype man, right? So getting on the microphone and telling them what to do, telling them to to throw their hands up? Um, when the beat drops you, you count it down like three, two, one and just go crazy and start jumping up and down. Yeah, there's so many things that you can do, right. You've seen it firsthand again.
Speaker 1:
I hesitated once and if I did it when I wanted to, it would have worked out. And then I was about to go like three, two and I'm like nope, I missed. So I turned on the mic and I was about to do it, but because I hesitated, because I wasn't really emceeing back then I barely emcee now, but I'm getting into it. If you know how to do it, do it, if you can do it properly.
Speaker 2:
Well, it takes practice, of course, doing it in front of crowds, but if you can do it, man, it really levels up the liveliness and the actual event. And again, it's kind of like singing it levels up the liveliness and the actual event.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, right, and again, it's kind of like singing. You got to match your voice with the song properly, because I remember once I was doing it and it kind of looked at me like what are you doing? Because I was almost like talking. Yeah.
Speaker 2:
You have to say it with enthusiasm, More like you're telling them what to do. I was terrified. I was like telling them what to do. I was terrified.
Speaker 1:
I was like this is gonna sound stupid. I'm doing it, I'm going for it three, two, one. I forget what it was. It wasn't three, two, I was something else, um, but then you know, I was like okay, like I either do it or I don't. Yeah, I did it again, it was fine it'll get better the more you do it.
Speaker 2:
Right, yeah, but you have to know your songs too. You have to know when the drop is otherwise it's awkward if you do that, so yeah being your own hype. Uh mc helps a lot and a lot of club djs can do this sort of skill yeah, um, this one is social media.
Speaker 1:
Now you said that that's uh, it depends on. It depends on the event.
Speaker 2:
Right, it's more tacky if you're gonna, if it's very tacky if you're doing it, uh like a corporate or a wedding and stuff, I wouldn't do it. Um, I've done this, uh like the request.
Speaker 1:
Uh, taking requests that's a good one poll um on at a prom. Yeah, so did you use an app or were you using cool? I used an app. So when we went to one of those restaurants where I actually used to work as a waiter back in the day, when they have those club nights on Friday, saturdays, they have an app and sometimes you the only way to ask for a song is if you pay a dollar.
Speaker 2:
yes, yes, I've seen that too on social media they're they're adding like tips you can tip the dj and the more you tip them the, the, the song.
Speaker 1:
It depends on the song too, right yeah, and when I wasn't tipping him, when I, when I decided, okay, I gave him like six, seven by now, like a dollar every song. How about? I just don't and see if he plays it?
Speaker 2:
He still played it just later if he liked my suggestion right. Yes.
Speaker 1:
One time when I sent it, he could see that I'm sending it. He could tell, because you also have a username on that one. He kind of went like this to me yeah, he knows.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, there you go. Like DJs love it when you actually tip. Like yesterday I did a prom and I played this song that I really didn't want to play and actually the organizer was like don't play too much of this stuff Because we don't want them to get too rowdy. But he said you played it anyway. I played it. No, no, no, I got the okay approval from him first. Okay, just play it. And it was during dinner too. So there were, it wasn't really, it was out of the blue, it's more controlled. So I did play it. And then after like it was like a 10 minute song and I played it already for like five minutes and people are just watching these guys dance, right. So after like five minutes this guy comes up to me and it just throws me like like five, like uh, ten dollar bills. I'm like, oh, okay, if, if, this is how it's gonna go.
Speaker 1:
You know the stripper, you can request as many songs as you want, yeah, so that's, that's how that went, but it was a good night.
Speaker 2:
It was a good night, great gig.
Speaker 1:
Yeah. So at the end of the day, our last point is be yourself. Let your personality shine through your passion for music, your enthusiasm and just your contagious energy kind of thing. We'll take over the dance floor. We'll take over the people. If you are not confident, they will know yes, Right, so do what you do best. Don't try to do something because we wrote it and you don't really want to do it or you don't know how to do it. Well, you don't have experience in that and just do it because we said that right, Practice it. You know, I was doing entrances as a practice. Remember how you told me that it's actually tougher to do entrances.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, yeah, tougher than I thought it was. Yeah, because you're playing, you're doing multiple things, you're thinking about names, how to pronounce them, and then you're playing music at the same time, especially if they're cute and certain Levels I want this song to come in at this part. And then I want this transition. Oh man, some people.
Speaker 1:
So I started oh man, exactly. So I started literally speaking on the mic at home. There's nobody there and I just had a list of people and I just like I just started introducing them right, because I wasn't really good at that back then yeah and same, like if you. If there's something you like here, try it like.
Speaker 2:
I know it sounds ridiculous be yourself, do it, get used to it, do your own thing, do what you do best, and you'll know that right. So, um, yeah, make. There's so many djs out there and, uh, we all have to stand out in our own way, so let it, let it shine, yeah when, when did you, uh, were?
Speaker 1:
did you always have like your own personality? Or at first you're more like robotic, like I'll do things this way because that's what I was told.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, well, not that I was told, it's just. That's how I learned how to do it Right, and I was more careful at the beginning because of course you don't want to make a mistake. But as you get more experience and you do it, you come up with certain things, you get more confident and it just comes out Right. You come up with certain things, you get more confident and it just comes out right, like the stuff that I do now. The first two, three years I didn't do Like I'm seeing and hyping up the crowd. I never even talked on the microphone at all At all, at all for the first four or five years. And then I just started getting on the microphone, getting more comfortable on it, and I found that people would just go crazy and like go along with it. So I'm like, okay, this is really working.
Speaker 1:
So I, I just did it yeah, but it was always, uh, even back in the day, it was always, uh, a skill that djs used right, I mean like engaging with the crowd with a mic that was always acceptable.
Speaker 2:
Right it's.
Speaker 1:
It's acceptable, but not all djs do it honestly yeah, not all djs will do it I find right now being an mc as a, as a must yeah yeah, you have to have a mic, you have to know how to use the mic.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, and yes, there are certain things we said to do here that you don't have to. You don't have to sing, you don't have to uh, rap or whatever, uh, or really like have lots of chatter, chatter, even even if the crowd appreciates it if you don't know how to do that. But at the very least, have those moments where you're hyping them up, right, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:
Yeah.
Speaker 1:
All right, so that's our list. These are some of the great ways to engage with the crowd. Yes, as a DJ, and make it a memorable night. Yes, sir, all right. Well, thank you very much for joining another episode of the Clever DJ.
Speaker 2:
Episode number 22. Yes, sir, we'll see you guys. Next one, all right See you then