Disc jockey
A disc jockey (also called DJ, or deejay) is an individual who selects and plays prerecorded music for an intended audience.
Origin of term
The term was first used to describe radio announcers who would introduce and play popular gramophone records, but today there are a number of factors, including the selected music, the intended audience, the performance setting, the preferred medium, and the development of sound manipulation, that have led to different types of deejays.
Job description
The physical act of selecting and playing sound recordings is called deejaying, or DJing, and ranges in sophistication from simply playing a series of recordings (referred to as programming, or composing a playlist), to the manipulating of recordings, using techniques such as audio mixing, cueing, phrasing, cutting, scratching, and beatmatching, often to the point of creating original musical compositions.
Equipment
The most basic equipment that is necessary for a standard disc jockey to perform consists of the following: 1. sound recordings in preferred medium (eg. vinyl records, compact discs, mp3s) 2. at least two devices for playback of sound recordings, for the purpose of alternating back and forth to create continuous playback (eg. record players, compact disc players, mp3 players) 3. a sound system for amplification of the recordings (eg. portable audio system, radio wave broadcaster)
The addition of a mixer (used to mix the sound of the two playback devices), a microphone (used to amplify the human voice), and headphones (used to listen to one recording while the other is playing, without outputting the sound to the audience) is strongly recommended, but not required. Other types of equipment can also be added, including samplers, drum machines, effects processors, slipmats, and Computerized Performance Systems.
Techniques
There are several techniques that can be applied by the disc jockey as a means to manipulate the prerecorded music. These include audio mixing, cueing, slip-cueing, phrasing, cutting, beat juggling, scratching, beatmatching, needle drops, phase shifting, and more.
DJ control and economics
Throughout the 1950s, payola was an ongoing problem. Part of the fallout from that payola scandal was tighter control of the music by station management. The Top 40 format also emerged, where popular songs are played repeatedly.
Today, very few DJs in the United States have any control over what is played on the air. Playlists are very tightly regulated, and the DJ is often not allowed to make any changes or additions. The songs to be played are usually determined by computerized algorithms, and automation techniques such as voice tracking have allowed single DJs to send announcements across many stations. Even song requests are sometimes co-opted into this system—a song might be announced as a request by a DJ even though it was already set to appear in the playlist.
Economically, this formula has been successful across the country. However, music aficionados look upon such practices with disgust and either seek out freeform stations that put the DJs back in control, or end up dumping terrestrial radio in favor of satellite radio services or portable music players like iPods. College radio stations and other public radio outlets are the most common places for freeform playlists in the U.S.
Types of disc jockeys
By definition, the role of selecting and playing prerecorded music for an intended audience is the same for every disc jockey. The selected music, the audience, the setting, the preferred medium, and the level of sophistication of sound manipulation are factors that create a number of different types of deejays.
The following is a list of the most common types of disc jockeys, along with notable examples of each, listed in chronological order by birth.
Radio DJs
A radio disc jockey is one that selects and plays music that is broadcast across radio waves.
Notable Radio DJs
Christopher Stone (1882–1965), became the first disc jockey in the United Kingdom in 1927.
Martin Block (1901-1967), the first radio disc jockey to become a star, inspired the term "disc jockey".
Alan Freed (1922-1965), became internationally known for promoting African-American Rhythm and Blues music in the United States and Europe under the name of Rock and Roll.
Murray "The K" Kaufman (1922-1982), influential rock and roll disc jockey, for a time was billed as the "Fifth Beatle".
Jimmy Savile (born 1926), British DJ and television personality, best known for his BBC television show Jim'll Fix It where he made the wishes of members of the public (mainly children) come true. In 1947 he was the first ever DJ to use twin turntables for continuous play after he paid a local metal worker to weld two domestic record decks together.
Dick Clark (born 1929), host of American Bandstand, television's longest-running music/variety program, as well as a number of nationally syndicated radio shows.
Casey Kasem (born 1932), disc jockey and music historian, host of the long-running radio series American Top 40. Also the voice of Shaggy in the Scooby-Doo cartoon series.
Wolfman Jack (1938-1995), drew upon his love of horror movies and rock and roll to create his raspy-voiced, howling persona, one of radio’s most distinctive voices.
John Peel (1939-2004), one of the original DJs of UK's Radio 1 in 1967, known for the extraordinary range of his taste in music, and for championing unknown musical artists.
Jim Ladd (born 1948), the last remaining freeform rock DJ in United States commercial radio.
Club/Rave DJs
A club/rave disc jockey is one that selects and plays music in a club setting. The setting can range anywhere from a small club, a neighborhood party, a disco, a rave, or even a stadium.
Notable Club/Rave DJs
David Mancuso (born 1944), founder of New York City's first underground party called the Loft.
Francis Grasso (1948-2001), popularized several new disc jockey techniques, including beatmatching and slip-cueing.
Larry Levan (1954-1992), leader of New York Garage music.
Frankie Knuckles (born 1955), the godfather of house music.
Paul Oakenfold (born 1963), British record producer, remixer, and one of the best-known DJs worldwide, referred to as a Superstar DJ.
Tiesto (born 1969), one of world's leading trance music DJs, voted DJ Magazine's 'No. 1 DJ in the World' for the third consecutive year in 2004.
Keoki (born 1969), famous techno musician, portrayed in the 2003 film Party Monster.
Hip Hop DJs
A hip hop disc jockey is one that selects, plays and creates music as a hip hop artist and/or performer, often backing up one or more MCs.
Notable Hip Hop DJs
DJ Kool Herc (born 1955), inventor of breakbeat technique, "the father of hip hop culture".
Grandmaster Flash (born 1958), one of the early pioneers of hip-hop DJing, cutting, and scratching. Created the Quick Mix Technique which allowed a DJ to precisely extend a break using two copies of the same record; essentially invented modern turntablism.
Afrika Bambaataa (born 1960), instrumental in the development of hip hop from its birth in the South Bronx to its international success. Created first hip hop track to feature synthesizers; "The godfather of Hip Hop"
Jam Master Jay (1965-2002), founder and DJ of Run-DMC, one of the most innovative hip hop groups of all time.
Eric B. (born 1965), one half of duo Eric B. & Rakim, popularized the James Brown-sampled funky hip hop of the late 1980s.
Terminator X (born 1966), DJ of the highly infuential hip hop group Public Enemy.
DJ Qbert (born 1969), founding member of the turntablism group the Invisibl Skratch Piklz and three-time winner of the International DMC Award.
Mix Master Mike (born 1970), skilled DJ of hip hop group Beastie Boys, three-time winner of the International DMC Turntablism Award.
DJ Jazzy Jeff (born 1965), of DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince (also backed Will Smith on his solo efforts)
Mobile DJs
Mobile disc jockeys are an extension of the original radio disc jockeys. Unlike their radio counterparts, mobile DJing is primarily seen as a part-time or second career. Although it is often percieved this way, there are many mobile DJs around the world that use this as their primary career.
Mobile DJs travel or tour with their own sound systems and play from an extensive collection of pre-recorded music, on various media, for a targeted audience. Mobile DJs tend to work for hire at private functions such as wedding receptions, bar and bat mitzvah receptions, school dances, and so on, but they can occasionally be seen in bars, nightclubs, or even block parties. Unlike many club/rave DJs, mobile DJs often play more mainstream selections of music from multiple genres, they often take requests, and for mobile DJs, producing a continuous, beat-matched mix is rarely a priority.
The definition and responsibilities of a mobile disc jockey have changed since Bob Casey's first two-turntable system for continuous playback was utilized for sock-hops in 1955. Bands had long dominated the wedding entertainment industry, but with the advent of the less expensive mobile DJ, the demand for live performers dwindled. Even so, in the early years, the mobile DJ industry was seen as a last-resort choice for entertainment, as the DJs were reputed to frequently be unreliable and unprofessional. Mobile DJs companies came and went. However, a few companies of this era did establish themselves as competent businesses and thrived; some even still exist today.
During the Disco era of the 1970s, demand for mobile DJs (called mobile discos in the UK) soared. Top mobile DJs in this era would have hundreds of vinyl records and/or cassette tapes to play from. The equipment used in this era was enormous and usually required roadies (similar to those who work for bands) to set up. Because of the high demand for mobile DJs, many people from all facets of life jumped into the industry, hoping to make a few extra dollars on the weekends. These "Weekend Warriors", as they are called by many, helped enhance the negative stereotype of the mobile DJ; many of the same complaints from the earlier era continued.
Some tried to improve this image by forming professional associations. The Canadian Disc Jockey Association (CDJA) was one of the original associations formed in 1976 as a not-for-profit trade association for disc jockeys across Canada. It was joined by a much broader online association called the Canadian Online Disc Jockey Association (CODJA), founded by Canadian mobile DJs Glenn Miller (not the famous bandleader) and Dennis Hampson.
United States Disc Jockeys were reluctant to form anything similar until 1992 when the American Disc Jockey Association (ADJA) was incorporated. The original Board of Directors were Bruce Keslar, Maureen Keslar, John Roberts, and Lori Jesse. In 1996, after being removed from the ADJA Board from a financial dispute, Keslar then went on to form the for-profit National Association of Mobile Entertainers (NAME), based in the Philadelphia area. Both associations thrive today, with an estimated 5,000 members combined as of November 2005.
As the late 1980s turned into the 1990s, new technologies emerged. Compact disc collections were becoming the standard to play music from. Many equipment manufacturers realized the potential market that existed for mobile DJs and raced to make equipment that was smaller, easier to use, and of better quality. Dedicated mobile disc jockey trade publications such as DJ Times magazine and Mobile Beat magazine were founded in this era. These publications helped to spread the word about the emerging technologies and published informational articles that were helpful to the mobile disc jockey. This is also the era when mobile disc jockeys became the top entertainment choice for most private parties including wedding receptions.
In the mid-1990s, computers and the Internet had a profound impact on the mobile DJ industry. Professor Jam, a Tampa Bay, Florida disc jockey already known in the industry for having performed for many celebrities and television networks, became one of the first mobile DJs in the United States to regularly use computer technology to play music at his shows, and was the first professionally endorsed computer disc jockey internationally. CODJA cofounder Glenn Miller became the first licensed MP3 DJ under new music licensing agreement that was introduced to Canada in 2000 by the AVLA, and had already pioneered online networking for mobile disc jockeys by starting the first bulletin board system for mobile DJs from all over North America (and eventually the world).
In the 21st Century, the role of the mobile disc jockey has expanded. While there are still many conventional, "human jukebox" mobile DJs, many others have assumed more reponsibilities to ensure the success of the events where they perform. These responsibilities include emceeing, event coordination, lighting direction, and sound engineering.
The number of resources available for mobile DJs has also expanded. Aside from the many online community forums, there are now annual conventions, regional conferences, and many local seminars for mobile disc jockeys to attend.
Notable Mobile DJs
In 1955, Bob Casey (born 1941), a well-known sock hop DJ, introduced the first two-turntable system for the purpose of alternating back and forth between records, creating continuous playback.