# Did anyone hire a DJ?



## scottfamily5 (Feb 3, 2009)

For those that have had parties or will be- did you hire a DJ to play music? IF so will you play scary halloween music or dancing music or both? For those that did the music yourself did you make a CD of good songs and just play it?

Jalesa


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## Xane (Oct 13, 2010)

Well I _am_ (or was anyway) a DJ, more party/wedding DJ than pro/vinyl mixer but still...

You want to find a DJ that's going to keep the party going. Not a DJ that's going to play what the DJ wants to hear (this is a big problem if a friend is going to "DJ for free"). This goes the same for a CD or MP3 playlist. If you set it up in advance and you bore everyone to death with the music you like you're going to murder your party. And parties don't have blood and guts (usually) so it doesn't even become a good prop when it dies. You want to be able to kill off a song or even the entire playlist and quickly move to something else if the guests look like they're going to find another party if someone doesn't change the track.

Always have more music than you think you need on hand. Multiple genres/time periods/etc. Also despite the fact that it feels cliché and boring, the classics usually work. YMCA, The Time Warp, The Hustle, Monster Mash, Thriller, etc, will get a lot more people dancing than "that track that was #15 in 2009". Especially if you have a wide age variety in your group. If your group is close together in age it's more likely you can get away with playing one decade. Also go sparingly on requests. Just because Uncle Bob likes the Funky Chicken I'm sure Aunt Edna doesn't want to see him do it again and neither does anyone else. If you're going slightly more hardcore with dancing being a focus (big dance floor, pro lighting, fog machine that will set off the fire alarm and thus ruin what you were planning on doing with that new laser light show you just spent a fortune on...) and less "generic party that people can also dance at" look for remixes of older classics. If there's a lot of people in heavy costume, slow down the beat every once in awhile (and have a lot of ice water available), you don't want someone collapsing.

When I do Halloween parties I try to do a lot of Halloween themed tracks in there but there really aren't that many that make good dance music.

Monster Mash (always use the original)
Thriller (again, always use the original or people will go nuts when the tempo is off and/or lyrics are missing/wrong)
The Time Warp
Whatever Happened To Saturday Night
Stray Cat Strut
Dead Man's Party (Oingo Boingo)
The dance remix of O Fortuna that they always use in movie trailers
The dance remix of Phantom of the Opera
Ghostbusters (use the Ghostbusters 2 version by Run DMC)
Several other tracks on the Ghostbusters 2 sountrack are fun as well, such as Spirit and Flesh & Blood.
Dance remixes of Tocatta & Fugue


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## obcessedwithit (Jul 13, 2009)

I will have one this year, he will play a variety to please all ears............


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## dippedstix (Jul 2, 2009)

This will be the 2nd time we've had a DJ. I am very excited about this one we are getting this yr! He is very energetic and says he loves kids and loves parties! He also promises to get the crowd going. This dude has entertainment (games, prizes) for the kids. I have a meeting with him tomorrow actually to go over the game ideas. Getting excited already and it's only August. LOL


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## kMG (Sep 6, 2009)

We had a DJ for my daughter (9 yo) Halloween Bday party last year and it was a hit! We had a dance off and awarded trophies and ribbons. We played scary and regular dance music. He will be back again this year for both our adult and kids party!


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## Nelvira (Sep 15, 2010)

For last years party I made a 4 hour play list of scary AND dance music. Worked out pretty well. Definitely pop some classics in there like Thriller, Bela Legosi's Dead, Monster Mash, etc...


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## scottfamily5 (Feb 3, 2009)

Sounds great everyone thanks for the ideas!


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## Talbert (Aug 23, 2011)

My humble opinion only .....

A DJ would be very appropriate for a large adult party and they should have the music genre you request prior to the event. If it's kids, and you have a karaoke machine (or other equipment) have a couple of the more outgoing kids take turns being the DJ. (If you have a good speaker system on your computer just go to various sites and play their Halloween songs as streaming audio). You could do that with my Audio stories and songs and spooky melodies at http://www.soundcloud.com/tgitzke. (They are full length and listening is free).

Of course you could also buy the downloads. If it's CD's you need (of my creations) check http://www.independentmusicsales.com.


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## Halloween Scream (Sep 29, 2010)

While a DJ would be wonderful it's a huge expense! For our Halloween party I make two detailed playlists on my iPod - for the first part of the night it's rock music with a few Halloween appropriate songs like "Thriller". I put on a second playlist that's mostly dance music once the party really gets going. If you put time into selecting great music beforehand, there's no reason you can't DIY with an Ipod. Oh, and of course I have my spooky sound effects blaring outside the house as people arrive!


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## BewitchingHalloween (Aug 18, 2010)

I wish I could have a DJ for our party but not in our budget maybe someday! We make a few playlist and play halloween party music then dance music later... then we also have eerie sounds in dif rooms


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## obcessedwithit (Jul 13, 2009)

My party is adult and usually a large crowd. I have a donation jar and everyone is happy to contribute to the DJ, I used him for New years eve, and a luau this summer.. If the amount is not met I make up the difference which is not alot. The guy I use does this on the side and is not really that expensive. Check around with some friends that may know of someone. It really makes it easier for me, I don't have to worry about keeping a check on the music and can enjoy the others things going on.


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## ibringthenoise (Nov 11, 2011)

I DJed a few gigs this year and did lighting only for some others. Sometimes lighting can really set the mood!








Hire A DJ


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## halloween71 (Apr 22, 2007)

We have had so many party's that we bought our own dj eqipment.We not only don't have to spend that money to hire one.But everyone loves what we do that we have been ask to dj alot of events.So the equpment has paid for itself.


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## brew8354 (Oct 2, 2010)

We have hired a lady who does Karaoke (Scaraoke) for our party for the last eight years and everyone loves it! I give out a trophy along with the costume trophies for best Karaoke and it is highly coveted among my friends. She arrives at the party early and sets up all her equipment and places her books and papers and pencils on the tables and has music going before anyone shows up. She plays dance and party music in between people singing. Once the alcohol starts flowing everyone wants to sing!! LOL She is awesome and has been at my parties so long she knows most of the regulars and looks forward to it each year. We give her our most comfortable outdoor chair and a heater at her feet if the weather is cool, as well as carpet for her to place her table and sit on so she stays warmer. She usually is here until 4 am so we want her to be comfortable. We do Karaoke in our driveway with a stage set up for the background band...The Band of the Damned, starring skeletons dressed as Elvis, Jimmy Hendrix, Curt Kobain, Michael Jackson, and the latest member, Amy Winehouse. Of course the girls always like her to play the typical songs you here at weddings where everyone gets up and dances and she gladly abliges. It really gets people invovled and the trophy and gift bag are a great incentive. Hope this helps for next year!!


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## Paul Melniczek (Jun 5, 2009)

I used to own a DJ business and it's about playing entertaining music to suit your specific crowd. I did reunions, a Luah, weddings, clubs, and restaurants. Requests can become a problem when you're doing an anniversary party with 90% adults and a few teens keep requesting hip-hop. A DJ should always respect whomever is paying them first, but it's no fun having people get angry with you because your selection doesn't fit their tastes. Usually these are the ones hardest to please regardless and I ignored them. I also preferred to let the music compliment the event. Be upfront if your host wants it, or background if that's their wish. I've seen a number of DJs trying to become the entertainment personally with all their dance instruction moves but they weren't particularly talented in this area. In summary, each job is different. And yes, a bunch of parties with a friend or relative doing the gig for free with mixed results. We never had a DJ at our home party. We never wanted a party that was too big and loud in our home. I prefer playing atmospheric stuff like A NIGHT IN A HAUNTED HOUSE or THE GHOUL LOG.


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## marigolddesigns (Sep 5, 2010)

I would love to have the budget to be able to hire a DJ...last year we had a friend of my son's from college come and play. He did pretty good, but later in the evening had all this stuff that no one knew what he was playing...This year my daughter worked with my playlist and came up with a beginning party playlist with alot of mixed music with halloween flavor, monster mash, thriller, bad moon rising...then later in the evening we started another playlist with dance music. It worked great and it's saved for next year on her itunes, so all we will do next year is add maybe any new current dance song or halloween song. I love the idea of Scaryoke...that sounds like fun!


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## halloween71 (Apr 22, 2007)

brew8354 said:


> We have hired a lady who does Karaoke (Scaraoke) for our party for the last eight years and everyone loves it! I give out a trophy along with the costume trophies for best Karaoke and it is highly coveted among my friends. She arrives at the party early and sets up all her equipment and places her books and papers and pencils on the tables and has music going before anyone shows up. She plays dance and party music in between people singing. Once the alcohol starts flowing everyone wants to sing!! LOL She is awesome and has been at my parties so long she knows most of the regulars and looks forward to it each year. We give her our most comfortable outdoor chair and a heater at her feet if the weather is cool, as well as carpet for her to place her table and sit on so she stays warmer. She usually is here until 4 am so we want her to be comfortable. We do Karaoke in our driveway with a stage set up for the background band...The Band of the Damned, starring skeletons dressed as Elvis, Jimmy Hendrix, Curt Kobain, Michael Jackson, and the latest member, Amy Winehouse. Of course the girls always like her to play the typical songs you here at weddings where everyone gets up and dances and she gladly abliges. It really gets people invovled and the trophy and gift bag are a great incentive. Hope this helps for next year!!


We have had a karaoke machine for years and finally decided to use it this year.It was a hit.


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