A disc jockey (also known as DJ or deejay ) is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, dis k referred to phonograph records, while disc referred to the Compact Disc, and has become the more common spelling. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the source.
There are several types of disc jockeys. Radio DJs introduce and play music that is broadcast on AM, FM, shortwave, digital, or internet radio stations. Club DJs select and play music in bars, nightclubs, discothèques, at raves, or even in a stadium. Hip hop disc jockeys select and play music using multiple turntables, often to back up one or more MCs, and they may also do turntable scratching to create percussive sounds. In reggae, the disc jockey (deejay) is a vocalist who raps, "toasts", or chats over pre-recorded rhythm tracks while the individual choosing and playing them is referred to as a selector. Mobile disc jockeys travel with portable sound systems and play recorded music at a variety of events.
Equipment and techniques
dj
DJ equipment may consist of:
- Sound recordings in a DJ's preferred medium (e.g., vinyl records, Compact Discs, computer media files, etc.);
- A combination of two devices (or only one, if playback is digital) to play sound recordings, for alternating back and forth to create a continuous playback of music (e.g., record players, Compact Disc players, computer media players such as an MP3 player, etc.);
- A sound system for amplification or broadcasting of the recordings (e.g., portable audio system, PA system) or a radio broadcasting system;
- A DJ mixer, which is an electronic (usually 2- or 4-channel) audio mixer usually equipped with a crossfader used to smoothly go from one song to another, using two or more playback devices;
- Headphones, used to listen to one recording while the other recording is being played to the audience; and
- Optionally, a microphone, so that the DJ can introduce songs and speak to the audience.
Other equipment could or can be added to the basic DJ setup (above), providing unique sound manipulations. Such devices include, but are not limited to:
- Electronic effects units (delay, reverb, octave, equalizer, chorus, etc.). Some club DJs use a sub-harmonic synthesizer effect which either doubles low frequencies with energy added an octave lower or synthesizes harmonics such that the impression of a very low bass sound is added to the mix.
- A computerised performance system, which can be used with vinyl emulation software to manipulate digital files on the computer in real time.
- Multi-stylus headshells, which allow a DJ to play different grooves of the same record at the same time.
- Special DJ digital controller hardware can manipulate digital files on a PC or laptop;
- Samplers, sequencers, electronic musical keyboards (synthesizers), or drum machines.
Several techniques are used by DJs as a means to better mix and blend recorded music. These techniques primarily include the cuing, equalization, and audio mixing of two or more sound sources. The complexity and frequency of special techniques depends largely on the setting in which a DJ is working. Radio DJs are less likely to focus on music-mixing procedures than club DJs, who rely on a smooth transition between songs using a range of techniques.
Club DJ turntable techniques include beatmatching, phrasing, and slip-cueing to preserve energy on a dancefloor. Turntablism embodies the art of cutting, beat juggling, scratching, needle drops, phase shifting, back spinning, and more to perform the transitions and overdubs of samples in a more creative manner (although turntablism is often considered a use of the turntable as a musical instrument rather than a tool for blending recorded music). Professional DJs may use harmonic mixing to choose songs that are in compatible musical keys.
Types
The role of selecting and playing recorded 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 differentiate the various DJ types.
Radio
Main article: Radio personalityA radio disc jockey plays music that is broadcast across radio waves—AM and FM bands, or worldwide on shortwave radio stations. Radio DJs are often known for their personalities.
Famous American radio disc jockeys such as Alan Freed, Scott Muni, Casey Kasem, Dick Biondi, Wolfman Jack, and Dr. Demento built their audiences using a combination of the nature of the songs they selected and strong on-air personalities. A modern-day commercial radio disc jockey will typically rely on his or her on-air character alone, as the station's playlist has been predetermined by a program director or music director.
Radio disc jockeys appear in a wide array of broadcast formats, from top 40 or contemporary hit radio (CHR) to oldies and other formats that are defined by the type of songs played. Formats are defined by the type of originating station, with public radio, college radio, and pirate radio as examples. Some national governments operate official radio stations for a global audience, such as Voice of America (hosted by the United States) and Voice of Russia (organized by the Russian government). These stations may include programs by disc jockeys; The Clash frontman Joe Strummer played selections from his musical library for the UK's BBC World Service in the 1990s. Large military units sometimes broadcast their own radio programs to their troops, inserting news, weather reports, and advice between popular songs. The film Good Morning, Vietnam portrays an American military disc jockey.
Reggae
In Jamaican reggae music, the Disc Jockey, called the "Selector", controls the tone, vibe, and energy of a dance or gathering. As Norman Stolzoff notes in "Wake the Town And Tell the People", The crowd's reception of the selector ultimately "determined the success or failure of a sound system's performance". A careful combination of songs in a playlist were often used to tell stories, set moods for the party goers, or to convey a particular theme. A selector had to know how to adapt the tempo, musical key, and tone of the songs he or she selected.
Selectors would often tease the crowd with small snippets from individual songs throughout an entire dance only to play the full song near the end of the dance. Another technique known as the "haul and pull up" called for the selector to interrupt a classic by restarting the song in the middle of playing by literally lifting up the needle and returning the beginning of the record. These skills are in addition to the precise timing required of a selector in switching records between songs or when the crowd disapproved of a particular song by verbally expressing their frustration.
The selector also interacted with and pleased the crowd throughout the entire dance by any means necessary. Over time, specific styles emerged amongst selectors that used witty voice overs and "toasts" to complement their performance. Count Matchukie( Winston Cooper), one of Jamaica's most famed selectors, would do dancing and talking over records with humor and wit. "Cliff" of Duke Reid's sound system focused so intensely on his task that he would turn his back to the crowd and would never speak at all as he played. Adding an even greater degree of complexity to the job of a selector, "toasting" required wit, humor, and a specific usage of rhyme, timing, and rhythm. Nonetheless, in both the eras of sound system dances and in dancehall, the selector was often the greatest selling point of a specific dance, party or system.
Clubs
A club disc jockey selects and plays music using several turntables, CD players, or a hard-drive source, mixing the songs with a mixer and modifying the tone or sound of the recordings with equalizers and other effects. The setting can range anywhere from a neighborhood party at a private home or a small nightclub to a discothèque, a rave, or even a stadium. The size of the sound system varies according to the venue, and can range from a 500 watt PA system with two small speakers at a house party to a 50,000 watt sound reinforcement system with a number of speakers and multiple 15" subwoofers at a major dance club. The main focus of club DJs is on the music they play and how they mix tracks in and out, sometimes just to add a bit of energy to a track. They build their sets by choosing "tracks" (songs) to control the energy level of the crowd and use beatmixing and beatmatching techniques to make seamless transitions between tracks. Some DJs may interweave a number of different songs or samples into each track that they play. For more information on notable club DJs, see List of club DJs.
Hip-hop
See also: TurntablismA hip-hop disc jockey is a DJ that selects and plays music as a hip-hop arti
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