There are plenty of true DJ’s out here, spinnin’ and grinnin’ but if there is one thing I’ve learned about DJ’ing over the years, it’s that you must stay true to the art form if you truly want to master the craft. DJ’ing actually has a huge history, one that dates much further than just when hip-hop was born.
The History Behind Disc Jockeys
Disc jockeys go back to well over 50 years, before radio DJs synched the rhythm of songs together, they’d actually cue up each record and the transition would be the DJ announcing the next track with their best radio announcer voice. Many old school DJs from this time had over 300 different tones they’d use on-air. It wasn’t until the late 60’s to the early 70’s when beatmatching was invented by a man of the name Fransis Grasso.
Using the Turntable as An Instrument
The birth of hip-hop truly brought an entire new era of music that has lasted decades to come. Hip-hop began in the late 70’s when teens and young adults would gather and play music and dance parties. DJs would take 2 copies of the same record and loop the drum breaks from certain funk, soul and disco tracks. These drum breaks are also referred to as the “breaks” and later a collection was created known as the ultimate breaks and beats collection. Hip-hop had invented certain turntable techniques such as scratching and beat juggling. The term turntablist coined into effect by the year 1995.
The Difference of DJs in Today’s World
From trap and EDM to hip-hop/rap and everything in-between, there are some pretty rad DJs that exist today. The one tip I have for new and upcoming DJs is to not cut your practice short, I believe everyone should first learn on a real pair of turntables. Using a controller will help you learn the science of mixing faster, but there is no better way of diving deep into turntablism than actually learning the true science of the 1’s and 2’s.
There Are Local Legends in Every City
Famous and popular DJs aside, I have grown to realize there are a ton of small-town DJs that are local legends and literal DJ heroes that you can find to help mentor. Looking at my home city like Indy for instance, growing up here, I never realized how many Indianapolis DJs we have until I started DeeJaying myself. There are easily over a couple of hundred DJs in Indianapolis and we birth dozens of new DJ’s every year from the couple of DJ schools we have.
Anyone Can Learn How to DJ Vinyl Easily!
Not every city may have a school dedicated for your growth, but have no fear because this truly is the best time to be alive within the information age. You can easily find any type of DJ tutorial using video services like Youtube. Just type “how to synch 2 vinyl records together” and you will get the top results viewers love. I truly hope this article has been of some inspiration for you to dive as deep as you can into DJ’ing, as mixing real vinyl is truly is my favorite art and hobby.