Member Article

Seven Things Experienced DJs Never Leave Home Without

Heading to a show as a DJ means first ensuring you’ve ticked every box on that all-important checklist. Your dj equipment and accessories, your digital music catalogue, your visual FX setup, a dizzying array of cables and wires – all the kind of essential stuff you need to put on a show.

But aside from this, there are also several other ‘essentials’ that tend to go overlooked. At least, by those who are still finding their feet on the professional DJ circuit, and haven’t yet realised just how important they are.

Of course, different DJs place different levels of emphasis on different pieces of equipment. Depending on where you head to play a gig, some of the stuff you need may already be provided on your behalf. Still, unless you can guarantee with 100% certainty you’ll have all of the following at your disposal, you’ll be glad you brought them along for the ride.

Let’s get started:

1. Some Sort of Fan

By this, we mean either a small portable fan that plugs into a USB socket, or a rechargeable fan to accompany your gear. Even if playing during the colder months of the year or in an indoor venue, the heat of the lights on stage will soon have you sweating like it’s a competition. Which counts double if you’re the kind of DJ who likes to dance and do your thing while putting on a show – a sure-fire recipe for becoming a mess.

2. Basic Personal Hygiene Products

This refers to all the simple yet essential bits and pieces that will keep you feeling fresh for the entirety of the show; the most important samples of which include deodorant, perfume or aftershave, mouthwash, chewing gum or mints. A quick boost of much-needed freshness here and there really can make it easier to focus on getting the job done right.

3. Snacks and Drinks

They’ll be available on tap at some shows you play, but will be completely out of reach at others. Either way, there really is nothing worse than finding yourself starving and (suitably irritable) midway through a set. It’s not as if you can simply pop out for a cheeseburger, so you need to ensure you’ve plenty of snacks and drinks to keep you sustained.

4. Tissues and Towels

Bear in mind that it is not just you that is likely to get all hot and sweaty during the show. There’s also a good chance nasty sweaty condensation and other spills will build up all over your equipment. Hence, both you and your gear will benefit equally from the presence of a bunch of tissues and towels. Wet wipes can also be good to bring along for the ride, keeping you fresh and giving you something to mop up any stickier spills.

5. A Small Rechargeable Light

Some DJ booths are practically impossible to see anything in, due to being too dark. You’ll sometimes find that the lights in a venue seem to be deliberately positioned in a way that casts a massive shadow over your most important gear. When this happens, having a small rechargeable (or UBS powered) light at your disposal really is a must.

6. A Wingman/Woman

A second pair of hands will always come in useful and it’s great to have someone there to hype up the crowd on your behalf. They can also check the volume levels on the dancefloor, hit the bar to get you drinks, and generally make the whole thing an even more enjoyable experience.

7. A box of connectors and cables

DJs should always carry an emergency toolkit with spare adaptors, connectors and cables. You never know what problems you’re going to face at a gig, so a mini emergency kit with phono, jack, xlr and other random adaptors may come in handy. If you’re looking to purchase some of these random adaptors and cables why not use dj finance?

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by iCONQUER Ltd .