Beyond the DJ Booth

Recent Episodes

What Actually Works At Gigs
3
July 8, 2026

What Actually Works At Gigs

Send us a message Every DJ has songs, transitions, and little tricks they keep coming back to because they simply work. In this episode, we're sharing what's consistently working for us right now at weddings, corporate events, and private parties: from current dance floor tracks to dinner music, walk-in playlists, and programming strategies that are getting real-world results. We kick things off, however, with a fun challenge that turns into a conversation about instincts, pattern recognition...
When The Client’s Daughter Hijacks The Decks
2
July 1, 2026

When The Client’s Daughter Hijacks The Decks

Send us a message A packed dance floor can disappear in one song, and sometimes the person asking for that song is the one signing the check. We open with a wild high end wedding story where the playlist is a tightrope: a huge do not play list, a “keep it upbeat” mandate, and a room full of guests who do not share the bride and her daughter’s festival taste. When a Sophie Tucker request clears the floor, we break down what we do next, how we narrate it, and how we rebuild momentum without get...
Handling Bad Song Lists From Couples
1
June 24, 2026

Handling Bad Song Lists From Couples

Send us a message A packed dance floor is not guaranteed just because a couple hands you a long playlist. We’re Brian B and Joe Bunn, and we’re starting the season by getting real about what happens when client expectations, modern music culture, and the actual room collide. First, we share a big update for private event DJs: the DJ Collective in Raleigh (Nov 16 through 18) and why we’re genuinely hype about keynote speaker Jess Ekstrom. She’s an author, founder, and high-level conference sp...
Working with Live Musicians
13
June 17, 2026

Working with Live Musicians

Send us a message Somebody sends us a mystery package and it turns into a real conversation about community, merch, and how much value listeners can create around your brand when you actually let them in. From there we shout out Patreon supporters around the world, plug The DJ Collective in Raleigh, and talk about why being in the room with other working DJs still matters if you want sharper ideas and better execution on your next season of gigs. Then we get practical. If you’ve got TV...
Are Pay to Play Venues Worth It?
12
June 10, 2026

Are Pay to Play Venues Worth It?

Send us a message Paying a venue to get on their “preferred DJ” list sounds like a shortcut until you’re staring at the invoice wondering if it actually produced real work. We dig into a real pay to play example with clean numbers: a $2,500 annual buy in, seven leads so far, three bookings, and $7,200 in booked revenue. Then we get honest about how we judge DJ marketing ROI without getting lost in spreadsheets, when gross revenue is “good enough,” and when you absolutely have to subtract labo...
How Private Event DJs Stay Sharp
11
June 3, 2026

How Private Event DJs Stay Sharp

Send us a message You can usually tell when a couple filled out your DJ planning form with AI, even if they never mention it. The answers look perfect, but they don’t sound like them and that can wreck the very thing people pay a premium for: personalization. We dig into how we’re seeing ChatGPT style responses show up in wedding DJ questionnaires, what it means for music discovery and prep, and how to sanity check details without awkwardly accusing a client. One of the simplest moves is re c...

About the Hosts

Joe Bunn Profile Photo
Joe Bunn

Co-Host

Joe Bunn started his DJ career at the age of 14 in Eastern North Carolina. In the late 90s, he started Bunn DJ Company. The company grew from a couple of DJs to 25 of the area’s best mobile DJs. Over the years, Bunn DJ Company has expanded to Charleston, SC, Charlotte, NC, Richmond, VA, San Diego, CA, and Bozeman, Montana. The company performs at thousands of weddings, private, corporate and charity events yearly.
Joe still DJs almost every weekend, but in recent years has been helping other entrepreneurs across the country grow their businesses by giving seminars, consulting, recording podcasts, doing workshops, and producing videos.
In addition, he is the founder of The DJ’s Vault, a members only website for mobile DJs to learn how to grow their businesses. He is also part owner of a DJ software company called Crate Hackers, and is the owner/founder of Bunn Gear that makes portable DJ booths.

Brian Buonassissi Profile Photo
Brian Buonassissi

Co-Host

One of the premier destination private event DJs, Brian B travels around the world DJing some of the most luxurious events. When he isn’t on a plane or behind the decks somewhere, he can be found giving back to the industry by speaking at various industry events, writing for various blogs and publications, leading his own crowd-sourced coaching group, or recording episodes of this podcast. After living in the Big Apple for 11 years, Brian moved in April 2022 to Raleigh, NC with his wife, Tara, their now 4-year-old daughter, Annie, and 9-year-old teacup morkie, Tucker.

Reviews

Best Private Event + Wedding DJ Podcast Peroid!

"If you’re a wedding or private event DJ and you’re not listening to Beyond the Booth with Brian B and Joe Bunn, you are leaving value on the table. Period.This podcast has genuinely changed the g…"

DJ Nick Nystrom | May 14, 2026

A DJ podcast that not only provides real value but also offers genuine insights!

"I stumbled upon this podcast by chance a week ago since in Germany there were hardly any good podcasts on this topic and most were just used for pure advertising purposes. Here I really feel like I’m…"

Felix E. | Aug. 24, 2025

Informative and fun!

"Great podcast from 2 great guys that are true legends in the business. Very informative, lots of awesome tips and tricks, helpful gear suggestions in a cool casual atmosphere. Thanks so much guys!! L…"

Jeff Brown | Oct. 31, 2024

Bingeworthy listening for any DJ

"As a longtime DJ who is finally growing my own business, the insights Joe and Brian bring to every episode are CLUTCH. If you're willing to admit that none of us "know it all," this podcast is esse…"

Eric R | April 16, 2025

Fire!!!

"Absolute fire for the info you 2 offer. Keep up the good work."

Daniel Fish Dayton, OH | Dec. 23, 2024