Working with Live Musicians

Father’s Day Check-In And Merch Surprise

SPEAKER_06 0:17

What is up and welcome back to Beyond the DJ Booth Podcast. Happy early Father's Day to all the uh dads out there. And um son is not coming home. I am in Irvine, California, where he is spending the summer doing his design internship. Congrats to Colin. Shout out Colin, bro. He's actually doing design like at the boot barn place.

SPEAKER_05 0:44

It's crazy.

SPEAKER_06 0:44

It's crazy. Bro, like what if they what if they put out like some kind of shirt or something that he makes?

SPEAKER_04 0:48

Yeah. I'm gonna just go in there and buy like 10 and just rock them every day. And you love country music, so this is just a perfect segue.

SPEAKER_06 0:54

I do love those Western shirts though. Yeah. With the like the Pearl Snaps. Oh, yeah. I've been rocking those hard lately. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:00

Yeah. Well, for those that are new to this podcast and didn't hear us. Oh, and happy, hold on.

SPEAKER_06 1:05

And happy last episode of season seven to us.

SPEAKER_03 1:09

That's right.

SPEAKER_06 1:10

Number 13. Number 13 of the season. Lucky 13. I'm Brian B. I'm Joseph Bunn. What do you got? A little package there? You got a little special delivery. Rachel from one of my homies that I grew up with. Literally, man, this is probably, you know how like we've always talked about how friends are like a reason, a season, or life. Yeah. This dude's like Lifetime. Showed up in eighth grade. So 41 years ago. In Wiltson. In Wilson, in Chicago, or some suburb of Chicago. This motherfucker had a perm mullet. Okay. And that it was not cool in Wilson. And he had one of those puka shell necklaces. Oh, yeah. He lived around the corner. He had a bomb shelter in his yard. It was so like the house he bought had a bomb shelter. They were rocking them back then? Um, it was, you know, a holdover from the whatever war. Okay. War building. The what?

SPEAKER_08 2:01

Cold War.

SPEAKER_06 2:01

The Cold War. Wow. And he bought this house. Anyway, my mom goes, we're on the way to school, day one, eighth grade. And in Wilson, uh middle school was only one grade, eighth grade. Oh, not seventh. Yeah, the whole school was only eighth grade. Now it's like fifth starts at fifth. It starts sixth, seventh, eighth. Okay. Sixth, seventh, eighth. We're picking up a new kid. I'm like, huh? Like, I'm already like, what are you talking about? You know, I'm already nervous because I'm starting middle school. Yeah. Now we gotta pick up this kid. He's walking to the car. He's got the got the Puka Shell necklace with the mullet. And I'm like, who is this little fucker, man? Like, now I gotta, now I gotta integrate him into my group. Anyway, shout out Chris Gentry. Uh, but he loves the podcast. He loved um Is he a DJ?

SPEAKER_03 2:46

He ain't even a DJ. Wow, he's listening.

SPEAKER_06 2:48

The man, the man is an entrepreneur. He's got a software company, he's got a um uh the bin cleaning company. The the the guy that comes around and cleans the trash can company. Yeah. And he says, he sends me this package two months ago. Or what when did we record last? Over a month ago. Yeah, yeah. Six weeks ago. Yeah. And he missed it by one day. And he's like, oh, don't open it until y'all record again. So I don't know what's in this. This could be who knows. If it feels like shirts or clothes, clothing. We're opening it live on camera, live reaction. And I don't know if it's a gag gift, it's a real gift. I don't know what's going on here. All right, hold on. Wow, we got multiples.

SPEAKER_07 3:30

Multiples. What does it say? BH? Okay.

SPEAKER_06 3:36

Both head.

SPEAKER_07 3:37

Boothhead.

SPEAKER_06 3:39

Did this guy make words?

SPEAKER_03 3:40

Wow. Small, medium? That's all it's gonna be for you. Definitely for me. Hold on. Oh, we got some different.

SPEAKER_06 3:47

Wait, okay.

SPEAKER_03 3:48

I actually kind of like it. I kind of like it too. They got kind of the records of the wheel. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_06 3:55

Let's see if there's multiple, multiple designs. I think it's just multiple size. No.

SPEAKER_04 3:59

Oh, that's an interesting robot style. That's definitely you.

SPEAKER_06 4:02

I don't I don't hate this.

SPEAKER_04 4:04

Yeah, I know.

SPEAKER_03 4:04

I feel like it's like right up your alley. Hold on a second. Let's see what else we got.

SPEAKER_06 4:07

Are they all my? Did you not get Brian? Oh, he got you large.

SPEAKER_04 4:10

Okay, I'll take it. I'll take uh oh, I like that one. That's the one I like the best, anyways. That's large looks like you. Yeah, that's cool.

SPEAKER_03 4:15

I'll wear it.

SPEAKER_04 4:16

I'll rock it.

SPEAKER_03 4:17

I've kind of dig them. Yeah, I might wear it on the next episode.

SPEAKER_06 4:19

But I'm saying, hold on. But now that I look at these, is does he think we don't have merch, maybe? Maybe. Well, but we don't promote it enough. We don't promote it enough, and I don't know that I hit the mark. I I think I usually nail like I usually nail it on the DJ Collector stuff. I know you don't always like them, but they sell really well. Yeah, yeah. Like the Coca-Cola one. Oh, that was a great one. Yeah, all the Atlanta ones crushed. The even last year we got it. Yeah, I know.

SPEAKER_04 4:43

I liked them. I liked them. They were all good. But we do have merch. Yeah. And you get it on the Patreon. That's where it's at it. That's the only way to get it. That's where we've had it.

SPEAKER_06 4:51

Yeah, we could make it more. I think we should make it more prominent. Let's do it. Let's put it on the show. Shout out Christian tree. Shout out his company. Um is one of his companies to do these designs? No, I just think he was like, I'm a fan. Yeah. Y'all need merch. Let's do it. And he I love it. He I love it.

SPEAKER_04 5:08

He made us some merch. And if if you guys like it and you want to you want to order one, well, let us know.

SPEAKER_07 5:13

Yeah. We'll try to get some. The records. We got the robot. And we got what was the other one? Oh, just the BH. The BH. Love it. Kind of like the crate hackers when we used to make. Okay. Thanks, Chris. Thank you, Chris.

SPEAKER_04 5:27

He thought we were gonna shit on him. Speaking of the Patreon, let's do what we always do. Shout out some people here. I'll start with the first one. Al Martinez from Taunton, Massachusetts. Damn. Have you ever been there?

SPEAKER_06 5:39

No, no, no. Can't say I have. Oh, Ryan Bell from Adelaide, South Australia.

SPEAKER_04 5:46

So I saw this come through. I was like, do you know where Adelaide is? I had no idea. I'd never heard of it. No. So hit the next slide. I actually put the map up. I'm going there. Dude, so it's in the middle underneath the orange section there. So it's in South Australia. At the very tip at the bottom there, it says Adelaide, whereas Sydney's to the far right. Yeah, I see that. So I've never been there. Never I mean, I'm uh I don't know many, I don't know anybody that lives in that area. I've never even heard of it until I saw it roll in through the Patreon.

SPEAKER_06 6:18

So shout out Ryan. Ryan, come see me at Beat Mix in August on the Gold Coast. I guess that's that pink section. Oh, is that where it's at? I don't know.

SPEAKER_05 6:28

Okay.

SPEAKER_06 6:28

I don't know either. It's called the Gold Coast. Let's drop another uh DJ Collective announcement. Another DJ Collective announcement. Again, the DJ Collective is a conference. You gotta be there.

SPEAKER_04 6:39

If you're a boothhead, you're a listener, you like this kind of content, this is the stuff we're talking about.

SPEAKER_06 6:44

It's almost like this live plus Jason, right? Who is a complete fucking maniac, a hurricane? Tsunami. Tsunami. How do you

Patreon Shoutouts And DJ Collective News

SPEAKER_06 6:53

not come to this? I don't know. And it's the fall in North Carolina. Right. In November, you're not that busy. Ah, man. The DJ Collective Official. On a Monday? The DJ CollectiveOfficial.com. Shout out the talent for our opening party, Pinky. Oh, Pinky's solid. Pinky is solid. Pinky is so solid that Brian B books her for travel events. Yeah. Now Brian B. ever pings you and taps you on the shoulder and says, Can you do an event for me? That means he thinks you're good. That's when I knew I had fucking made it.

SPEAKER_04 7:31

Well, you were kind of like questioning yourself.

SPEAKER_06 7:33

I'm like, Bro, I got way deep into my soul. And I was like, I don't, I don't know that I'm cut out for this life.

SPEAKER_04 7:39

No, if you have not seen Pinky, she's from the West Coast, obviously the LA hat.

SPEAKER_06 7:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 7:44

But she played like EDC in Vegas. Yeah. Like, I don't think she's gonna play that style of the opening party. Right. And it wasn't like main stage. I don't know. Like, but she's incredible. Uh, if you don't, if you haven't seen her, you need to watch her. I'm stoked that she's coming. I haven't seen her in a hot minute. I haven't either. She's been doing a lot of like country stuff too. Like? Yeah. EDM. EDM, yeah. So she's like, you know, big in that world. EDM? EDM. It's big. It's a new uh stuff genre. Said no.

SPEAKER_08 8:15

What's up with this whole revival of countries? I don't know. It's crazy. It's crazy.

SPEAKER_04 8:20

It's huge. So come to the DJ Collective. It's November 16th through the 18th. It's the Monday through the Wednesday. Right here in Raleigh, North Carolina.

SPEAKER_05 8:27

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 8:27

And we talked about faces on the last episode. So again, I'm kind of going to the poker phase. Poker phase. Yeah. So the goal is not to laugh. Try to keep it straight face. I'm curious if you can pull it.

SPEAKER_08 8:51

I mean, I wanted it not like it. I hate these things normally. This is the best boat. How do people have this much time on their hands, bro? Well, you didn't make it. But she's not good.

SPEAKER_02 9:28

That can't be real.

SPEAKER_04 9:36

So if you're listening all the way, it's a bunch of animals. So let's see if we can get this one.

SPEAKER_02 9:44

No, don't say it.

Trying Not To Laugh Clips

SPEAKER_08 9:55

Did he add that though? I can't endorse this. We're going to hell. One more. I don't think he had it. I don't think he had it. I'm cut.

SPEAKER_04 10:33

We may have cut those two because they might be a little off.

SPEAKER_08 10:38

I think they might need to get caught. Those are so bad. The dog you can leave. Oh fuck, that's crazy. He went in reverse. Let's go. He goes, let's go. And he goes backwards.

SPEAKER_04 10:56

Oh my god. I can't allow this. Oh, okay. Hold on. Let me go back to what I got. What's up? Okay, so I start.

SPEAKER_06 11:01

Okay. Um you know how this works, right? Yeah, yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_04 11:05

Anyways, just a little humor to kick off the show. You know, you made it. Um, I wanted to talk to you about the so I got some TV screens, I think, for that corporate show. Oh, yeah, I remember.

SPEAKER_06 11:14

Where you went on the rant about the road cases.

SPEAKER_04 11:16

Yeah. Um, and boy, I got some blowback on that. Crazy. I'm like, they're like, well, what did you expect? I'm like, not to be three times the product. How about that? Anyways, our boy uh from S Start, uh CP, shout out CP, saw the episode, reached out to me, was like, hey man, you got some TV screens now? He's like, uh, let me show you how you can make some more money with it and not have it just sit in the warehouse. I love it. Which is pretty cool. Like so, I set up an appointment with him. He he's proactive, man. He he he's a hustler.

SPEAKER_00 11:47

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 11:47

So we sat on there and it's I think we talked about this particular product of his before. We have. Instant spotlight. Yep, we have. I use it. Do you okay? So you took me through it. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 11:58

I'm curious, then do you upcharge for it? We did not at this particular event. It was a girl, it was those girls that I've done all the sisters with things at the beach last summer, and I just knew everybody was gonna be into it, and they had some TVs around. You brought this one? Uh, I did not have this at the time. I no, they had TVs in the venue.

SPEAKER_04 12:19

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_06 12:20

Gotcha. They had TVs in the venue.

SPEAKER_04 12:22

And so, anyway. This is a 75-incher. I only um I don't want to bring three. Yeah, right. So I'm gonna

Turning TV Screens Into Profit

SPEAKER_04 12:29

try it with one. Yeah. Did you have it near the booth? I think you should. Okay. I think I would. I'm just trying to think of one how I'm gonna make that look good. I mean, I have a truss stick. I could put it above my head, but I'm also feeling like that's a little aggressive to be that tall.

SPEAKER_06 12:45

Then then if it's kind of throwing you off, like um I want to try it. Yeah, it sounds like a cool product. The symmetry of it, then maybe put it on the other side of the venue. Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. You know, something like that.

SPEAKER_04 12:53

Yeah, I was thinking that by the bar. Yeah, totally. Um The only other thing I I thought was interesting is that you gotta have another laptop.

SPEAKER_06 13:00

That's right.

SPEAKER_04 13:01

Which I do have, but it's my backup.

SPEAKER_06 13:03

Yeah, right.

SPEAKER_04 13:04

So I'll need a third or some some case. And I do have a third that's just well, explain to them how it works for people that aren't familiar. So from what he took me through, which was a great demo, yeah. You basically can um uh essentially put on all this, not only can you um have the filters on, meaning like uh somebody can push through like weird shit.

SPEAKER_06 13:23

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 13:23

But they also have now AI stuff built into it, yeah. Where they're like actually really cool imagery of the person taking the photo, and you can select it so like you could be a mural, you could be like a bunch of different stuff. So we tried it literally on the console. Yeah, couldn't have been more pleased with it. I thought it was so easy that I'm like, why not give it a try? So I'm gonna do it for free too, for one of them to work out the kinks, yeah, make sure there's no problems. So I haven't offered it to this this client yet, but I've got two coming up in July and August. Yep. See if it works.

SPEAKER_06 13:54

I made these little table tents. That's the other thing I gotta do. I stuck them on a bunch of little tables, those little plastic things I got on Amazon. Yeah. It was like, hey, scan this QR code, all the pictures from tonight, send them here. And that's what they did. And they ran on those screens all night.

SPEAKER_04 14:07

And the best part was it's it's a free trial. Yeah. So you don't have to pay for the first one. That's nice. So if you want to try it out, yeah, see if it works for you, great. So I'm gonna give it a shot. Yeah. I just thought it was really cool that he reached out after seeing it saying, Hey man, if you got a TV screen and you don't want it to just sit there in the warehouse, here's a use. Yeah. And I don't know, maybe I mean, if you had to charge for it, would you? Number one, yeah. I think you could. I definitely think you could. You need to get some like what would it be a price point? I don't remember what it costs. I mean, I feel like 500 bucks is a little aggressive, but that was my first thought.

SPEAKER_06 14:40

With the TV, right? I feel like that's I think 500 to 1,000 with a TV or two is spot on.

SPEAKER_04 14:46

The other thing he recommended, two things. One was to see if the photographer has anything that they can send you to like start the queue of these. That's right. And then also the couple, if they have any engagement photos, whatever, like anything. Maybe from the night before they had the rehearsal dinner. You can put all that stuff on there on there and let it start running.

SPEAKER_06 15:04

S start.com, right?

SPEAKER_04 15:05

Yep. I'm excited to try it out. Yeah, keep it posted. See if it kind of works out for us. So I think it's super cool. Let's hit the story time segment. So the last time we recorded, we were on the cusp of having events with musicians, multiple events with musicians. So I had always been playing with one for the most part. I've played with two or three rarely. I did like a percussionist thing with horns, did a whole horn section one time. Uh, but this was the first that I had two lead instruments, being um a violinist and a saxophonist, and then I had a drummer. Full kit. Full kit. Full kit. Wow. Now I will say the one musician is cool because you can be a little bit more loose with the programming. I will think one thing I noticed about when you were playing with uh Davi at the thing, yeah. I would say um it can take it to another level if you are thinking about, hey, let me let this dude shine and not just like program like you normally would. If you hit a because there were times where you would you you heard him playing and then like you would let the beats go. But if you hit it back to a chorus and took the vocals out, just to let them rip for another, you know, chorus by itself, but you kind of have to know that he knows that or that these musicians know that track before letting them do it, but

DJing With Live Musicians

SPEAKER_04 16:34

it just gives them more time to shine than just that little 15-second mix window that they have before you get into the next song.

SPEAKER_06 16:40

Right, right, right.

SPEAKER_04 16:41

I think that's a critical piece um to doing that. So whether you're talking it over things, so I have a clip of Davi playing with me. This is my sax guy, uh, at the end of an event, just to show what it can do to a room. This is the last song of the night. Anyways, one musician alone can take the energy up another level. 100%. And I, if you're not playing with them, I think you should. Um, I wanted to play you another couple clips. This is with the trio. So this is a sound check uh with those three, and just to see what it sounds like. Capital Cities, this is a cool remix by Deville, by the way.

SPEAKER_02 17:20

A little overkill on the production with the lighting.

SPEAKER_01 17:29

Alright.

SPEAKER_02 17:35

The drums just add so much. Yeah. I was shocked at how much that can add to an event. And he's solid. Like he's a solid drummer.

SPEAKER_04 17:47

Yeah, you told me you said though if he fell out, if he fell out, you gotta keep him on the whole time. Yeah. And you can't really tell in this clip, but there's actually like an MD mic right next to me on a stand. Through that mixer, I can push it through just the monitors in their ears. The Alan and Heath.

SPEAKER_06 18:06

Because you were telling him changes.

SPEAKER_04 18:07

I was telling him, like, hey, listen, we're gonna, I'm gonna check it out. All three of them here, they could. Uh-huh. Yeah. So that's critical when you have a more than one. Right. If you only have one, you probably don't need it. It's probably overkill. But for three, you really need it, especially if you have a drummer. Because otherwise, you don't realize how often that you might be bumping tempo on your own. Yeah, yeah. But to a drummer, that's gonna throw them off. Right. And I'm like, oh my God, I need this because he's not gonna know that I need to bump it, like at least one or two clicks. Right. I'm not going crazy. I'm not going like five clicks at one point, but like enough to move it so we're not in 120 the whole time. So the the in-air monitor is critical uh to getting that. Yeah, but here it was. I mean, the crowd ate this up. I thought it was a little, I mean, it was okay, it was good, it's fine, but they could not have seen it any other. I mean, they just thought it was massive. So here was the another clip of that. Hopefully. It's from our content creator who's just like, but they have to be great showmen, not just great players. The place was going ma'am. There was another part of that clip.

SPEAKER_02 19:16

I don't know why it's dookie. But they're out there just crushing, yeah. And then I'll show you uh one more here.

SPEAKER_04 19:35

Are you playing this song? You need to be playing Razor Glass every weekend, every weekend. I mean it's so edited? Yeah, well, that one too, yeah. But in general, you can play it. Bring it back?

SPEAKER_05 19:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 19:45

Stargazing over levels. Yeah. Um, but I'm starting to see weird stuff now, too. Like with the musicians, like this is becoming a thing where I think it's gonna be more and more of like how you can do things. I saw this one of a violinist. That this wasn't your show, though. This was not my show. No, but this is what it's coming to. What the fuck? That was like a wedding, though.

SPEAKER_08 20:10

I mean, bro, I would throw up.

SPEAKER_04 20:14

I mean, to play it that way?

SPEAKER_06 20:16

Right? But it's not just and then somebody's got cologne on and it's like laying it down.

SPEAKER_08 20:22

That was like a nightmare. That's just leap paralysis.

SPEAKER_04 20:26

But I'm seeing them put more money into entertainment than they ever have. In fact, there was this wedding that just happened this weekend. Zed was the headliner. Did you see this? No. This is the bride surprises the her guests.

SPEAKER_02 20:40

Imagine having shit with lasers.

SPEAKER_04 20:47

Look at the florals. Look at that. It's just crazy. Anyways, imagine having that. No. And I'm seeing it even in bars. Like this is with this guitar shredder. I hope this clip plays after this. Cold sparks, look at that.

SPEAKER_02 21:01

Someone's got some Girls. I can't be Get

SPEAKER_04 22:37

So you're starting to see this more and more, not just in the private event space, but it came on my algorithm. You think he was a planner real? No, I think he's real. No, I'm telling you he is because actually um I went through the thread. Yeah. And he's and they're they actually are bringing him on tour with him.

SPEAKER_02 23:01

Because he was that good. That's sick. Isn't that crazy? Yeah, I love it. So you've been playing with musicians.

SPEAKER_04 23:11

Tell us about your experience.

SPEAKER_06 23:13

Um man, I mean I did like it. I do like it. Uh I think it is very um I don't I don't I I need more practice, to be honest. Because like I don't I don't want to say I don't know what I'm doing, but I I the more I hear you talk about it and like what I could have done or probably should have done is I'm like, yeah, I I shoulda, coulda, woulda. You know what I mean? So and I need, you know, the very first time we got dumped somebody the day before that didn't yeah, the Ukrainian, barely spoke English, didn't know the songs, I didn't care about it. Yeah. And then the second time was in Florida, you know, your guy, Dobby, who's uh, I mean, a ace. I mean, that guy can play. Um, you know, you can tell he's not he's the he's the 120 guy, he just lays the sacks down when you go into the hip-hop, which is fine.

SPEAKER_04 24:08

Well, and I think every musician's totally different if you don't have like standards to what you are requiring of them. Yeah, yeah. So like Dobby usually plays with me 99% of the time. Right. I'm like the only DJ he plays with. Right. And I tell him when to come up. Uh-huh. So I'm texting him, hey, I'm going into some hip-hop you can lay out. Yeah. Or if you want to stay on for like he's great at reggae tone, he doesn't speak any English hardly at all.

SPEAKER_05 24:32

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 24:32

So I tell

Comparing Sax Players And Standards

SPEAKER_04 24:33

him like which ones when I know we I need the buildup. Yeah. Because if you do play it the entire night, I feel like it flatlines. Yeah. Yes. So it has to have some like where you can pull that out, bring it in. And it gives me more flexibility to like give it more throttle when I mix quick. And I'm not, and it doesn't matter what keys I'm in at that point, really, because he's not playing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 24:53

I think that's the other thing that well, I mean, then I I mean, so he played it great. I mean, but he's he's the 120 guy. He's the Mr. Saxo B, Don Zagador, stuff that he probably knows, stuff that he likes. Right. And then, you know, you you I get up the next day, four o'clock in the morning, get on a six o'clock flight. I'm back in Raleigh before noon after going through Atlanta, straight to a wedding. And Glenn, Renda, comes down from Long Island to play this wedding, which we had booked six or eight months ago. And so I'm back-to-back sax players, and it was a wedding, completely different kind of show, and completely different kind of musician. Right. But dude, that dude can play. Oh, yeah. And he had five different horns. Oh, really? Oh, he had a I mean, he goes, How's the loading? I go, why do you give a fuck? I go, You have a horn. Yeah, I go, We're the ones that got to set up a whole rig. He's like, I I I I I got I, you know, I basically, you know, got in my head last night and he drove down. Oh, he drove. He completely flew with all no, he drove down. He goes, so I just panicked and brought, you know, five horns. And I'm like, Well, all saxes? All saxes.

SPEAKER_04 26:00

So then did you get to have five different channels or he just took the mic and moved it from one to one?

SPEAKER_06 26:04

Yeah, pop it on the whatever he was using. And man, he just, you know, he does, I think he does a lot more shows than we know just because he probably doesn't post nearly enough content on on how good he is and how many shows he does. Does he actually DJ or is he just a He's a DJ? Okay, I wasn't too sure. And I asked him, I said, Does he do both at the same time? No, okay, I don't think so. I said, like, are you are you like are you a good DJ? Because I mean a musician is naturally a good DJ. I should be. He goes, I play a lot like you do. And I feel like I'm pretty good, not great.

SPEAKER_05 26:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 26:36

And so I think though that he's become so busy with this and getting booked as a hired gun that he really doesn't have time to book himself as a DJ lately. Yeah. You know, all those explosive entertainment guys use him. Yeah, he's doing mitzvahs with Jamie all the time. I think too, the fact that he's got a uh uh sax that lights up that helps. Dude, I mean this dude is so extra. I go, tell me about this light up sax. He goes, They only they only made six at this factory, and I bought them all, so nobody else could have one. Oh wow. I've seen it with a violin, I've never seen it with a sacks. He goes, he goes, it doesn't sound great, but it looks cool. And every picture that we got back from the that weekend, yeah, where the they do that thing where they open the shutter, yeah, it's got that blurred kind of look of him like rocking the sacks. Dude, Glenn went off. Glenn was in the crowd. Did he play uh the whole time? No, on and off, but uh a lot. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And the sh and the dance set was super short. Oh, okay. Like 90 minutes. Yeah, yeah. It was short. We got shorted. And he was out there a good majority of it. Yeah, and they were eating it up on the dance floor, jumping up and down, letting the bride do the keys, diddle the diddle the sacks. Like, I mean, Glenn is a showman. He crushed that wedding. So like I felt like second fiddle. And I kind of did the Dobby too because the guy shows up, he's Latin, he's got tattoos, he's got on leather pants and the fucking shades. And every time he'd start playing, uh I look back at my footage and like 10 girls on the front row, all super hot, are pulling out their phones. I'm like, film me, bitch.

SPEAKER_00 28:10

Like, what are you doing?

SPEAKER_04 28:13

So do you think it would would you bring Glenn down regularly, or would you think it's too much?

SPEAKER_06 28:18

If I could afford it, sure. And and trust me, the wedding planner there that night, her assistant looked at me and goes, Hey, you're doing my best friend's wedding next May. And I just text her, I was like, You got to get this guy, the sax player. Oh, good. Like she she's got you, but I just texted her, I'm like, you gotta get the this combo.

SPEAKER_04 28:36

Are you having more lined up with more live musicians? Is it becoming a thing now?

SPEAKER_06 28:40

Well, we have people here in Raleigh that we can pull from, but I I haven't played with them yet. I've seen some footage from some of the shows they've done, and they were good, but I don't know that they were Glenn good. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 28:50

Yeah, it's interesting. Uh Florida, I don't have that locally, unfortunately. These are like bar bands, bro. Yeah, yeah. Like they just don't understand how to be a showman. They don't know when to pull in, pull out. Yeah. Um, it's kind of the language I probably should have used, but it's okay. Um, so I have to bring these guys in, the ringers from like bigger cities that know what they're doing. Right.

SPEAKER_06 29:11

I would think Raleigh would have some. No, we we've got some we got some solid players here, but you know, it's always I mean, you get to play with your homie. Oh, I know I think it's great.

SPEAKER_04 29:20

The only thing I would say too is that it definitely is more work than people realize for the DJ to consider all of these things of like when to let that person shine, what what keys, all the different things that we're talking about. And I don't think people really realize all that that goes into that. Like, and I'm not sharing it with a client, I'm not going, hey man, I have to program differently or play differently because I've got these live musicians or whatever. Um, which kind of leads me to this next little topic here that I kind of wanted to uh bring up with you called selective gratuity. Okay just to get your opinion. So I I do this event with a sax player, and during the show, uh this and I'm on a huge stage. And by the way, this person spent no expare no expense. I mean, they have the money. Yeah. So I noticed that the Splinters discreetly hands the sax player a little gratuity. And I don't get anything. Not at the end of the event. Now I'm playing, so I'm thinking maybe that's why. Maybe she just didn't give it to me because of whatever. But the way she did it was so like, eh, just kind of like not letting me see it, but I did see it, you know? So I it kind of irked me because I'm like, man, the amount of work that I put into this wedding, I'm playing the whole show. Yeah. This person's playing, let's call it maybe 50%. Um and I'm being gracious by saying 50%. I don't even think it's that. It could be a third. And like nothing, like it just seemed kind of odd. So I was like, do I even bring it up to the planner? How well did you know the planner? Uh well enough. I mean, like 10 shows you've done with her? No, like maybe five. Okay. So I ran it by a couple DJs. I didn't have time to talk to you about it, but I I had enough people say you should text him and ask them about it. And so I was like, I'm gonna do it. Uh, what do I have to lose? I have nothing to lose. Well, you got

Selective Gratuity And Tipping Etiquette

SPEAKER_04 31:05

future shows to lose. Well, so this is the text. I put it on the screen. This is basically what I wrote this person. I said, hey, happy Monday.

SPEAKER_03 31:13

Right?

SPEAKER_04 31:13

This is the so-and-so mentioned that they gave uh him a gratuity envelope on Saturday. I'm definitely not reaching out expecting anything, but I just wanted to make sure there wasn't anything about my service or performance that fell short.

SPEAKER_06 31:26

There we go.

SPEAKER_04 31:27

I always appreciate feedback and just wanted to check in. Nice. I mean, I felt like that's as best I could work. No, no, no, no, no. Well done. I'm not trying to be like look for a handout. No, right. You know, well done. So this was the response. Hi. They prepared those tips leading up to the wedding. And while usually we don't receive a list of tips to pass out ahead of reviving the or I think it's receiving the envelopes, they did express the lack of need to tip the big vendors, owners, uh, slash owners, and we're more interested in tipping assistants, bartenders, servers, the photo booth person, the sex, et cetera. It was not performative based at all, and we did not receive any feedback from her on wedding day other than that she was so happy and everything was going perfectly. Which just made me think of like, okay, I'm fine with the answer. Sure. You know what I mean? But it goes back to the whole gratuity of like they have the money. This isn't somebody who's like nickel and dying nickel and diming things. But this perception that the owners or the big vendors don't. And I'm like, I'm working harder than that musician ever would because of how many things, like 10 songs ahead. Or plus the prep and the setup and the blah. So I just I don't know. Are you running into this anymore? Like, I just am I off thinking that this is like kind of like tacky in a sense of like tipping selectively to like the like the thinking that the owner because I'm like, think about it from a business perspective. I don't now she doesn't know how I run my business. This this client, yeah. I don't pay myself all of the money out of this gig. Like I have it layered, it goes to the business, it goes to this. Yeah, I get paid like a DJ. I take 20% of the cut for me to get paid to to pay to pay myself from the gig. She doesn't know that. You know what I mean? Yeah, I'm not making all the profits. Right. No owner is. No, but I think that's the perception out there from like that these small businesses that they make all the money. It's all or nothing, man. Either tip or don't. That's how I feel about it. I'm like, I'd rather not get anything, just get an attaboy than to do this.

SPEAKER_06 33:28

Yeah, yeah. I don't like that. I like that. I've never I've never seen it. I've if I if it's happened, I didn't see it. Okay. And technically, if you hadn't seen it out of the side of your eye, you wouldn't have.

SPEAKER_04 33:39

I wouldn't have known. Right. Right. And but I just feel like it's like it's not even about the amount.

SPEAKER_08 33:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 33:45

It's just like if it was a hundred bucks, yeah. I'm fine with that. Sure. Like, just makes me think that, like, hey, you're thinking of me. Right. And I did all the prep, I did all the planning, everything with this client. Yeah. The sex player like showed up. You know what I mean? And they're getting and they don't know. I'm paying this guy a premium.

SPEAKER_07 34:01

Right. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_04 34:03

Yeah. We're well.

SPEAKER_06 34:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 34:07

I don't like it. Am I missing anything? I'm thinking about this. No, no.

SPEAKER_06 34:10

I'm just curious. Yeah, no. I'd rather it's all or nothing. Tip everybody or don't tip it all. All right. Let's move on. All right. Gear corner. The gear's here. The gear is here.

SPEAKER_00 34:25

Is here. Is here. Is here. Is here. Is here.

unknown 34:28

Is here.

SPEAKER_04 34:29

Uh, I think you uh actually were the one who showed me this originally, but then I was with Bob Hickman not too long ago. Shout out Bob Hickman. And he hit me with this Ulanzi battery handle grip, I guess you'd call it. For really any kind of device that has the bottom.

SPEAKER_06 34:45

With a quarter inch on it.

SPEAKER_04 34:46

He was saying the 360, but the thing that came to mind, it actually comes with this bottom like little flip standard. But I didn't like the fact that it actually didn't rise. Like you can't bring it up. But it's got the actual USB in the back. It does A or C. Yep. Um, but you could take this and put it on another stand. Yep. And basically, I'm sorry, take this off. Yeah. Put the one that extends it up. That's right. And then go that way. That's right.

SPEAKER_06 35:12

So it's basically like a bunch of D batteries stuck together. Yeah. So that will keep your 360 running for the whole show. We were just talking about it off camera. Yeah. I run mine the entire dance. I'm an on and off guy.

SPEAKER_04 35:24

See, I don't do that. And I think it's the king of like reaching up and I don't have assistance to do that. So I feel like I would miss something and it'd be too late. The one thing I wanted to catch, I'm like now just hitting it. And I'm like, ah, I needed it like two minutes ago. Right.

SPEAKER_06 35:37

You know, because I just think about it. We definitely miss

Gear Corner Battery Grip For 360

SPEAKER_06 35:39

some stuff here and there, but for the most part, we just go on, off, on, off. Cost? On the Ulanzi, I think they're like uh 59. 45 bucks. Okay.

SPEAKER_04 35:49

So good little purchase. Okay. If you're looking to charge your stuff and have it out there. Shout out Ulanzi. You can get it on Amazon, by the way. Yeah. You want to hit the question of the day? Sure. Let's do it.

SPEAKER_02 36:01

Question of the day.

SPEAKER_06 36:07

How do you guys gauge volume levels at a gig from our boy Troy Breon from Belifonte, Pennsylvania, via the Patreon? Patreon.com/slash beyond the DJ Booth Podcast. Um do you think he's speaking on it from like a sound ordinance kind of thing or?

SPEAKER_05 36:26

I don't know.

SPEAKER_06 36:27

I think the Do you ever go out there? Yeah. But it's multiple times? No, it's rare. And I went out the other day and realized I wasn't playing loud enough, which shockingly for me is kind of rare. Uh I carried the CO2 cannon out. We were in Pinehurst and I had a new set of speakers that I was demoing. Um, shout out QSC KC12, they said. Yeah. And I walked out there and I walked back and I looked at the same. I was like, yo, I don't think I'm we could be playing a lot louder. Like it doesn't, and then again, this was smaller wedding, smaller dance floor, smaller room. So it wasn't like it was affecting the party. Right. But I was I was playing through equipment I wasn't used to. So I I I will say this, and that was I don't want to say the brand, but that there was a brand that I used to use years, years, years, years ago. And I remember every announcement, cocktail hour, dinner hour music, and I was like, oh my god, I have found it. This is the perfect

How To Judge Volume Levels

SPEAKER_06 37:22

sound system. And then I remember one night I had to run a P. I think it was Merriman Wynn, you know, and you have to leave the building. Oh, yeah, yeah, go to the other building, yeah. Sprint back in, and I go, What the fuck? And it was like peak dance hour, and I was like, sounded like an AM radio in the middle of the store. And I was like, and I literally never used them again. Oh, but but at the booth, yeah, it sounds good. I was like, oh my God, this is it. I don't I'll never buy another system. Yeah. And then I ran out on the dance floor or ran out to pee, and coming back in one night, I was like, Socks. Yeah. Anyway, most people probably guess what brand that was. But anyway, um, so I guess my thoughts are, and when that kind of happened, I was like, I should probably walk out here a couple more times a night.

SPEAKER_05 38:05

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 38:06

You know what I mean? Like peak dancing, walk out on the floor. Am I playing too loud? Yeah. Am I not playing loud enough? What's it sound like? What's the vibe out here? Yeah. Anyway, what about you? I'm definitely, but sorry, last point. Troy, I'm definitely not. I don't have any meter. I don't want to be metered. If I ever go to a venue and see one of those things hanging on the wall, which I've seen on some DJ's videos this year, I'm fucking leaving. Like I'm not, or I'm not gonna play there again. Yeah. If anybody's metering me that hard, I ain't playing there. I haven't had a meter this year. Not once.

SPEAKER_04 38:36

Yeah. Um, but I don't get them very often either. Um, to be honest.

SPEAKER_06 38:40

Once once or twice a year, somebody will tell me to turn it down based on standing outside with a meter. And I hate it. Right. It pisses me off.

SPEAKER_04 38:49

Yeah. It does. That would frustrate me. Yeah. Uh so I used to be the guy that would go from the booth out multiple times a night. Now I've been doing out there.

SPEAKER_06 38:57

Do we do in the worm or anything?

SPEAKER_04 38:59

No, no, no, no. No, I mean just like walking around with speakers just to see if it sounds good. I didn't just fly. No, I know you know. Not doing the worm. Yeah, no, no, no. It's electric. No, no. Boogie, woogie, woogie. God. No, no. Um, but I find myself now I'm mixing quicker. So I don't have time to get out there. And I feel like I it would not, it would, you would feel the difference. Yeah. So now, and I do this all the time, anyways. Even before that switch over happened a couple years back, but I go out during sound, I'd sound check it. Like I sound check it and I go out there primarily because I use a lot of fill speakers. A lot. Like I'll have three or four. And the these rooms that I'm playing in nowadays, they're usually super long, long.

SPEAKER_05 39:44

Interesting, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 39:45

Or they're super wide. Yeah. So like those that are right next to me don't do enough coverage to those far ends. And I'm wanting to make sure that I'm not blowing people out with the fill speakers more than I am the mains. I know, but like during sound check, there's just no people in there. There is no people in there. Correct. So that's where I'm coming with it, is that I need to do at least once go out there at some point. I don't have an assistant with me, so it's a little bit different in the sense that it's got to be me if I'm gonna go out there. Now, I'll have every now and then I'll have someone go, hey, can you turn it up? I if anything, I err on the side of I don't want to blow people out.

SPEAKER_06 40:21

Um yeah, I I haven't had a turn it down other than a noise ordinance thing in forever. Right. I and I don't know that I've had a turn it up kind of guy either. You know what I mean? Most people in most locations now, I think people are very aware of the fact that I want to be as close to the dance floor as possible. Right. Put me on it. Like the I want the booth damn near touching it.

SPEAKER_05 40:43

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 40:44

I want to be on the dance floor. And if you're that kind of dancer, you're gonna be right there in front of us. Right. Like if you want volume, you're gonna know that the volume is here where the dude is rocking. Right. Anyway, I hope that helps a little bit Troy. Get out on the floor. I think you got to go out on the floor at some point. Peak dance.

SPEAKER_04 40:59

That's it. Well, let me thank our sponsor. Yeah. Before we wrap this, that would be DJ Event Planner. If you are in need of a CRM, you've been looking around. I mean, this is the standard, uh, has been for years and years. We both use it. Um great, great system. Check it out. Djeventplanner.com. And we'll see you next week. See you guys.