⚡ TIMESTAMPS ⚡ 0:00 Intro 0:57 What is The Playlist Pyramid? 2:55 All the world's music 3:55 Music you've heard 6:49 Music you've shortlisted 8:59 Music you've bought 10:34 Music you've packed 13:10 Music you play 16:23 DJ community chat
I never thought I could learn so much by watching a video. I have trouble when tutors leave things to interpretation, and this methodological approach was everything but it. Thank you so much ❤
I downloaded the first edition a few days ago, consumed the first half into the first night and can't wait for the second edition! Even if I should miss the 0.99 phase, I will order the book in physical form! Looks like a standard for a DJ's book shelf. The value of the first edition is incredible - damn, I am so excited to read more stuff this quality level! And when it's now double size... I assume when anybody owns this book, any other book could not put much info on top of this... Awesome! ... You are awesome! Thank you for sharing all your experience!
Sir your book is on audible and I’m gonna listen to it. Been doing this since 2002 and it took me a while to learn what you are telling everyone. I hope they listen . Great advice . I also look at my events as a concert . Set a playlist and maybe add requests but . You can only get so many songs in a set amount of time. Choose your songs wisely.
How I approach my music collection: I did a post grad masters, and we learned how to conduct systematic reviews/meta analyses. There are thousands of journal articles out there and thousands of new articles being published daily. It's impossible to read every single one. Step one is to establish the scope. Then you place criterias to narrow down the search results further. So how I do it for music is to go with a specific genre. Then narrow down to types of gigs , ie clubs/venues vs mobile. After that I narrow down to which part of the gig ie prime time vs warm up. After that it's just refining. It is a lot of work initially, but I find that it maximises efficiency and once you have those crates finished you are basically set and just have to find tune over time
Sounds good! you have a simple, effective set of questions - that's the key (although I would argue genre overly limits as a first question - the best DJs in my view are bold enough to unexpectedly switch genres and play with expectations).
@@digitaldjtips yes that's true. The genre tab is for the master crates, ie master database and how the music files are organised. However, for each gig, I will mix and match accordingly. Its all about having a consistent, streamline process which will make organising the gig playlist a breeze rather than a chore of hunting tunes placed randomly.
Ooh now I know the reason that I think differently. My questions are; BPM, Key, Time signature, Length of intro, Instruments used, Plugins used, Vocal chain, Bass effects chain, Mid bass chain, Sub bass chain, Pads used, Risers used, Automation, Side chains, (Kick to the Bass), Channel mapping, Dry/Wet ratios on the drum group, Return track plugins, Push III mapping, Session view mapping. Lighting effects triggers. I am both a DJ and Electronic Music Producer and perform live in a Synth pop Band. I compose in Abelton 12,. BitWig studio 5 and Reaper 7. Rarely do I play other people's music
@@digitaldjtips That's an 1/8th of what's on my production list each instrument that I create occupies a specific frequency on the 20-20K range. I'm also calculating for Phase cancellation add in that I am also the FOH engineer which means I have my Allen and Heath QU 16 on my Mega deck along with my Euorack lighting desk, and yes I am also the Lighting Tech. Bwhaaaa ass in that I am the venue owner and God help any DJ that breaches their contract or the DJ's tour Manager like James Hype's tour manager who I am writing a report on for breach of Duty of Care and failure to comply with the Work Health and Safety Act . Yes I am also an Artist Manager/Tour Manager/Chef/Professional Photographer/Digital Marketer/Web Designer and Cyber Security Professional because and build all my own gear. (Media players, Midi Devices, Cables) and I am 63
Some of the best tracks I've ever found were by going to raves underground raves. Where the really good music is at. And make friends with people there. And they will show you amazing music. Plus you get to know the DJs that are playing in those really good underground raves. And you start to get to know the music that they play.
The video and audio on this are 100% fine watching on an iPhone with the built in speakers, just fyi. Doesn’t sound distractingly different. If I was typically an audio only listener I’d probably notice a difference, but I could barely tell when I wasn’t paying attention to the audio quality specifically
I’m willing to bet that if you’re listening to the music at normal speed and every second of every song, there aren’t enough seconds in the human lifespan to listen to the amount of music out there.
Good afternoon, how are you? How are you? Would I like to ask a question? Due to the flooding in the state where I live, in Rio Grande do Sul, which broke some dams, I ended up losing my CDJ Pioneers, which were a total loss. I wonder if anyone would have to donate a pair of Nexus 2000 Pioneers so I can start acting again in electronic music. I live in Brazil. My MDJ Gemini 1000 was also in the same situation.
I am not total agree what you saying here, but in some ways you have a point. I am dj for many , many ,many years , stil playing festivals and party's, in the past ,there was NO PLAYLIST, i played al with my head, CD's and VINLY , just on the feeling how people reacted on the dancefloor , i had always 3 records in my head, , so on this way i did a build up , to the TOP of the night ofcourse the records and CD's where sorted in my flightcases, but it was DJING with your HEAD , not playlist, i still playing with my feeling and experience , that people make dance! , Thouse DAYs are gone , fact is playlist are much easer now to be A DJ, at least no stress, and easer to find your song, back, my point is , everybody can be a DJ now , thats the sad thing, the the real values are gone, now , ,you can hear the differend if a DJ plays, life or a automatic playlist on borning 30 minutes BMP train with no skills...... I can hear when a DJ is not playing LIfe ... Sadly ..... .........
There is no substitute for knowing your tunes - but as you say, playlists make it much easier and a way of gathering the best music possible is of course sensible.
The lighting on your glasses in a million times better here in your house. No reflection. Amazing. Do this in your studio or get rid of that horrible light in your studio !!!
If you have that mindset you can end up disappointing yourself and everybody around you. Take it serious, if you're going to put time into it, take the time to find the best music you possibly can. Sometimes it takes really listening to some good music. You might try listening to some Santana or something like that. And then tell yourself my DJ set needs to stand up to that type of quality.
![How DJs Know Which Song To Pick [The Definitive Guide To Playing Great DJ Sets]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/7JAoRPqQZYw/mqdefault.jpg)
![How DJs Know Which Song To Pick [The Definitive Guide To Playing Great DJ Sets]](/img/tr.png)
⚡ TIMESTAMPS ⚡
0:00 Intro
0:57 What is The Playlist Pyramid?
2:55 All the world's music
3:55 Music you've heard
6:49 Music you've shortlisted
8:59 Music you've bought
10:34 Music you've packed
13:10 Music you play
16:23 DJ community chat
You are the best tutor in the DJ world. Thanks for all your effort and in-depth information!
Glad you think so!
I never thought I could learn so much by watching a video. I have trouble when tutors leave things to interpretation, and this methodological approach was everything but it. Thank you so much ❤
You are so welcome!
I downloaded the first edition a few days ago, consumed the first half into the first night and can't wait for the second edition! Even if I should miss the 0.99 phase, I will order the book in physical form! Looks like a standard for a DJ's book shelf. The value of the first edition is incredible - damn, I am so excited to read more stuff this quality level! And when it's now double size... I assume when anybody owns this book, any other book could not put much info on top of this... Awesome! ... You are awesome! Thank you for sharing all your experience!
Thanks Paul, and yes - we can't wait to release it either
wow 😮... to my eyes, the video quality looks significantly better here than in the studio 🤔 maybe it's just due to the lighting?
Also depth of field, probably.
Sir your book is on audible and I’m gonna listen to it.
Been doing this since 2002 and it took me a while to learn what you are telling everyone.
I hope they listen .
Great advice .
I also look at my events as a concert .
Set a playlist and maybe add requests but .
You can only get so many songs in a set amount of time. Choose your songs wisely.
All wise words.
How I approach my music collection: I did a post grad masters, and we learned how to conduct systematic reviews/meta analyses. There are thousands of journal articles out there and thousands of new articles being published daily. It's impossible to read every single one. Step one is to establish the scope. Then you place criterias to narrow down the search results further.
So how I do it for music is to go with a specific genre. Then narrow down to types of gigs , ie clubs/venues vs mobile. After that I narrow down to which part of the gig ie prime time vs warm up. After that it's just refining. It is a lot of work initially, but I find that it maximises efficiency and once you have those crates finished you are basically set and just have to find tune over time
Sounds good! you have a simple, effective set of questions - that's the key (although I would argue genre overly limits as a first question - the best DJs in my view are bold enough to unexpectedly switch genres and play with expectations).
@@digitaldjtips yes that's true. The genre tab is for the master crates, ie master database and how the music files are organised. However, for each gig, I will mix and match accordingly. Its all about having a consistent, streamline process which will make organising the gig playlist a breeze rather than a chore of hunting tunes placed randomly.
Thank you for your valuable insights.
Hope it helps!
Nice one!
Thank you! Cheers!
I prefer this to the studio
My family doesn't! - Phil
Ooh now I know the reason that I think differently.
My questions are;
BPM,
Key,
Time signature,
Length of intro,
Instruments used,
Plugins used,
Vocal chain,
Bass effects chain,
Mid bass chain,
Sub bass chain,
Pads used,
Risers used,
Automation,
Side chains, (Kick to the Bass),
Channel mapping,
Dry/Wet ratios on the drum group,
Return track plugins,
Push III mapping,
Session view mapping.
Lighting effects triggers.
I am both a DJ and Electronic Music Producer and perform live in a Synth pop Band.
I compose in Abelton 12,. BitWig studio 5 and Reaper 7.
Rarely do I play other people's music
Wow, that is one long list of pretty specific questions - you're clearly doing a very different type of DJing than our audience
@@digitaldjtips That's an 1/8th of what's on my production list each instrument that I create occupies a specific frequency on the 20-20K range.
I'm also calculating for Phase cancellation add in that I am also the FOH engineer which means I have my Allen and Heath QU 16 on my Mega deck along with my Euorack lighting desk, and yes I am also the Lighting Tech.
Bwhaaaa ass in that I am the venue owner and God help any DJ that breaches their contract or the DJ's tour Manager like James Hype's tour manager who I am writing a report on for breach of Duty of Care and failure to comply with the Work Health and Safety Act .
Yes I am also an Artist Manager/Tour Manager/Chef/Professional Photographer/Digital Marketer/Web Designer and Cyber Security Professional because and build all my own gear. (Media players, Midi Devices, Cables) and I am 63
Some of the best tracks I've ever found were by going to raves underground raves. Where the really good music is at. And make friends with people there. And they will show you amazing music. Plus you get to know the DJs that are playing in those really good underground raves. And you start to get to know the music that they play.
Great advice David
The video and audio on this are 100% fine watching on an iPhone with the built in speakers, just fyi. Doesn’t sound distractingly different. If I was typically an audio only listener I’d probably notice a difference, but I could barely tell when I wasn’t paying attention to the audio quality specifically
And I’m guessing it wouldn’t be bad on a regular setup either
Thanks - didn't even have time to do a test recording, but yeah - it's acceptable. At least I have an "emergency setup" at home now if needed!
Hey Phil...
“Never gonna listen to it all”….challenge accepted.
HMV here I come…
I’m willing to bet that if you’re listening to the music at normal speed and every second of every song, there aren’t enough seconds in the human lifespan to listen to the amount of music out there.
@@DJPeterLo Challenge accepted
Or 1000 humman lifespans
@@digitaldjtips listen at x2 speed, reduced the time needed to 500 lifetimes. Doable.
👍👍👍👍👍👍
Good afternoon, how are you? How are you? Would I like to ask a question? Due to the flooding in the state where I live, in Rio Grande do Sul, which broke some dams, I ended up losing my CDJ Pioneers, which were a total loss. I wonder if anyone would have to donate a pair of Nexus 2000 Pioneers so I can start acting again in electronic music. I live in Brazil. My MDJ Gemini 1000 was also in the same situation.
1:52 youre welcome
?
I am not total agree what you saying here, but in some ways you have a point.
I am dj for many , many ,many years , stil playing festivals and party's, in the past ,there was NO PLAYLIST, i played al with my head, CD's and VINLY , just on the feeling how people reacted on the dancefloor , i had always 3 records in my head, , so on this way i did a build up , to the TOP of the night ofcourse the records and CD's where sorted in my flightcases, but it was DJING with your HEAD , not playlist, i still playing with my feeling and experience , that people make dance! , Thouse DAYs are gone , fact is playlist are much easer now to be A DJ, at least no stress, and easer to find your song, back, my point is , everybody can be a DJ now , thats the sad thing, the the real values are gone, now , ,you can hear the differend if a DJ plays, life or a automatic playlist on borning 30 minutes BMP train with no skills...... I can hear when a DJ is not playing LIfe ... Sadly ..... .........
There is no substitute for knowing your tunes - but as you say, playlists make it much easier and a way of gathering the best music possible is of course sensible.
The lighting on your glasses in a million times better here in your house. No reflection. Amazing. Do this in your studio or get rid of that horrible light in your studio !!!
Thanks for the feedback
Just play music 🤷🏾♂️😁
If you feel that is all the instruction needed, you're probably doing all the other things and more instinctively.
@@digitaldjtips music is the answer 😁💪🏽
If you have that mindset you can end up disappointing yourself and everybody around you. Take it serious, if you're going to put time into it, take the time to find the best music you possibly can. Sometimes it takes really listening to some good music. You might try listening to some Santana or something like that. And then tell yourself my DJ set needs to stand up to that type of quality.