⚡ TIMESTAMPS ⚡ 0:00 Intro 1:25 Nostalgia unleashed 3:16 "The danger" - Phil 4:59 "The hunt" - Steve 7:20 Less requests 8:25 "Attuned" audiences 10:35 The vinyl feel 11:38 Residencies 12:23 Physical limits 14:46 Record shops 15:24 Letting tracks "breathe" 18:54 Less attention 23:11 The pros & cons of nostalgia 24:42 Make yourself dance 25:47 Catching acts early 26:59 Free DJ training series: djtips.co/basics
I miss sifting through racks of vinyls, and finding white label gems with hardly any id on them, then spending a long time listening to them on a 1210 in the shop on headphones ❤
I started in 89 and was doing big clubs by 1995. I miss people actually dancing on the dance floor with no bloomin phones !. Also flicking through my Crates and picking tracks from the Album Art on the front since it was the Art that was registered in my brain not the track title.
Lugging cases of vinyl records is what I don't missed about DJing back in the day. It was rather hard to learn on SL-1200s without TH-cam videos back then. lol....
I miss so much about this that I still prefer vinyl. I can't even play out half of the year in my local, but I still love it. Digital is just so tedious without the physical side of the digging, selecting and playing. I miss that old mildew smell of record shops. Being from the home of Tower records, I never appreciated what I had growing up.
The main thing I miss is having the confidence to do what I used to do . Music wasn't as broad a spectrum as it is now. So many different genres too choose from . I'd rather be back in the 80/90's just ..Disco, Pop and dance music. We're my go to's.
i miss the whole vinyl aspect of things. The hunt for a record of a sound that is hard to find. The vibe of that entire aspect was incredible, it really set djs apart from one another as it wasnt always easy for every dj to have that track. Each dj had the OWN sound and vs now today
I miss record shop community. Moving on…I shelved my 1200’s, 15 years ago. 2024, I committed to modernizing them, got it done, and now my studio rig is my favorite ever. I totally respect time spent to learn any setup. I’ve used everything made in the last 25 years, but this is still my favorite. I also think the kids are bored, certainly look bored, and as crazy as it sounds, we are going to see some form of 12” motorized platter return to standard. The only sad takeaway, is when people that can’t classic mix, weaponize the skill, to categorize and dismiss “angry old vinyl djs” 😂 so silly. Keep it poppin lads 🤙🏽🖤🔊🕺
@@digitaldjtips yeah 100%, it’s one of those coke/pepsi wars that certainly had a changing of the guard element to it, when in reality had the culture transitions been nurtured better, I think all enthusiasts would have seen the good in all of it. I know that’s the case in my community circles in San Diego. And We press on. 🤙🏽🖤🔊
One thing I miss is the simplicity of playing a tune out. Buy a record and play it. Done. No importing, beat gridding, cue pointing, exporting. Etc. I mean I love the new and all the things it gives me including the grids and cues. But it’s long now.
I don't miss a lot on the past, as you all mentioned about people who look back way more than look forward. I do miss when my scene was more localized and not so much about constantly flying in someone from Europe every week to get a crowd. I miss how fun record shopping was in the 90s, spending hours digging through bins to find gems you always wanted, but I didn't miss it in the 2000s when it felt like enormous pressure to be at the store Thursday night to grab limited-edition items before they sold out, and the "musically minded" pressing how you need to have a whole new playlist every other month. I felt like it got out of hand and made music more disposable. I do miss when the DJ was NOT the center of the visual attention. Now we have people doing all these fake actions to "look busy". Beyond that, I love the present day we have. I feel like being a DJ is way more affordable and accessible, and there's many outlets for one to play if they don't care about making a living from it.
The local culture of DJing. That’s gone now bc of social media. I started in 83 and still love it today with all the new gear. On the flip side, for today, I love the fact that social media has exposed a broad ranger of music. Years ago I could never play a track even 5 yrs old to the typical young crowed at a club. I mean we now play Gimme, Gimme at HOCOs! I digress. Sorry. Love your channel. Thanks for the great content.
Visiting record spots on Wednesdays and Fridays, getting your hold, and buying short run records - also fighting over who got a copy with coworkers if you were fortunate to work at a shop.
Used to listen to the spinmasters on the :Piccadilly key 103 was living in Manchester at the time, Eastern Bloc was a great shop, friendly clued up unpretentious staff, always made me feel welcome everytime I went in.
Having much less music to choose from, sort and organise, knowing my records inside out, no preparation required, no technological hassles, beat matching actually being a valuable and appreciated skill, less posing and acting, the price of industry standard gear!
I miss building a record collection because you had to..plus the album covers ..House parties.....otherwise nothing else ...New gear is always exciting...I don't miss carry crates or borrowing vynl with the fearr of scratching it by accident.. I miss my age.. and my hair
I've been DJing since 1978 - in clubs since 1981: there were nights I would play 6-10 hours straight by myself. Since getting back into it recently. I usually have to share 4 hours with 3-4 other DJ's... just not enough time to work the crowd up. The other DJ's will play bangers right off and by the time I play, the crowd is spent. The other thing is. too many times DJ's are busy making videos of themselves DJing while a full club has no one on the floor - I don't get it. I'm 62 so carrying records and Turntables is not as easy as it was (I play a combination of vinyl/DVS) Back in the day I would have around 1000 records, now I can only handle round 250. But with new tech, back in the day I was into spoken word drops... with STEMS, the sky is the limit... I love 4 channel controllers where layering beats is so easy. When I had the Roland DJ-808, I would bring my TB3 and make tunes on the fly...
I worked as a Lighting Designer in a 24 hour Nightclub in Atlanta Ga. This was in the early 2000s. The Club had a Proper DJ Booth that few people had access to. Now every DJ is on a Stage and the mystery is gone. DJ actually let the record play because most DJs played sets that were 6 hours. Today's DJs perform instead of taking you on a journey and they seem interested in showing off.
Gentlemen!!! Long time no see... What I miss the most, it was about the moment and not the Instagram post for social media. People were there for the music and the vibe, not just to film themselves there so people would know they were there. I miss people crate digging for music & gem.. Now, it's like almost everyone plays the same music! Like nobody is trying to shock the crowd with something out of the blue like Armin did at Ultra 2024 with his remix of Moby Extreme Way.. They lost the edge for the hunt!
As a mobile DJ I miss taking a big smoke machine and a whole selection of lighting. Now every mobile DJ pretty much has the same set up as it's what the bride and groom or corporate expect. A booth 2 rotosphere type lights and up lighters
I miss physical knobs and faders. On our gear we had to touch them and move them. Todays dj's that I see on social media. Their gear they must have a Harry Potter magio Djo mode, waving their hands over the mixer looking like they are doing jack shit. They are truly amazing, as they bounce up and down when doing so like 5 years old on sugar. 🤣
@@digitaldjtips are they really djs these days , or are they just fashion influencers that help sell trending fashions. I guess the attention and money are the main driver these days, to have so many people wanting to be worshipped.
The energy. You would walk in a party or club back in the day and it would feel like it was about to explode! Then it did- all night long, into the next day (and sometimes even more). People were crazy. I just don't feel that energy or see that level of craziness anymore. It's like someone took the dial that was at 120+ and turned it down to 98. Still a ton of energy, but missing that extra........
@@digitaldjtips It is, the younger gen doesn't seem to be as into partying as my crew was. It could be distraction as well, they have more to hold their attention- we were focused on the party!
There are a couple of crazy Asian's here on TH-cam who have adapted the old cassette players and actually Mix and Scratch on those suckers, look it up on here its crazy :) Check out
I miss when people could still get huge from skill behind the decks, not production. There's plenty of people there now, many who produce as well, but you used to have a route to stardom with just talent mixing and scratching. Now you need a whole social media team and good production skills to break in to the stardom level. The talent behind the decks live, not pre-recorded sets to align with the lighting and video, is something that is slowly going extinct for people who are great at production but only twiddle effect knobs live.
I would have to say... I miss dance music made by trained and talented musicians, like Devo, The B 52s, early Prince, English Beat, Fine Young Cannibals, before MIDI. It was the time when several musicians riffed off of each other's personal expression of the song. Now you got one-man-band producers so the dynamics between many band members is gone. It's just one guy playing with himself 🤭
@@digitaldjtips As a hobby DJ, I had been just passively listening to radio hoping to hear something new, but nothing has caught my attention. I guess I need to actively seek out new dance bands or what we called DOR Dance Oriented Rock, or Modern Rock in SF Bay Area in the 80's. Not necessarily alt rock, it could be a 4th or 5th gen Ska, or something completely different. Suggestions, anyone?
I miss the smell of disintegrating cardboard 12 inch sleeves. As I’d pull up prospective tunes for the next hour or so, there was always a bit of cardboard dust that would be present. Yeah… the smell of the cardboard sleeves. Miss that.
Nothing. It is Sooooo much easier to DJ these days. Not carrying around cases and cases of LP's (then have limited music). No monster heavy power amps to carry. No monster speakers to carry! It's so easy these days! Kids should appreciate it! Started in 1979...
That not anybody could be a DJ. And your ear was everything. Now any douchebag claims to be a great dj. Although i also embrace technology when you joined it with the skill. The rest is magic
The hunt could only be done in record stores, so you were always surrounded by other heads... recommending tunes, making pals, and oh look DJ Hype has popped in and jumped on the decks behind the counter. I miss those bits. The costs I don't miss, and I don't miss the weight of a crate of tunes. I got my first belt drives in 92, then 1210s in 94, still got them, they are still mint... even after a few raucous outings, never needed a service, and still in use.. although occassional. I mainly use Traktor on the ipad, but have Traktor and DVS serato for the mac. And yes I use sync, for nicely gridded tunes, but sync has not taken away my beatmatching. I can pop some vinyl on and the skill is just there, even with so little practice the last ten years. My biggest criticism of modern times is the low attention span crowd/DJs. I love D&B but most current DJs barely play a minute of a tune. I hear too much intro - drop - rewind - repeat, then on to next tune. What I won't criticise is the current state of music. There's so much out there, that if you hunt well, you will still find tunes that touch the heart or melt mind... or both! If you're lazy, over nostalgic, think the past is always better... like Phil said, you are now an old grump. So lighten up, go hunting, find those tunes, DJs and dancefloors that play what you'd like. They exist... but only for those with spirit enough to find them.
⚡ TIMESTAMPS ⚡
0:00 Intro
1:25 Nostalgia unleashed
3:16 "The danger" - Phil
4:59 "The hunt" - Steve
7:20 Less requests
8:25 "Attuned" audiences
10:35 The vinyl feel
11:38 Residencies
12:23 Physical limits
14:46 Record shops
15:24 Letting tracks "breathe"
18:54 Less attention
23:11 The pros & cons of nostalgia
24:42 Make yourself dance
25:47 Catching acts early
26:59 Free DJ training series: djtips.co/basics
I miss sifting through racks of vinyls, and finding white label gems with hardly any id on them, then spending a long time listening to them on a 1210 in the shop on headphones ❤
Yeah, was great fun to do this
I started in 89 and was doing big clubs by 1995. I miss people actually dancing on the dance floor with no bloomin phones !. Also flicking through my Crates and picking tracks from the Album Art on the front since it was the Art that was registered in my brain not the track title.
You can still set your crates up like this of course, agree thought it is not quite the same
I miss good music that became timeless. Great beats and dancing so hard you would have to mop up the dance floor. 😊😊😊
Good to reminisce!
Lugging cases of vinyl records is what I don't missed about DJing back in the day. It was rather hard to learn on SL-1200s without TH-cam videos back then. lol....
Yes, took me years!
I miss so much about this that I still prefer vinyl. I can't even play out half of the year in my local, but I still love it. Digital is just so tedious without the physical side of the digging, selecting and playing. I miss that old mildew smell of record shops. Being from the home of Tower records, I never appreciated what I had growing up.
Vinyl certainly stirs memories!
The main thing I miss is having the confidence to do what I used to do . Music wasn't as broad a spectrum as it is now.
So many different genres too choose from . I'd rather be back in the 80/90's just ..Disco, Pop and dance music. We're my go to's.
Maybe you're over complicating it a little in your own head here, Stuart?
@@digitaldjtipsquiet possibly
i miss the whole vinyl aspect of things. The hunt for a record of a sound that is hard to find. The vibe of that entire aspect was incredible, it really set djs apart from one another as it wasnt always easy for every dj to have that track. Each dj had the OWN sound and vs now today
Kinda true, I guess every scene grows up in the end
I miss record shop community. Moving on…I shelved my 1200’s, 15 years ago. 2024, I committed to modernizing them, got it done, and now my studio rig is my favorite ever. I totally respect time spent to learn any setup. I’ve used everything made in the last 25 years, but this is still my favorite. I also think the kids are bored, certainly look bored, and as crazy as it sounds, we are going to see some form of 12” motorized platter return to standard. The only sad takeaway, is when people that can’t classic mix, weaponize the skill, to categorize and dismiss “angry old vinyl djs” 😂 so silly. Keep it poppin lads 🤙🏽🖤🔊🕺
I guess though it is also up to the older DJs to not GET "angry", to stay curious, to stay forward looking. Case in point: Our very own DJ Jazzy Jeff.
@@digitaldjtips yeah 100%, it’s one of those coke/pepsi wars that certainly had a changing of the guard element to it, when in reality had the culture transitions been nurtured better, I think all enthusiasts would have seen the good in all of it. I know that’s the case in my community circles in San Diego. And We press on. 🤙🏽🖤🔊
Super good discussion. Well done u old heads❤❤❤
Glad you enjoyed this!
That reassuring little red strobe shining on the platter dots on the 1210s
Aah yes, the strobe!
One thing I miss is the simplicity of playing a tune out. Buy a record and play it. Done. No importing, beat gridding, cue pointing, exporting. Etc. I mean I love the new and all the things it gives me including the grids and cues. But it’s long now.
That's very true!
I don't miss a lot on the past, as you all mentioned about people who look back way more than look forward. I do miss when my scene was more localized and not so much about constantly flying in someone from Europe every week to get a crowd.
I miss how fun record shopping was in the 90s, spending hours digging through bins to find gems you always wanted, but I didn't miss it in the 2000s when it felt like enormous pressure to be at the store Thursday night to grab limited-edition items before they sold out, and the "musically minded" pressing how you need to have a whole new playlist every other month. I felt like it got out of hand and made music more disposable.
I do miss when the DJ was NOT the center of the visual attention. Now we have people doing all these fake actions to "look busy".
Beyond that, I love the present day we have. I feel like being a DJ is way more affordable and accessible, and there's many outlets for one to play if they don't care about making a living from it.
Yeah, DJ hidden in the shadows in the corner...
The local culture of DJing. That’s gone now bc of social media. I started in 83 and still love it today with all the new gear. On the flip side, for today, I love the fact that social media has exposed a broad ranger of music. Years ago I could never play a track even 5 yrs old to the typical young crowed at a club. I mean we now play Gimme, Gimme at HOCOs! I digress. Sorry. Love your channel. Thanks for the great content.
That's a good point - exposing younger people to older music. Love it!
Visiting record spots on Wednesdays and Fridays, getting your hold, and buying short run records - also fighting over who got a copy with coworkers if you were fortunate to work at a shop.
Ha ha yeah, a vital part of the culture back then!
Used to listen to the spinmasters on the :Piccadilly key 103 was living in Manchester at the time, Eastern Bloc was a great shop, friendly clued up unpretentious staff, always made me feel welcome everytime I went in.
Spinmasters, yes! And yeah I used to shop in E Bloc too, I believe it is still there, round the corner though.
The simplicity of vinyl, period!!! Analog rules.
Yeah it was definitely simpler!
What I miss the most is being 35+ years younger :)
Can't help with that!
Having much less music to choose from, sort and organise, knowing my records inside out, no preparation required, no technological hassles, beat matching actually being a valuable and appreciated skill, less posing and acting, the price of industry standard gear!
Lots of people say that!
I miss building a record collection because you had to..plus the album covers ..House parties.....otherwise nothing else ...New gear is always exciting...I don't miss carry crates or borrowing vynl with the fearr of scratching it by accident..
I miss my age.. and my hair
"My hair..." 🤣
I've been DJing since 1978 - in clubs since 1981: there were nights I would play 6-10 hours straight by myself. Since getting back into it recently. I usually have to share 4 hours with 3-4 other DJ's... just not enough time to work the crowd up. The other DJ's will play bangers right off and by the time I play, the crowd is spent. The other thing is. too many times DJ's are busy making videos of themselves DJing while a full club has no one on the floor - I don't get it. I'm 62 so carrying records and Turntables is not as easy as it was (I play a combination of vinyl/DVS) Back in the day I would have around 1000 records, now I can only handle round 250. But with new tech, back in the day I was into spoken word drops... with STEMS, the sky is the limit... I love 4 channel controllers where layering beats is so easy. When I had the Roland DJ-808, I would bring my TB3 and make tunes on the fly...
put your own.nights on, that way you play for as long as you want, Thats how i do it 👌👌
Lots of people saying tech better, scene worse...
I’m 62. I’d recommend starting a twitch dj channel;) see u there
I worked as a Lighting Designer in a 24 hour Nightclub in Atlanta Ga. This was in the early 2000s. The Club had a Proper DJ Booth that few people had access to. Now every DJ is on a Stage and the mystery is gone. DJ actually let the record play because most DJs played sets that were 6 hours. Today's DJs perform instead of taking you on a journey and they seem interested in showing off.
I guess there's rooom for both styles.
Look forward to the training
The creativity that 1200's brought to the game, without having to push buttons to emulate what had to be done to be creative.
Limits do inspire creativity, it's true
Gentlemen!!! Long time no see... What I miss the most, it was about the moment and not the Instagram post for social media. People were there for the music and the vibe, not just to film themselves there so people would know they were there. I miss people crate digging for music & gem.. Now, it's like almost everyone plays the same music! Like nobody is trying to shock the crowd with something out of the blue like Armin did at Ultra 2024 with his remix of Moby Extreme Way.. They lost the edge for the hunt!
"They lost the edge for the hunt..." Like this phrase!
As a mobile DJ I miss taking a big smoke machine and a whole selection of lighting.
Now every mobile DJ pretty much has the same set up as it's what the bride and groom or corporate expect. A booth 2 rotosphere type lights and up lighters
Of course, this is talking about weddings, where you are - but you're right, things have become a bit more homogenised.
I miss physical knobs and faders. On our gear we had to touch them and move them. Todays dj's that I see on social media. Their gear they must have a Harry Potter magio Djo mode, waving their hands over the mixer looking like they are doing jack shit. They are truly amazing, as they bounce up and down when doing so like 5 years old on sugar. 🤣
You've lumped an AWFUL lot of people into one category there, to be fair to today's DJs.
@@digitaldjtips are they really djs these days , or are they just fashion influencers that help sell trending fashions. I guess the attention and money are the main driver these days, to have so many people wanting to be worshipped.
I miss the days when being a DJ was something very special….
DJs were certainly rarer "back in the day"!
👏👏👏👏👏
i miss the phase pops of getting two vinyl in time on 1210s
Great fun
being able to drop the needle on a place on the vinyl instantly instead of setting up loads of que points
Yeah, music prep was certainly easier back then (ie there was none!)
i miss the hunt
The energy. You would walk in a party or club back in the day and it would feel like it was about to explode! Then it did- all night long, into the next day (and sometimes even more). People were crazy. I just don't feel that energy or see that level of craziness anymore. It's like someone took the dial that was at 120+ and turned it down to 98. Still a ton of energy, but missing that extra........
Maybe it's an age thing Kenneth!
@@digitaldjtips It is, the younger gen doesn't seem to be as into partying as my crew was. It could be distraction as well, they have more to hold their attention- we were focused on the party!
Playing in cassette tape be interesting if someone in these days can do
I used to DJ from cassette tape, luckily not very often!
There are a couple of crazy Asian's here on TH-cam who have adapted the
old cassette players and actually Mix and Scratch on those suckers,
look it up on here its crazy :)
Check out
I miss how diverse the sound used to be. Nowadays it feels like everyone has the same presets and samples :(
Yes, there was a golden few years of shockingly wide diversity in music, it's true
I started in 1991😎
vinyl
I miss people turning up to actually dance and jam to the DJ rocking ... Not taking selfies and self tik toks ...
Times have definitely changed...
Vestax. I miss Toshi Nakama.
Ah yes!
Ideal I’m 44 December 😂
You're a child 😉
@@digitaldjtips at heart i am 😉
I miss when people could still get huge from skill behind the decks, not production. There's plenty of people there now, many who produce as well, but you used to have a route to stardom with just talent mixing and scratching. Now you need a whole social media team and good production skills to break in to the stardom level. The talent behind the decks live, not pre-recorded sets to align with the lighting and video, is something that is slowly going extinct for people who are great at production but only twiddle effect knobs live.
You can have both (look at our very own James Hype, for instance)
I'm gonna be boring and say....Good songs, that what I miss
Ah, they're still out there...
I would have to say... I miss dance music made by trained and talented musicians, like Devo, The B 52s, early Prince, English Beat, Fine Young Cannibals, before MIDI. It was the time when several musicians riffed off of each other's personal expression of the song. Now you got one-man-band producers so the dynamics between many band members is gone. It's just one guy playing with himself 🤭
Of course, lots of bands do still play this way...
@@digitaldjtips As a hobby DJ, I had been just passively listening to radio hoping to hear something new, but nothing has caught my attention.
I guess I need to actively seek out new dance bands or what we called DOR Dance Oriented Rock, or Modern Rock in SF Bay Area in the 80's. Not necessarily alt rock, it could be a 4th or 5th gen Ska, or something completely different.
Suggestions, anyone?
Smartphones have ruined partying
I definitely preferred dancefloors without them
I miss the smell of disintegrating cardboard 12 inch sleeves. As I’d pull up prospective tunes for the next hour or so, there was always a bit of cardboard dust that would be present. Yeah… the smell of the cardboard sleeves. Miss that.
Very particular, smells are so emotive even after so many years, right?
Nothing. It is Sooooo much easier to DJ these days. Not carrying around cases and cases of LP's (then have limited music). No monster heavy power amps to carry. No monster speakers to carry! It's so easy these days! Kids should appreciate it! Started in 1979...
Well, it has definitely all changed since then Steve!
To be honest, nothing, thanks to the Rev 7.
That's good to hear!
we are not the sound frame wre old and keep going back to the passed
True if we're not careful!
That not anybody could be a DJ. And your ear was everything. Now any douchebag claims to be a great dj. Although i also embrace technology when you joined it with the skill. The rest is magic
There is still room at the top for true professionals...
its all to easy now and tunes don't sound the same depth
It can be easier now if you want it to be, for sure
The hunt could only be done in record stores, so you were always surrounded by other heads... recommending tunes, making pals, and oh look DJ Hype has popped in and jumped on the decks behind the counter. I miss those bits. The costs I don't miss, and I don't miss the weight of a crate of tunes.
I got my first belt drives in 92, then 1210s in 94, still got them, they are still mint... even after a few raucous outings, never needed a service, and still in use.. although occassional. I mainly use Traktor on the ipad, but have Traktor and DVS serato for the mac. And yes I use sync, for nicely gridded tunes, but sync has not taken away my beatmatching. I can pop some vinyl on and the skill is just there, even with so little practice the last ten years.
My biggest criticism of modern times is the low attention span crowd/DJs. I love D&B but most current DJs barely play a minute of a tune. I hear too much intro - drop - rewind - repeat, then on to next tune.
What I won't criticise is the current state of music. There's so much out there, that if you hunt well, you will still find tunes that touch the heart or melt mind... or both! If you're lazy, over nostalgic, think the past is always better... like Phil said, you are now an old grump. So lighten up, go hunting, find those tunes, DJs and dancefloors that play what you'd like. They exist... but only for those with spirit enough to find them.
Was nodding along from the start to the end of this inspirational piece of writing, thanks for sharing it