New Live Videos from Memorial Day Weekend….

Here are a few videos from a wedding down at Carmel Valley Ranch in Carmel Valley…this was a really, really young wedding – I think there were maybe 10 people over the age of 40, and felt more club-style than wedding-like :

Here’s one from Villa Montalvo in Saratoga -this one was the polar opposite of the Carmel wedding – older crowd (I don’t think there was a person there under 35), and was a majority South Indian crowd, thus the Bollywood:

DJ Jeremy

Wedding fairs? I’ll pass (maybe you should too)…

If you want my opinion, attending a wedding fair is a poor way to find wedding vendors. I’ll give you my reasons…

1. First of all, the vendors have, in many cases, paid a hefty sum of money to be at these events. That means they are under serious pressure to make “sales” to wedding couples to recoup the cost of the fair booth rental. This may translate into aggressive / pushy sales tactics and a lot of “yes-person” behavior rather than straightforward honesty about their services. Also, the operation hosting the fair will generally ask for your e-mail address + phone number when you register or buy tickets, and will then pass this list along to ALL the vendors at the fair (this “list” is really part of what they are paying for in their entry fees), and if you give them your “real” e-mail address or phone number, you will inevitably be hit by a sea of spam e-mails / cold-calls. Once again, when vendors are shelling out large amounts of cash to participate in one of these fairs, its a natural tendency to try and get everything they can for their “investment”, and the e-mail / phone list is of course another avenue to booking potential clients (even if it amounts to straight-up cold calling!). I would NOT recommend giving out your actual e-mail address or phone number if you do end up attending one of these events (shoot, just make one up!).

2. Second, at some of these fairs you will run into the same “cadre” of vendors who all refer business amongst each other. Many of the smaller fairs are hosted by wedding professional “associations”, local wedding planners, rental companies, catering companies, DJ outfits or by a wedding venue – entry to the fair / expo / showcase may be restricted to vendors in the “network” of the show host, and the prime booth locations may be given to certain “preferred” vendors. So without knowing it, consumers are being steered towards vendors who may be beholden to other vendors in ways the consumers are totally unaware of. I personally do not think this is a healthy (or organic) environment to be shopping for wedding services in.

3. Finally, with all the online avenues like Yelp, Wedding Wire and such where you can not only find vendors but also read feedback from past clients, why would you want to waste time and energy walking around a fair that you PAID an entry fee to get into? I can understand the role these fairs played 15 years ago, but I believe this type of forum has become a dinosaur in today’s world where so much information is available online. Plus, there is no guarantee you will arrive at the fair to find a single vendor that “jives” with your style, personality or vision for your wedding, so the idea that these fairs are time-saving mechanisms is kind of a stretch.

My personal advice – do your own homework in the privacy of your home (or at work if the boss isn’t looking), and use the online tools at your disposal to find a group of vendors you are interested in discussing your wedding with. That way YOU can decide who might be an appropriate match without any external pressure or influence. Once again, I may be preaching to the proverbial choir here, but that’s my 2 cents on this subject.

Cheers,

DJ Jeremy

DJ Jeremy June 2011 Soulful House Mix…

Here’s a new soulful house type mix I just put together, although the term “new” is probably a misnomer – most of these tracks are actually pretty dated. However, they are some of my personal favorites dating back to 1993 or so. I’m quite sure this won’t be to many of your personal tastes, but its music I really like, and if you share my sentiments for this genre of music, enjoy!

DJ JEREMY JUNE 2011 SOULFUL HOUSE MIX

NOTE: ALL MIXES AVAILABLE HERE ARE FOR PROMOTIONAL USE ONLY AND ARE BEING OFFERED FREE OF CHARGE. ANY COMMERCIAL USE OF THESE MIXES IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

Cheers,

DJ Jeremy

An instructive DJ ad from Craigslist…

I came across this posting on Craigslist today, and wanted to share it. As you can see, a “leading entertainment company” is looking to recruit new DJs for their outfit. They aren’t requiring any actual DJ experience (let alone mixing skill) and are offering a pay scale starting at $10 per hour (and of course, moving up to $25 an hour once “training” is over). If you have a car, a laptop, can lift 60lbs, and of course have a “Show Must Go On Mentality”, you pretty much qualify.

If you shop around, you’ll find that these many of the large DJ outfits price their services comparatively to the smaller operators.

That being said, if you go with one of these outfits, you are potentially getting a DJ with almost no experience playing in front of “live” crowds, no technical skill whatsoever (in terms of being able to mix), and one who is being compensated at a small fraction of what the company is charging YOU.

Once again, its always wise to be sure you are aware of exactly what you are getting for your money – not all DJs are the same, both in terms of skill level and overall investment. It’s my firm opinion that there is a HUGE difference between a skilled DJ who has spent years developing their technical skill (and has a passion for what they do) and someone who answers an ad on Craigslist looking to make some beer money on the side.

Anyways, here’s the text from the ad:

Seeking High Energy Mobile DJ

Seeking energetic person with great personality to DJ Event Host numerous events including karaoke nights, as well as DJ private events such as wedding receptions, corporate events, school dances, Birthday Parties and more for a leading entertainment company in SF Bay Area.

Job Requirements:

• Must Have Outgoing Personality and be High Energy

• Must Have Your Own Laptop

• Macbook Laptop Must be in working order.

• Must Have Microsoft Office On Computer

• Must Know how to troubleshoot audio components or willingness to learn.

• Must have Show Must Go On Mentality

• Must Be Dependable

• Must Have Reliable Transportation (we will compensate for gas & tolls)

• Diverse Music Knowledge is preferred.

• You must be able to lift up to 60 pounds

• Must be willing to do events in the entire Bay Area Metro, including surrounding San Jose, North Bay, South Bay East Bay, Northern California. etc..

If you answered no to any of the above requirements, please do us and yourself a favor and do not apply.

Compensation:

• Training Pay will be $10.00 per hour until training completed.

• Pay starts at $25.00 per hour and goes up with experience.

We will only consider applicants who email us a resume and head shot for consideration.

In addition, if you work for your own DJ company or another DJ company no need to apply.

it’s NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
Compensation: 25

DJ Jeremy

DJ Jeremy June 2011 Promo Mix…

Here’s my new DJ Jeremy June 2011 Promo Mix – A mix of brand new Top 40 tunes and some older remixes. Enjoy!

DOWNLOAD LINK: JUNE 2011 PROMO MIX

PS – If you don’t want to download the file, this mix can be streamed here: STREAMING MIX

NOTE: ALL MIXES AVAILABLE HERE ARE FOR PROMOTIONAL USE ONLY AND ARE BEING OFFERED FREE OF CHARGE. ANY COMMERCIAL USE OF THESE MIXES IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

DJ Jeremy

Playing to a mixed demographic crowd, part 2…

Alright, here are two portions of my dance set from a wedding I handled over at the JW Marriott in San Francisco on 4/30/11.

At this particular wedding, there were considerably more young folks than old once dancing started (many of the older guests headed out before we started the dance session), but there were still enough older guests where I wanted to throw them a bone. So, the first part of this set is reflective of my effort to combine a bit of very familiar older music with some well-worn (and very familiar) Top 40 stuff. Basically, the majority of the dance floor was young, so I wanted to keep their interest while not completely overlooking the outnumbered 50+ year old guests.

Here’s the link to the first part of the recording:

DOWNLOAD - APRIL 30TH (EARLY DANCE SET)

STREAMING - APRIL 30TH (EARLY DANCE SET – STREAMING)

As for later in the evening, we moved into current Top 40, Indie and Electronica stuff – this part of the set is clearly aimed at the under 40 crowd.

Here’s the link to the second part of the recording:

DOWNLOAD -APRIL 30TH (LATE DANCE SET)

STREAMING - APRIL 30TH (LATE DANCE SET – STREAMING)

NOTE: ALL MIXES AVAILABLE HERE ARE FOR PROMOTIONAL USE ONLY AND ARE BEING OFFERED FREE OF CHARGE. ANY COMMERCIAL USE OF THESE MIXES IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

DJ Jeremy