Finding a Mentor

In the area I live, DJ’s are not willing to be mentors. Maybe this is because the business is so cut-throat in my area (many DJ’s and few centralized clubs), but even at events I have DJ’ed, I have not been able to connect with other DJ’s. They are all more concerned with outdoing themselves. This is not something that I am used to, as in my former city of residence all my friends were DJ’s as well.
I have attempted to contact mobile companies and DJ’s alike. I have used Craig’s List to search for mentors and even attempted to contact the DJ’s for hire regarding mentoring. However, after looking over the past year, I have not been able to find a DJ willing to mentor me or even meet up to mix together. I don’t have any friends in my current area that are in the EDM scene, so I can’t even mix with them and bounce ideas around. I know that having a mentor really helps your all around growth as a DJ, and I am hoping you can provide some guidance on how to go about looking for a local mentor they can spin with. I’m not a rookie anymore and really feel that I could benefit with some veteran experience in my mixes.
Thanks!

What area are you in? I'd certainly be willing to help out, but I'm from Holland, so chances are it's not in the neighbourhood

Feel free to email me though: acaoost [at] hotmail [dot] com

Thank you for all the input Terry_42!

I have recently picked up a new controller that allows me to record and convert my sets to MP3 (a week ago). So, I will certainly start to post my mixes as I create them. I also have a Sound Cloud account that I plan on using by the end of the week. I will be sure to post the link here once I have a mix or two up.

This forum has been great reading so far, and with Phil’s “How to DJ,” along with countless hours of online research, I feel that I have come a long way. However, I do feel like I should have begun posting to this site earlier…So, I really appreciate the hospitality.

I am an avid follower of Last.FM and Digitally Imported, which help me stay on top of my music collection. One question that I have for you though…You (and many others on here) mention throwing your own parties with friends…Question is: While I am not completely new to the city I live in now, I do not have any friends in the dance scene. So, how would you suggest going about throwing a party and getting people to attend? I am all for it, but I worry about getting even 6 people that I know there.

G-Bee,
I am in the states, so that might be a bit far. = )

Thanks for the email contact though…What type of music do you usually mix?

I started out mixing Drum n Bass, but after a couple of years branched out to Breaks, House, Dubstep, HipHop, Soul & Funk.

These days I like to play sets that contain multiple styles, like a combo of Breaks, House and Dubstep.

About your throwing a party question: It is very helpful to know a couple of key players in your local scene to spread the word. I would suggest booking some local talent, so they will hype their friends. Also make sure to spread posters and flyers in and around schools in your area.

I also didn't have any friends in the scene when I started out, but by involving others that were "insiders" the whole town knew about the party in no time!

G-Bee,

I LOVE breaks! I mainly mix variations of house myself (electro, funky, Latin, etc.), but I do plan on expanding into breaks at some point. = )

This is great advice actually! I cannot believe that I didn’t even think about the fact that I live just minutes from a major state university. I have also been calling on my little brother, who is a graphic design artist, to help me with logos, business cards, etc. I think that I just need to start getting better about the resources I have at hand.

I have also been getting out local venues more often these days, even if it is by myself. I figure that if I show up to enough local DJ spotlights on Sunday nights I am bound to begin making friends.

Sounds good! By the way, if you have some recorded mixes, I'd be happy to give you some feedback Also, if you want, I can give you some names of good house/breaks crossover tracks

Thanks man!

I am working on a couple of mixes to post to my Soundcloud by week’s end. I will make sure that I email you the links, as I would love your feedback.

From what I have seen, some people can just hate on your style/mixes without providing any constructive feedback. So, I really look forward to the constructive part…I already know I’m not perfect. Lol!

Haha yeah I know, and in my experience it can be pretty tough to be on the receiving end of feedback, so I'll try to go easy

Ha!

I certainly appreciate it! = )

Ya, I couldn't find a mentor here in Sacramento either. So I used this site and my knowledge from back in the day to bring myself up-to-date with digital DJ'ing. I have found that here in the Top 40 scene most DJ's that you ask them about a mentorship are translating it to $$$'s. While if I were to go take guitar lessons for example I would be all for paying the teacher it kinda makes me uncomfortable creating a relationship with a mentor that has a financial benefit from always keeping me one step behind (i.e. if I ever get a club gig he is done making money off me).

I have had my first live set this past Sunday and I didn't record it because I was thinking "my first set will suck after all those years". Huge mistake. Everyone wanted my soundcloud address afterwards and I was sitting there blinking going "um...I didn't record this mix guys". So, lesson learned, everything will be going up on soundcloud from now on.

Dude…that is EXACTLY how it is in Phoenix! I found this guy on Craig’s List who was offering mentoring/lessons, but when I met up with him he was all, “That will be $50 for an hour of my time.” Suffice to say that all he did during that hour was show me basic things that I already knew, and then try to sell me music from his collection. I was super bummed about that experience.

Congrats on your first show out dude. Sounds like it was a resounding success. I DJ’ed a friends party a while back and ran into the same scenario…with people asking for my Soundcloud. I have since setup an account and I am working on some quality mixes to put up there.

I also just created a mix the other day that I loaded onto my IPod and have let a couple people listen. The reaction has been something like, “Where can I get more of this and come to one of your shows?!” So, I think a lot of it for me is just building that confidence that I am decent enough to start playing out. I know that everyone on here says “just do it” all the time, but I still feel that I lack that confidence in my ability. I am even nervous to post stuff on my Soundcloud until I think it’s perfect…

Exactly. I am a perfectionist so I always think that my mix is not good enough for the soundcloud folks. But I really have to get over myself and just put it up there.

Ha ha ha ha! Me too man!

In fact, I finally just posted one last night. I would love some feedback on it and it you follow me, I'd be happy to return the favor for you. = )

I look forward to hearing what you think...I posted it before listening to it, because otherwise I probably wouldn't have felt it was good enough. Lol!

I am listening and I can honestly tell you that you really have nothing to worry about. Great job!!

Thanks so much Nicko!!! You have no idea how much relief that offers.

I figure if I can get everyone here to approve, then I'm ready to be a rock star. Thank you again for your feedback. = )

Thank you so much Phil! I really appreciate it! = )