The Playlist Pyramid: From Music Discovery To Great DJ Sets

With thousands of new tracks released every week and millions already out there, building a quality DJ music collection can feel overwhelming. How do you go from “all the world’s music” to having the right tracks ready for your next gig?

The answer is our Playlist Pyramid method – a simple, systematic approach we’ve taught to thousands of DJs over the past decade that transforms music discovery from a daunting task into an enjoyable weekly routine.

The Playlist Pyramid is a five-stage filtering system that guides you from discovering new music to playing it confidently in your DJ sets. Think of it as a funnel – starting wide with all available music and narrowing down to the specific tracks you’ll actually play.

Here’s how it works…

Stage 1: All the world’s music

The pyramid starts with everything that’s out there. Your job at this stage isn’t to find DJ-worthy tracks – it’s simply to expose yourself to as much music as possible.

The thing that separates DJs from the rest? We hear more music. So you need to make that happen. Set up Bluetooth speakers throughout your home – they don’t have to be expensive ones, just speakers that are permanently on and plugged in.

When you walk into any room and press play on your phone, music immediately comes out of a speaker somewhere. Have your car radio tuned to different music stations – just keep music on as you go about your life. The whole point here is that you’re simply listening to loads of music, not overthinking it.

Stage 2: Music you’ve shortlisted

When something catches your ear – whether you love it, hate it, or just find it interesting – hit Shazam (or your preferred music detection app). It doesn’t have to be stuff you want to play in a DJ set. The song could intensely annoy you. You might just recognise the singer or like the drums. There might be something about it that makes you think, “I might like to hear that again.” Just Shazam it and move on with your day.

Link Shazam to your streaming service (Spotify, Apple Music, whatever) so these tracks automatically appear in a playlist. You’re not committing to anything yet – you’re just flagging music that sparked something in you. You eventually want to get the earworms, the songs that are actually doing stuff out there.

Watch the video

Prefer me to talk you through this? In this video from the Digital DJ Tips YouTube channel, I explain the complete Playlist Pyramid method step-by-step, from listening to music everywhere to packing your DJ sets with confidence.

Stage 3: Music you’ve bought

This is where you become more selective, and it’s the first time you actually put some time in your calendar. As a DJ, you want to do this every week. Saturday morning is always a good time because new music releases on Friday.

Sit down, put your best headphones on or crank up your speakers, and listen through everything you’ve shortlisted. You’re going to ask yourself questions: Can I dance to this? Is it a DJ tool – something I want to use even though I can’t dance to it, like a good acapella or a drop? Is it highly similar to what I’ve already got? Is it new or old? All these questions help you work out what you actually want to spend your hard-earned cash on.

Read this next: Where DJs Get Their Music

Then buy just a handful of tracks from places like Beatport, Traxsource, Bandcamp, iTunes, Juno Download – wherever. We’re talking about songs you can count on one hand, really…not fifty.

Stage 4: Music you’ve prepared

Right, so you’ve bought your handful of new tunes. Now what?

First, there’s the technical side – putting tracks in the right place on your hard drive, getting them imported into your DJ software, and making sure all the metadata is correct. We go into a lot more detail about that in our training, but for the basics: get them organised properly from the start, because trying to fix a messy library later is a nightmare.

But preparation isn’t just about the technical stuff. This is also when you start thinking about the music itself. Where and when are you actually going to play these tracks? What energy level are they? What other tracks do they pair well with? Are they opening tracks, peak-time bangers, or cool-down material?

You might start making notes – physically or mentally – about specific gigs where you could use them. “This one would be perfect for that wedding next month” or “This would work brilliantly in my warm-up sets.” You’re not just collecting music anymore – you’re building a toolkit that’s ready to use.

Stage 5: Music you’ve packed

Here’s an old vinyl trick. Back in the days when we had record cases, we couldn’t carry around all the world’s music with us. We couldn’t even carry around all the music we owned! So we had to be very careful with what we packed…

And packing a DJ set is a really good idea. I don’t mean just every track in order and nothing else – that’s not DJing, that’s playing a pre-prepared set. I mean packing roughly double the amount of music you’re going to play.

So if you play 20 songs in an hour and you’ve booked a one-hour set, you’ll want about 40 songs in there. Why? Because it gives you the ability to go in different directions if needed.

You’ll only play about half those songs by the end, but at least you won’t be stuck starting at your screen, scrolling through endless music options (something that’s rather unfairly called “Serato Face”).

Why this method works

The Playlist Pyramid works because it follows how people naturally discover music, just with more structure at crucial moments. You’re not trying to be superhuman – you’re just being smart about filtering.

As long as you cycle through this every week – always listening, always Shazaming what catches your ear, reviewing your shortlist, buying tracks, prepping them, and packing a set for each gig – you’re going to find this “daunting” task actually becomes something you look forward to (I love my Saturday mornings).

Go further: The Playlist Pyramid – How To Build A DJ Music Collection To Be Proud Of

With this method, your taste develops, your collection improves, and you build a music library that sets you apart. That’s your first base as a DJ – because without great music, nothing else matters.

Getting Started

The beauty of the Playlist Pyramid is that you can start using it immediately, regardless of your current collection size or DJ experience level.

Begin by setting up your listening environment this week. Get those Bluetooth speakers positioned. Connect Shazam to your streaming service. Mark Saturday morning (or whenever) in your calendar for your weekly music review.

Then simply start the cycle: Listen, shortlist, review, buy, prepare, and pack. Do it weekly, and in a few months you’ll have built a music collection that accurately reflects your developing taste (and sets you apart from DJs who just download “Top 100” lists).

For a deeper dive into the Playlist Pyramid method, including what questions to ask before buying music and how to prepare tracks for different gigs, grab your free copy of Rock The Dancefloor!

Want to learn more about building a professional DJ music collection? The Complete DJ Course covers music discovery, organisation, and preparation as part of a comprehensive curriculum that takes you from complete beginner to confident DJ.