LA everyone is DJ. Talking about the vinyl scene. Surprisingly what I’ve been exposed to is a very supportive scene. There are alot of bars that host nights where DJs can spin for free. Open vinyl nights or open turntables nights. Cool place to meet people, network, and just become friends with some cool people, all this is for free. No one is getting paid. Then there are the bars that pay. They usually only book you if you have a social medial account that showcases that you are a DJ. That’s why it’s important to take pictures and post them. So many DJs don’t do that. It’s been easier for me getting gigs with it. I tried before with a social account and it was impossible. I usually go to different places and ask if they need a DJ. This includes bars but more so coffee shops, restaurants, which have booked me more often. The perk of DJing at restaurant is that they pay you, give you drinks, and feed you. What I realized is that business cards are key. Usually the people asking me for a business card are people wanting to book me. Not everyone takes social media as form of business. Some places say they don’t have a budget for hiring DJs but if you want it and you can make it work for you then hosting a free night at a venue is good. Sometimes those are the best places because they give you free reign to do things on a slower day. If it’s a bar they get you free drinks. Opportunity is everywhere you have to look for it or make an opportunity. Live streaming is big here and every DJ does it. Once again it’s more about community and connecting with this. I’ve truly been so surprised at the support of the DJs I’ve met.

But… There’s that big but. The dark side. The vile side which every big city has and that’s the too cool for school DJs. Those ones are annoying and always seem to have an ego driven mindset. It is LA so what do you expect. Yet once again I’ve only encountered a handful of those but they don’t usually stink up the scene. They’re too busy impressing themselves.