I do & I had someone awhile ago but life happened. This is confirmation for me to move forward & get someone there with me! Thanks for the advice & awesome content!!!
95% of the time I DJ alone. It’s hard to find reliable people and clients don’t want to pay for extra costs. How often do people tend to try to negotiate price with you? Most DJ’s I know charge between 1000-1200 for weddings. But we don’t go over the top on lighting and setup.
I DJ my weddings alone. As far as reason one, I’ve said it in comments to your vids before... The venue isn’t paying me. The couple is playing me. I don’t care if the venue likes working with me or not. As for engaging the guests as an emcee, I know my vocal cues. It’s not difficult to position myself to press play as needed.
I have deejayed over 450 weddings over the last 21 years SOLO. I had my nephew help me out at a wedding once because I threw my back out. I have had an assistant at a few Bat Mitzvahs years ago, and also at a 700 student School Dance once. I always get packed up, and out the door, and loaded into my SUV within 50 minutes at venues. I hustle. I also don't have a big light show, but if I ever book a wedding with totems/moving heads I would need an assistant. I manage to get lots of video by myself as well. I only use a cell phone though, so I suppose an assistant would need to be set up with a DSLR camera to get better quality footage. I would like to have an assistant though. Finding a good one is super hard though.
I got 30 years of experience and you are 100% on point. I don't get these DJs who try to do everything themselves Your assistant can get you a drink when you're rocking the dance floor but the best point you made is when the gig is over and workers want to leave and go home. I can't tell you how many times that has happen even when having an assistant. I wedding is the most important day for a Bride and Groom and why leave it all up to yourself
I really like your energy in this video. One of your most informative real videos in a while. Keep it going. I don't do many gigs but love the ones I do and I always have an assistant (my hubbie) and sometimes another friend to take videos and yes, I always split tips, glad you included that tidbit.
Great Job Nick. And thanks for your amazing english pronunciation . You are helping a lot all us international foreighn Djs understand you better and of course improve our English too 😎 .
Hey brother. Great content... You hit the nail on the head in so many ways. I’ve done solo and I’ve done with an assistant and the assistant in my opinion is priceless. Would love to have one full-time and will have one hopefully in the future. Keep up the great work !! 🤜🤛
Extra eyes! I was shadowing 3 weddings just to learn more & just having me there proved valuable. While my mentor was coordinating with the 📷 or whatever; I noticed the main PC was under 2% and not plugged in! There was backup but having me just plug it in without disruption & stress was nice. I was also able to make images & play with the DMX while he focused on the people & music which also added value. Great vid!
I’ve DJed with and without an assistant and I am coming around to your thinking. The easier set up & break down is obvious. The other night, I was in the mix and getting a couple of requests, some of which were aggressive/bad. My assistant was my gatekeeper for requests, so I could do my thing. I got a request that wasn’t bad, but I wasn’t going to play it because I didn’t think it it would move the dance floor enoug. My assistant had had a conversation with one of the requesters & told me that song was the bride’s rugby team’s theme song. I was glad to know this - played the song and it went off!
Yes!!!! I love having a "gate keeper"...I think it cuts down on the amount of requests you get as well when ppl see they have to go through someone else to get to you!
I try to always have a assistant. It is GREAT. I have 2 assistants so if one is not available i can call the second. Plus my assistant handles all my request, don't have people in my face when I'm in the groove.
Me and my wife are partners and she MCs all of our events and she loves it. Working alone does make it harder depending on the type of event but weddings, Quinceaneras and corporate events are the ones that my wife is definitely with me because of the work involved.
My man Spinelli! started watching you after watching all of Barrs videos lol good work man keep it up, Ive learned so much from just Barr alone in the past couple years its nice to see someone else doin their thing and rockin these events. The people below me sayin how they do everything by themselves good for all of them and theres nothing wrong with that, the purpose of this video however is just to give you some ADVICE on how to be a more productive and efficient emcee so you can either take it or leave it lol
Great VDO & awesome tips!!! Sadly (for me), since moving back to SoCal from NorCal in 2010, I haven’t been able to find an assistant “willing to work”. Everyone I’ve attempted to hire wants big money fast & isn’t willing to endure the long hours required. I’m with Matt on his comment, maybe you could shed some light on how to go about finding the right (or decent, at least) assistant? Thanks Nick!!!
Thank you for all your links! In defently gonna buy some of your crates! Im gonna dj in my first wedding in july 2022, and im already auper nervous!😅 so this creates are gonna help me out alot! Thank you🤩
Yeah man I've been considering getting an assistant for all those reasons. Have been doing it solo in Honolulu since 2014, occasionally I'll have a friend come and get photos for me. Most venues are cool with me taking about an hour, but once you hit one hour (picking up uplights, packing up a projector screen) they start to get on your ass!
i agree with everything said in this video.. And up to a few years ago i had an assistant (two on the larger events) Then the assistant left to do other things, and i found i had to get up to speed again as i had become dependent on them. Since then i've done most events on my own because finding a reliable assistant isn't easy. With todays rig options i can still get down and out the door in 45mins tops.
I've only been DJing with two people for 20 years. But only for 3 reasons. 1. It's simply more fun. 2. Construction and dismantling are logically better to do 3. (most important reason) workflow. It's wonderful when the guests always have a contact person, no matter what's happening at the DJ desk. Music requests, ask if the best man can start a game, give ideas if you can't think of the next song. However, you can do it all alone. It's all a matter of organization and habit.
I agree with you. It's very hard to get a dedicated assistant. I gave up after my third assistant because I had to babysit them all the time and it was distracting me from my job. I had to make sure they didn't drink they weren't trying to pick up girls. They would show up late and make me late. But I do agree with you if you can get a good one it does make a difference. Especially with loading and assisting with introductions.
Thank God my wife comes with me and she loves it too! We just did a wedding at the Crystal ballroom Thursday she taught the bride and groom their first dance routine ! They did really awesome 👏 I can’t imagine going by myself ever again .
This is absolutely true. The first time I heard you talked about this I was like hell yeah for what you addressed. I have venues that have love what we do but they refer us more for the reason that we get out of there in less than 30 mins. There are venues here that will charge couples $500 if vendors are not out in 2hrs. Again Nick nailed every point on why you should have an assistant
I've been DJing weddings alone since 2010. I have my system down. Never had a disappointed client, ever. A knowledgeable assistant would be nice, but defi9nitely not necessary.
When I retired the first time, I was doing it by myself and this was the days when controllers weren't in yet. Two turntables, crates of record, heavy as speakers take a toll on you. If I had an assistant, I probably would of not though of retiring. I'm back at it now, but the equipment is a lot different compared to before (controller, active speaker) lol. If I do have a gigs, I take someone with me.
Totally agree Nick always bring my buddy or my wife to help. This weekend training my daughter how to work with serato so she can help me with the music for intros. Plus she has a good knowledge of our dsr camera to help me with getting good content
As far as tips are concerned, I would be inclined to share some of the tip, but not half. Considering you are the DJ, and it's your event, and YOU are the one being tipped due to your overall performance (Unless the client actually hands your assistant a tip as well) then I would feel the Lion's share of the tip is meant for me as the DJ. I would give them a portion of the tip to show my gratitude to an assistant because they did help, but I wouldn't feel that an assistant has earned 50% of the tip. Very generous of a DJ to split that down the middle with an assistant. Maybe 25% of the tip received is fair to part with going to an assistant imo.
Great vidéo Nick! its good to have an assistant a situation happen to me this week end a guest step on a hdmi wire and broke the connection even if it was not realy accesible lol and my assistant go in my case get another wire in 2 minutes the problem was solved !!t
i had an assistant but sadly he passed on but he was useful.He didnt dj and i didnt mc but he helped me setting up and breaking down .He drove and we could talk.By this time i was doing clubs more than parties .I never was one for weddings much but he got me to gigs and back and helped with the records etc.Also at parties it was nice to have that second pair of eyes but not just to check my form but to keep an eye on potentially awkward guests.Sadly we never got around to getting a camera for footage but as the internet became a thing we started talking about that but by then i was doing clubs more and we decided that was maybe not such a good idea as the clubs i played didnt like people filming anywhere without permission.Later he just got too old to drive and i had to stop for a while and just work for friends or locally so that transport wasnt an issue.If i could find a person to work with i would go right back to work but first i need my shots and find somewhere for all my gear as i got stuck in Europe during this pandemic.
I’m 61, still doing it alone. My part of the world can’t afford to pay $1,000+ for a DJ. If I ever got paid more than that I would consider paying for an assistant.
Great video Nick, I always bring my assistant and she’s tremendous help. You talked about MCing and how it’s better to announce introductions out on the floor instead of behind the booth. I’ve been doing it from behind the booth my entire career, and in general I’m not the kind of MC to ham it up or make a big spectacle out of myself. I would love to hear any tips you have about MCing on the floor, as a video or otherwise. Peace and thanks for the content!
When i was managing a construction site there was plenty of down time during the day. Everyone was doing what they should and the helpers would have nothing to do. I remember the workers would tell jokes about looking like you are working when the manager is around. But i was in there place once and now i tell them they don't have to sweep a clean area just bc there's nothing to do. When i was starting out as a helper i was allowed to sit on the bags of cement and take a break until there was something needed to be done
I’ve been contemplating this for some time but was hesitant because I couldn’t see the value of having a helping hand vs the added effort and energy of managing someone. This video has me convinced that an assistant will be beneficial. Do you have any guidance on how and where to start looking for candidates? Do you post an ad on Craigslist? Scour music schools in the area? I’m in LA so plenty of music and arts schools around. Thank you for the video - I’m a big fan :)
Something that nobody's has asked Nick- That is do you pay your assistant out of your pay check or does the owner Jani pay him? I can't afford to pay someone $200.00 out of my pay right now as I lost tons of money last year due to Covid 19. To my knowledge SCE provides the Lighting techs and the roadies/ Assistants and that's why he has an assistant. Big difference when your not paying for the help and the company is paying.
In the past I do weddings alone however I have a female dj assistant which she speaks several languages including French, Chinese Mandarian, etc and she can sig too!
Great video. All good points. I DJ the majority of my weddings alone but will hire assistance for my larger school dance/prom shows. Question: like most, My weddings can range from simple to complex depending on lighting, photo booth, etc. Do you pay your assistant the same for every show, or different depending on complexity of the show package?
I pay my assistant 150 to 200 per day, plus half the tip and 25% of any extra time we get paid for. So my assistant makes about 250 - 325 per event. We are at an average event for 8 hours (setup to tear down) So they end up making $31.25 to $40.50 per hour. I would start out at 10% then go from there.
The pay by day makes sense to me now. I was thinking hourly pay, but that gives them incentive to drag things out slowly. Plus they always know how much they’re getting. Less calculating n arguing. They’ll stay with you. It just needs to work out as a good hourly rate in practice.
it would be nice if the couple books directly through me. however, i contract with 4 companies and venues and I can't afford to pay an assistant. Especially when one of companies charges 400 for a wedding reception. I get half. so 4rs for 200, yeah, i can't do that. I hardly get tips anyways. But watching some of your videos, is making me get my social media presence up and to market myself better. So I can charge 600-800 a wedding, that will give me enough pay to hire an assistant.
I Dj weddings alone... I would like an assistant, especially when mcing, it’s a great idea. How much should I be paying them & would a client be willing to justify spending extra $$$ ? How do you market it to your potential clients?
i do parties and weddings i hired my dad he show's up with me helps with set up then he goes off does what ever then comes back n hr before the set is done to help tear down. only reason he does it is time together.
I've considered hiring an assistant but am not sure what to pay them. I charge anywhere from $900-$1200 an event, is $150 a night ok? Would love to hear other people's thoughts on this.
That was a great and thoughtful information especially with a getting the assistance (the team)just 1or 2 if u can manage hey I've been doing the assistance for 10 years of my life learning and working it's was good and bad days facts
I have been working for a DJ for many years. I do the grunt work on the load in/out, drive her truck, take care of all the tech stuff when necessary, and fabricate light trees, charge the lights during the week, and like Nick said, am her second pair of ears, eyes and hands during the wedding. When things go amiss, I am there to fix it. When she needs the wedding coordinator during the event, I go and find her. And I used to do a 2 camera video shoot of all aspects of the event, which I edited down to a 1 hour CD/MP4 for the BG, including interviewing guests, the ceremony and any other interesting moments. Now that I am retiring, (at 77), she is having problems finding someone to replace me because I know the system so well, and also, I AM COMMITTED to be there every time. Loyalty counts and for all this she pays me very well...and yes she splits the tips with me.
I did not have an assistant in 2020 and I learned the hard-way that assistants are very valuable. I djed a wedding by my self and I just about killed myself. I now have an assistant and he is awesome to have. He is a true asset for my DJ business.
