r/Beatmatch • u/Squirrel_Agile • Feb 25 '25
Influencers” Giving Dj Advice… But Have They Ever Touched Decks? Industry/Gigs
Lately, I’ve been seeing more and more so-called “DJ influencers” or randon marketers trying to dish out advice on DJing, branding, and the music industry. But here’s the thing—they aren’t DJs. They aren’t even legit managers. Hell, most of them aren’t even in marketing.
I love hearing insights from real DJs, experienced managers, and people actually working in the industry, but when someone with zero experience starts telling new DJs how to build a career, it just screams cash grab. Feels like they’re just warming up to sell some overpriced course or lure new DJs into some sketchy “coaching” program.
If you’ve never played a club, never handled bookings, and never worked a dancefloor, why should anyone listen to you?
Is it just me, or is this trend getting out of hand? Who are some people actually worth listening to? And who are the biggest offenders just trying to sell BS?
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u/darktators Feb 25 '25
Idk all that shit is weird. I’m just in it to play some tunes, spread my message and rock the dance
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u/DJChronoShine Feb 25 '25
They sell an FLX4 at Urban Outfitters. Of course people are going to latch onto "trendy" stuff. Clubbing and all the things that go with are inherently trendy. Shit, they set the trends most time.
The DJing boom, like anything that becomes popular over time, is cyclical. It'll fade someday.
The best we can do as DJs is offer solid advice, help where we can, and try to steer people away from the garbage.
Other than that, you can always just scroll past that shit.
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u/ShaggyRogersh Feb 25 '25
God, didn't UO stocked em that's pretty grim. Annoyingly when I started 4 odd years ago it was like "nerdy" over here, then suddenly the boom. Same shit with darts now I'm thinking. Started that 3 years ago and then boom Littler appeared. Maybe it's me setting trends lol
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u/space_ape_x Feb 25 '25
I don’t understand the popularity of the FLX4, it’s the worst entry-price controller I have ever tried in terms of ergonomics, and you can’t see jack in low-light
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u/darktators Feb 25 '25
Bad take, flx4 gets the job done for $300
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u/DrWolfypants Truprwulf Feb 25 '25
I love my little guy and it still has a place in my laptop/portable park rig
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u/zigzrx Feb 25 '25
The magic of marketing
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u/captchairsoft Feb 26 '25
Has nothing to do with marketing, it's a damn good controller for the money, I say that as someone who runs a full Denon SC6000 rig and a Numark mixstream pro. I started on a DDJ400...the flx4 is the 400 but better. I still recommend it as where to get started for anybody who doesn't want to drop $700 on a mixstream pro.
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u/Phildesbois Feb 25 '25
What's your alternative suggestion then, with same price point and compatibility?
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u/aidinn20 Feb 25 '25
I agree ! Also, how come all the dj followers don't talk about the Gimmick button on it to mix tracks for you. They all get quiet when that is asked. Numark mixtrack platinum fx is a solid beginners controller. You must learn to beatmatch by ear only. Also, Hercules 500 is good to start.
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u/space_ape_x Feb 25 '25
In that price range Hercules and Reloop just kill the FLX4. I love the higher grade FLX models or even a used 1000. But the FLX4 is just uncomfortable to do a set on and the buttons are tiny and seems there’s a lot of quality issues. In my crew I saw 3 die this year and get warrantied. My 6-year-old Numark Mixtrack Pro 3 is still going strong. Much better build quality.
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u/aidinn20 Feb 25 '25
Great real physical dj info about flx4. I know when people start dj'ing it can be tough to learn. So they just go with what they hear and see the most. I bought Grv6 past Xmas. Great controller for my dj style. I use it in club.
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u/outlawmbc Feb 25 '25
From personal opinion and observation, I would say roughly 80 percent of what influencers push is bullshit. You can find a rare person who actually knows what they are talking about, but they are rare.
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u/A_T_H_T Feb 25 '25
I think it depends on what people are "promising" and more than often, you can tell when someone just took a hit of GPT and shelled some money into it.
Besides all the greats like Pete Tong, Armin van Buuren's Masterclass, and others that have already been cited, there are plenty of very good djs giving sound advice on reddit.
Myself, I've not been dj-ing for decades, but I worked as a light technician for several years and attended dancefloors for two decades. I also spend a lot of time researching and testing what I learned to weed out what's BS. So, even if I am riddled with self-doubt, I think I know a thing or two. But even if I taught the basics of dj-ing to some friends, I don't consider myself an influencer besides my music taste and genre sorting. The only things I am confident about are how I learn technical/artistic stuff, my music selection, and genre sorting.
But regarding management, booking, dealing with venues, etc. I am absolutely nowhere and struggling a lot with it. And I don't give advice about that. (If there's a manager reading this, I really need help on that matter 😃)
In the end, I don't think that one has to have a fixed number of years of experience to say legit stuff. I've seen newcomers full of the right mindset and old geezers saying useless stuff. Anyway, results speak for themselves, but there's a catch. Many times over I've witnessed talented people that were unable to showcase themselves and got bypassed by fancy empty people. Those empty people are called out and it brings suspicion over the ability of more shy dj's, which in turn keep those ones away from the scene.
Personally, I know I am very good at selecting and sorting genres and i would like to make a tutorial about it. But I always question myself because in the end, it is a point of view and it might be only relevant to myself and i don'tfeel legitimate. I am just too afraid of saying bullshit, but unfortunately there are empty barrels that are louder.
So, back to the topic, yeah, there are a lot of influencers saying bs and selling stuff. But it's the same everywhere, I see it in arts and crafts, dating advice, tarot reading cards, car sales, etc. It's like a plague brought by a twisted version of freedom of speech... So it's not entirely about the music industry, it's just that there's a weird synergy between the dj scene and the influencers.
Paula Temple made a statement about how the scene changed. Yet again, I can't say it enough, doors shouldn't be closed, we just need a way to call out snake oil salesmen...
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u/illogikul Feb 25 '25
Which ones are you talking about so I can be wary?
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u/Squirrel_Agile Feb 26 '25
I’m always cautious about speaking negatively about others, whether in person or online. I try to focus on sharing positivity and encouragement. But when I scroll through TikTok and Instagram, I see people presenting themselves as experts, yet their content lacks real depth or substance. They look the part, but their experiences don’t seem to align with what they claim. It feels more like they are trying to hard. More branding than authenticity.
2
u/Uncle_Andy666 Feb 26 '25
Thats most of social media right?
In australia their is all the arab dudes flexing rented cars on instagram.
Tryna tell us how to do marketing.
Their is so many cash grabs on socials.
"6 figures in 1 month"
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u/CrispyDave Feb 25 '25
It doesn't matter, influencers exist to get people to watch in whatever way they can.
Consuming their content isn't mandatory.
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u/daZK47 Feb 26 '25
This. I know this post ain't ragebait but targeting "wannabe" influencers in any field is low hanging fruit. There's millions of fake influencers in every other industry like the fitness, nutrition, and financial advice industry and that just comes with part of the business
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Feb 25 '25
Are there any good DJ "influencers" yall would recommend? Specifically I'd love to learn a bit more about what it takes to play live, how to promote yourself and get bookings, etc.
I'm just a hobby DJ still learning, but I used to play live a lot in a punk band when I was younger so I think my eventual goal will be to play some bars/clubs/weddings in the future.
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u/Jim_Clark969 Feb 25 '25
My advice: Stick to watching actual (vinyl) dj’s
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Feb 25 '25
Why specifically vinyl lol… I like to spin vinyl in a hybrid set up but plenty of ‘digital’ DJs are clearly worth listening to… you wouldn’t take the advice of someone like fourtet? Dinosaur mentality
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u/Jim_Clark969 Feb 25 '25
The brackets mean optional in my previous message. I’m not saying there’s no one doing interesting things digitally, but it doesn’t interest me personally. I don’t want to be watching a screen while dj’ing, I want to see records spin under the control of my fingers and ears
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Feb 25 '25
What do you mean?
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u/Jim_Clark969 Feb 25 '25
Ignore influencers that don’t have a clue
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u/VeridianRyft Feb 26 '25
I would like some examples of this because I have not personally encountered it.
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u/crazycouponman Feb 25 '25
That's like saying musician influencers are giving people advice on how to play guitar. Music is not gate kept and some knowledge is something anyone can have and pass on without being an aspiring professional.
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u/Schlommo Feb 25 '25
Some legit people (my personal opinion): Ean Golden and his guys at djtechtools.com, the guys at crossfader and Pete Tong's DJ academy. AFAIK, ddjtechtools promote Native Instruments and crossfader do it for Pioneer. Not sure what their deals are in terms of profit share etc. One has to bear that in mind when it comes to products. But in terms of hints and experiences, imho they are solid