The Laptop DJ By Ron Bouchard

What DJ wants to spend the whole night searching boxes of records or rows of Cd's in order to find that one requested song that you know you have, but seems to have disappeared. Multiply that by 20 or 30 times a night along with searching Individual albums or CD jackets for songs to keep the dance floor packed and you have a night of frustration along with the fact that your not spending your time Interacting with the audience and dancers. If this reminds you of your DJ gigs then read on because there is a better way.
 

Early in my career I dealt with 45's and albums. Crates upon Crates of discs that I lugged to and from the

van. Most of the albums had only one song on it that I would be using. Many discs I had not used for months. You've got to have them all because after all tonight might be the night that somebody requests that one song on that long forgotten disc. I have backaches to this day just thinking about it.
 

Finally about two years ago I decided that there had to be a better way. Certainly Cd's had made my life easier but a few thousand of these can be quite a hefty load in and by itself. My next move and the smartest one that I've made, is the day that I decided to be a Laptop DJ. My nights became fun again and I never looked back.
 

Being A laptop DJ, It was now possible to “carry” thousands of songs on my laptop hard drive. Only weighing about 7 pounds the laptop made it possible to get rid of two CD decks, 6 or 7 boxes of creates, use a less bulky mixing board and gave me Instant access to any song needed in about 10 to15 seconds. I used an inexpensive DJ software program called OTSDJ. This allowed me to be able to “pick and click” “Drag and drop” song titles into a play list. I could instantly add DJ Drops, Sound Effects, Beats, Intros and DJ Samples in between the songs. This allowed me to make announcements or to Interact with the audience and if I needed a break the show went on as I had programed. Being a laptop DJ allowed me to finally be able to spend the time getting the dance crowd moving, creating excitement and entertaining, instead of hanging my head down searching for those most numerous requests that every DJ gets. You can even program a a few seconds of dead space between songs so that you can make announcements. How about programming the wedding music so that you don't need to stand on stage for a whole hour and a half playing background music. There are so many ways that being a laptop DJ will help you through the night.
 

Today I have a lot more fun DJ'ing. My back hurts a lot less from not lugging tons of DJ equipment and songs and because I'm more in tune with the audience and interacting with them, I seem to get more work . Along with the songs I can use different voices in the mix. I do this by creating DJ Drop Voice overs in my studio and adding special effects to create a sweeper, just like you'd hear on the radio. Inserting them between songs means I can take a break and go out into the crowd to take requests or take a much needed bathroom break at the other end of the hall. The DJ talk continues in between songs and the crowd loves it. The club owners see it as more professional. No more skipping records or discs that refuse to play. My life as a Laptop DJ continues to be the best move I've ever made.
 

Now if your into intricate mixing techniques then this might not work for you. It's not a fix all for every type of music. But if your like me and the main things is to keep the dance floor filled and no dead space between songs, then a decent DJ laptop and quality Software Program might be what you need to set you free. It takes a little time to set it up and to load all the songs but after your done with that DJ'ing is a breeze. Get a few props, dance on your speakers, take your wireless Mic and DJ from any part of the room. Your audience will be partying with you, not wondering where the excitement is.