Career: Disc Jockey

A Day in the Life
Whether you’re a disc jockey for a radio station or a nightclub, the best aspect of the job is the creativity that it allows (and even requires). Radio disc jockeys play music, chat, deliver news, weather, or sports, or hold conversations with celebrities or call-in listeners. Club DJs mix music, sound effects, and special effects and occasionally provide chatter between songs. Each DJ must be in command of his or her specialty genre of music or demographic of audience —and sensitive to listener responses. A radio disc jockey must be able to spin off on an item in the news or a hot new song. “I think about how things connect,” said one. Being extremely organized and synchronized is critical to the radio station. Songs must fill a certain span of time; commercials have to be aired during specific blocks. Disc jockeys must be able to coordinate what plays when within time and audience constraints while on the air. A radio DJ must build an audience. Most DJs specialize in a specific musical genre, have a consistent approach, and field calls and requests from interested listeners to develop a consistent, loyal listening public. Since only one person is usually on the air at a given time, the DJs get lonely. More than 75 percent of our surveys mentioned “isolation” as one of the biggest drawbacks. A club disc jockey keeps regular hours, usually working from 8:00 P.M. to 4:00 A.M. Most DJs don’t socialize regularly with people who do not keep the same unusual hours. Isolation, again, creeps in. Club DJs must keep the crowd interested in dancing, so they must know a wide variety of styles and songs that appeal to different groups. Record promoters and agents try to flood high-profile DJs with new albums, hoping to provide exposure for their acts. More than 40 percent of all DJs work part-time and find it difficult to land regular, reasonably paying gigs. Many club DJs move to large urban centers to find a market that will support their services, but it’s still difficult to get hired initially without a following that you can be expected to draw to the club.
Paying Your Dues
No specific educational requirements exist to become a disc jockey, but most radio disc jockeys have experience at college radio stations or in small markets; others intern while in school to learn the equipment used in the industry and to get a taste of the style of successful radio personalities. Many aspiring disc jockeys create tapes of their shows and save clippings to use as introductions to professional radio stations. Radio jockeys must be familiar with current or specialty (subgenre) musical trends and how specific songs fit together. They must be able to fill empty space with information and have a clear, clean speaking voice and a certain amount of technical skill. A club or nightclub disc jockey must know how to mix beats so music progresses smoothly, how to design a night of music around a specific theme or requested type of music, and how to use lighting and special effects to best advantage. As first introductions, many DJs must work free at established clubs on off nights. Close contact with record promoters is important in getting unreleased demos or other songs that can distinguish you from other DJs. DJs trade on their reputation, so staying current with musical trends and responding to listener feedback is critical to success.
Associated Careers
More than 60 percent of DJs rotate from one position within the radio industry to another, moving to news anchoring, call-in shows, specialty shows, and sports shows. Another 7 percent write copy for radio broadcasts, television broadcasts, and newspapers. Club disc jockeys move to careers in the record industry, primarily as liaisons between other DJs and the company itself

What is this job like?
Disc jockeys, sometimes called "deejays," put music on the radio. They also talk about the news, sports, and weather. Sometimes, they make commercials, talk with guests, and tell what's going on in the community.
Disc jockeys work for radio stations. Usually, they work in small rooms called studios. These rooms are air-conditioned and soundproof. But it can be lonely. Full-time disc jockeys talk on the radio 5 or 6 days a week for about 4 hours at a time.
Most disc jockeys need to be able to ad-lib, which means talk without notes. They also need to keep track of time so that they can fit music, talk, and commercials into a strict schedule.
But the job is more than talking on the radio. Every day, disc jockeys must prepare for the radio show. Many disc jockeys write or edit the scripts that they read on air. Sometimes they write commercials too. Some disc jockeys find people to interview. And some make public appearances at schools and parties.
Disc jockeys at small radio stations often work with equipment to play music and adjust sound.
Because many radio stations are on air 24 hours a day, disc jockeys usually don't work regular hours. They often start early or work late.

How do you get ready?
It is very hard to get a job as a disc jockey. Classes in broadcast journalism at a college or technical school can help. Classes in English, public speaking, and drama are also good. Radio stations want to hire people with good speaking voices, correct grammar, and strong writing skills. Learning about music is also useful.
Experience is very important. Students can get experience at school radio stations. Beginners often start out in another radio job. They might record interviews or work with equipment.

How much does this job pay?
Earnings are higher in large cities than in small ones. The middle half of all radio and television announcers—some of whom were disc jockeys—earned between $7.43 and $16.81 an hour in 2006. The lowest-paid 10 percent earned less than $6.16. The highest-paid 10 percent made more than $27.61 an hour.
How many jobs are there?
Announcers held about 12,000 jobs in 2006.

What about the future?
Past and Future
The first commercial radio station started in 1920 as station KDKA, broadcasting from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. During the “golden years” of radio (the 1940s), radio personalities were paid as much as movie stars and treated with the same celebrity. Club disc jockeys reached their apex in the mid-1970s/early-1980s, when disco was the craze and nightclubbing was de rigueur for those in social circuits. Radio stations are finding it cheaper to buy nationally syndicated shows rather than produce their own, so opportunities for radio DJs could shrink in the coming decade. Successful club DJs will always have followings, but opportunities for success could be limited by an uncertain market for clubs.