As weird as Flavor Flav is, he knows the importance of time
WHAT DOES PROFESSIONAL MEAN?
Arriving early really means something. Today, I just wanted to spend a little time giving out my thoughts on DJ’ing this past weekend and why professionalism matters.
We had five gigs this weekend. I personally had an awesome wedding in Esperance, NY way up on a mountain on Saturday and Sunday was a Sweet 16 in Schenectady. The wedding came off without a cuff, but the Sweet 16 brought about something worthy to blog on.
First off, it is safe to say that if you want to be successful in life, you have to put in the extra time. We have found that one thing that helps us to get a ton of gigs over other disc jockeys, and one thing that makes for a successful party is …to BE EARLY.
UP TO TWO HOURS EARLY? Yes. Being “on time,” is not good enough. That is why I often prefer to be up to an hour and a half to two hours early to set up for important events like weddings, corporate events and sweet 16s. This gives me enough time to problem solve the unexpected and pay attention to fine detail so everything comes off without a problem.
At his particular Sweet 16, one of the kids wanted to be “DJ Helper.” When this happens, I play along and let them take a few unbreakable things from my car and bring them into the venue with me. While unloading a few gear bags my Jeep Patriot, I pushed my door shut with my hip. The helper kid from the party tried to follow my lead and help me by also shutting my passenger door on the driver side… right where my keys were sitting. When the door shut, the electronic brain of the car thought I was in the car with a large portion of my unloaded gear. Therefore my car decided to help me, as well, by locking the doors.
If I hadn’t been an hour and a half early, I would not have had time to call the police, then the Sheriff, then a towing company to finally find a person available to unlock my doors and let me unload the rest of my gear. If I wasn’t early, I wouldn’t have had enough time to still set up and have everything come off without skipping a beat.
The party still came off and with a tip at the end, to boot! (And the tip just about covered the tow truck fee!)
Looking for an alternative wedding reception site for your special day?
Last Saturday afternoon, I was the DJ for a fun wedding at Camp Scully on Snyder Lake in the North Greenbush / Wynantskill, NY area. I have provided entertainment before at the pavilion at Snyder Lake Beach, but never at the neighboring Camp Scully. It’s actually a nice little place!
Camp Scully Wedding
With Camp Scully having a bunch of camper cabins for bridesmaids and groomsmen to get dressed in, lots of grass and a pavilion of its own with Snyder Lake as a backdrop, it really is a neat little alternative for a wedding location.
The camp also has a volleyball court if you want to sport things up on your special day.
Another plus… you can bring in your own catering service and save tons of money!
