[Dixielandjazz] DJ Getting What Musicians Always Get

[John Mumford]

I read where hotels are now offering a plug in for ipods so wedding
receptions no longer need a DJ. The wedding party just loads the songs
they want on their ipod, take it to the wedding and one of the quests
acts as the MC. The music is played through the hotels sound system. The
DJs are being phased out due to technology as well.

John

-----Original Message-----
From: dixielandjazz-bounces at ml.islandnet.com
[mailto:dixielandjazz-bounces at ml.islandnet.com] On Behalf Of Robert S.
Ringwald
Sent: Friday, April 25, 2008 9:27 AM
To: john at jazzbanjo.com
Cc: Dixieland Jazz Mailing List
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] DJ Getting What Musicians Always Get

Answer to lady budgeting $250 for entertainment for her wedding.


(snip)
 best of craigslist
re: DJ for my July wedding (You're kidding, right?)
Reply to: see below
Date: 2008-04-24, 5:04PM PDT
1) You shouldn't really ask people to respond with their "experience"
since
no self-respecting
professional will do a 6hr wedding for the compensation listed. What you
want to
pay is about half of what a quality service would charge for a 4 hour
package! So
no, you don't even have the right to ask about "experience" at all.
You're
not wanting
to hire an experienced professional, so you shouldnt expect someone
experienced at
all!
2) A dj would not be able to "throw in another gig after yours" just
because
yours
ends at 5. Look at your wedding. Its 6 hrs. long! Even assuming a 4hr.
reception
in the evening, the dj would not have time to pack up, get to the next
wedding and
set up. A wedding is an ALL-DAY JOB for a dj... not just "4 or 5 hrs of
playing music."
3) We don't WANT "fun" and "free food..." We're not there to party with
you
and your
friends... We don't want charity, and don't need our intelligence
insulted
by your
trying to convince us that you will be somehow "doing us a favor" by
letting
us go
through your buffet line. ALL we want is to be PAID FAIRLY for
professional
services
that we deliver.
4) Between meetings, paperwork, planning and preparation, loading and
unloading time,
drive time, setup and teardown, your "simple little wedding on a budget"
(yeah right....
a wedding at AHCC is NOT a "wedding on a budget!") is a 10-12 hour
ordeal AT
LEAST!
Based on the $250 you are offering, the hourly rate breaks down to right
around $20/hr.
And thats supposed to cover not ONLY the dj's time, but the usage of
their
equipment,
music, transportation etc...? Not even CLOSE!!! A senior cashier at
Safeway
takes
home more per hour than your dj would here.
BOTTOM LINE: These "offers" by people with no understanding or
appreciation
of what
a professional entertainment service provides are insulting.
YOUR BEST SOLUTION: Save your entertainment "budget" and load your
"non-offensive"
preselected music list onto an iPod and then you will be getting more
along
the lines
of what you were willing to "pay" for, which isn't much at all.
(snip)