It’s the return of the DJ!!! Party people! DJ fans! How are you?? I hope everything is okay, given these rough times. I’m personally “paddling with the current” (I say this a lot lately) and trying to keep up-to-date with my craft and continue learning–as a DJ, as a dad, as a husband, shoot…as a human being, really. This pandemic has forced me to look at myself more closely. And when I do that, I can’t help but see the wrinkles. Things that need work. Like gratitude. I mean, I’m alive! I’m here! (Wrinkles and all.) And darn it…I’m a DJ! Just…without a party. And a dance floor. But whatevs! It’s the return of the DJ!

WHAT YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT DJS

 

• DJs ain’t all the same! Some DJs get stage fright, which is…uh…you know. (Might not be the best career path!) Other DJs fear the technical stuff, including yours truly. (What has two thumbs and freaks out every time he has to upgrade his software? This guy!) And some DJs even fear talking to people. (Okay…definitely wrong career path.) We are as different and varied as anything/anyone, with the exception that we all call ourselves DJs. And wear headphones.

 

• DJs can hate their job, too! When you “work,” for money, it’s a J-O-B. You gotta do it. I gotta DJ. And I got three kids; therefore, I really gotta DJ. (A lot. Holler at me.) DJing is my J-O-B. And like any J-O-B, it’s the last thing I wanna do sometimes. Even something as cool as DJing. It can get tiring. And repetitive. Breaks are needed. But this job is the job I was put on this earth to do. And I love it. So, after said “breaks,” it’s right back to the breaks!

THE PANDEMIC DJ

 

When COVID hit and took away my dance floors, I saw a chance to take that break from the breaks. I sat down for more family dinners in one week than the whole year before. And I decided to start running. I even started knitting! (Kidding.) But eventually, pandemic reality set in. I had no gigs. Which had me bugging a bit. So…Time to get back to work! Except…There were no dance floors to come back to. And what I like MOST about DJing is connecting with dancers. And the more dancers, the merrier this DJ! Sigh. Seemingly, the pandemic robbed me of the one thing that I loved most about the career path that I chose. So…What was this DJ to do? It’s the return of the DJ…To what, exactly??

THE PLAN, STAN!

 

• Live streaming! Uh…ok. I guess. Ain’t nothin’ like DJing a party IRL! But everybody’s doin’ it. D Nice’s “Club Quarantine” is HUGE. DJ Cassidy’s “Pass the Mic” is blowin’ up! So I did it. And it wasn’t bad! (And I could DJ in my underwear.) Unfortunately, Facebook shut me down a bunch of times. So did Instagram. (D Nice had brunch with Mark Zuckerberg and got a pass.) Twitch rocks, but they’re cracking down, too. (I find it nauseating to look at, anyways.) But then comes Mixcloud. It’s the only platform you can legally DJ on, no shut downs. So that’s where I’ll be DJing. And harassing their support team. And struggling with new equipment. It is what it is. www.mixcloud.com/live/herbertholler.

 

• Sell merch! I’m on it. “Merchandising, merchandising, merchandising!” — Mel Brooks, as Yogurt, “Spaceballs.” www.tinyurl.com/freedomstuff.

 

• Create playlists! I’m on that, too. Eight so far! Way more to come! (Can’t wait until I get to yacht rock!) www.tinyurl.com/spotifyherbert.

 

• Teach a DJ class! Yup! Got an outline put together and everything. We’re gonna talk about how to DJ, how to mix, how to make money as a DJ…All that! Just need some time to make it all make sense. Stay tuned!

 

• Write a book? YUP! It’s coming. Page 43 in Word. My math says that’s about 86 pages in book talk. It’s gonna be all about DJing. DJ culture. The art of DJing. The hidden, dangerous, sexy world of DJs HAHAHAH. It’ll be about NONE of those things. You know me better than that.

 

• Open up a live-music venue?? Sigh. You read that right. Business-plan mode as we speak. More to follow. Because I’m a masochist.

BE GRATEFUL, HERBERT!

 

I just read through everything I wrote. The word “robbed” doesn’t sit right. The pandemic “robbed” me of…nothing, when you look at what it’s taken from others. I’m so lucky to be alive, and quite lucky to be here. And if you really think about it, DJing is a damn fun job. So I’m lucky to be a DJ, too!