adminBruce Ndlovu Showbiz Correspondent
DJs, since time immemorial, have been universally accepted as the life of a party.
A DJ is the nerve centre of the party; he/she dictates how a night will turn out for club or party goers. Give the reins to an incompetent DJ and it will most likely turn into a damp squib as the morale and verve of those in attendance deflates.
Music is the oxygen of a party and hence the DJ’s abilities can dictate whether an event lives to see the morning or suffers a slow death before dawn.
This is the mantra that rules in Bulawayo as it does in any other part of the globe. However, in the City of Kings, those who man the decks do not seem to be getting the rewards that their talents demand. In a city were factories and shops have closed, the financial crunch seems not to have spared the city’s DJs, who seem not to be able to command the wages that are due to them.
Various reasons can be cited why the city’s DJs are not able to reap the rewards that come with the big crowds that frequent the city’s clubs. For one, with the advent of new technology, it is no longer hard for any Jack and Jill to try their hand at being a DJ.
Software like Virtual DJ makes it easy for anyone to practise the craft and hone their skills without professional help. Through trial and error, any individual can now learn how to rock a party, regardless of the genre that their audience prefers. This has in turn led to the increase of the number of DJs in the city, with all of them fighting for a few slots at the city’s clubs and pubs.
Prominent city DJ and member of tribal house music quartet, Djembe Monks, Sir Black Cee, believes that this is a scenario that has led promoters and club owners to take advantage of young DJs who are willing to play for the mere fame that comes with being a DJ.
With so many DJs in the city, promoters, he says, can thus shun experienced DJs who demand a fee for their services.
According to Sir Black Cee, a skilled DJ, who can play on actual decks rather than a laptop, is no longer a prerequisite, as promoters just look for someone who will keep the music coming regardless of how poorly it is mixed. He believes that, while promoters used to look for talent at their shows, they have decided to cut their losses and do whatever will bring them the most profit. This has spelt financial doom for city DJs.
“The industry has certainly changed as promoters have stopped looking for talent but instead focus on making money off ticket sales. In that case talent becomes secondary as all they look for is a caretaker DJ who will play music, no matter how badly. It is now all a game of numbers, simple as that,” he said.
A survey of some of the city’s popular clubs revealed that resident DJs can earn between $50 and $80 while in some pubs the DJs divide the door takings among themselves.
While an experienced DJ like Sir Black Cee can get paid because of his work with the popular Djembe Monks, the situation is even harder for younger DJs who see patrons flood through the doors of clubs while the money does not trickle down to them.
The city’s club scene has become a jungle, and with so many DJs on the prowl, younger DJs have become the sacrificial lambs that keep the industry’s wheels turning but earn little for the effort that they invest into their work.
DJ Tick Tock said as an up-and-coming artiste, whether or not you get paid on a particular day depends on whether you are in good books with a club owner. It also depends on the number of people that get into the club on that particular night.
“It’s really hard because in most cases you barely get paid. It depends on who you are and your agreement with the club owner. If on a specific day people do not show up at a club, you won’t get paid anything,” he said.
Tick Tock said the key to survival as a young DJ was to build a name by gaining popularity first. His fear was if they were to start playing in the city for free, it would set a precedent for promoters to exploit the free labour DJs and young artistes in the name of “exposure”.
However, local promoter, Joe Da OG said he believed the fault did not lie with the promoters, but the sheer volume of DJs who are now mushrooming in the city through the use of Virtual DJ on laptops instead of actual decks.
In his opinion, no one wants to be on the dance floor anymore, people now crave the DJ booth.
derick.khumalo