How to Get More DJ Gigs: The Complete Guide to Booking Shows, Building a Scene, and Playing Live

Every DJ has been there. You've practised for months, you've got a solid library, you can mix cleanly — but the inbox is empty and the calendar is blank. Getting gigs feels like a closed loop: you need experience to get booked, but you need bookings to get experience.

The truth is there are multiple paths to playing live, and you don't need to follow any single one. Whether you're a natural networker, a bedroom producer, someone who hates social media, or a DJ in their 40s wondering if they've missed their shot — there's a path that works for you.

This guide combines proven approaches into one complete playbook. Use what fits. Ignore what doesn't. But whatever you do — stop waiting and start creating.

The Foundation: Relationships and Networking

Be Yourself and Build Real Friendships in the Scene

The most important thing you can do when trying to get more gigs is simply go out, be yourself, and make genuine friends with people.

When Kiki first moved to Miami during the pandemic, she hadn't even started DJing yet. She was just practising at home and didn't tell anyone she wanted to be a DJ or that she was learning.

She just went out, listened to good music, and little by little started making friends with people. This is something you've probably already done if you love music, so just keep doing more of that.

Get out there, network, and go to the places that you want to play at. Get to know the people who work at the venues, get to know the DJs that are playing there, get to know the labels and promoters that are throwing parties there.

Over the months and years you'll just simply get to know these people as normal humans. Eventually it will come up in conversation that you love to play music too. When they're going to make the lineups for their next events, you'll be one of the people who's top of mind.

Get a Job or Volunteer at the Venues You Want to Play

Getting a job or volunteering at the places you want to play is one of the most underrated ways to get booked.

You can go to work at a venue, work with promoters, or work for other DJs. So many people who were just starting out as beginner DJs were able to get booked simply by volunteering to work at venues or for promoters for free.

Some even did it by taking photos and videos of other DJs. When Kiki first started going out, she would take stories of DJs, post them, and retag them so they knew who she was — and then they started following her.

There's a guy who does videos for a club, he's a DJ, and he actually gets booked at that club and at its festivals. Of course he's a good DJ, but really it's because he knows them, works with them, and already makes videos for them.

There's also a story from the Josh Baker podcast where someone wanted to get into the industry and simply applied for a job at the Warehouse Project in Manchester. The rest is history. Just asking for a job is a really good way to get started.

Get Involved in Local Nightlife

If you want to be involved in nightlife as a DJ, you need to start showing up now — no one's going to know who you are if you stay at home.

Chances are if you like music, you've already been going out to clubs. It was probably the parties you attended and the music you heard that inspired you to want to DJ and play for other people in the first place.

You really need to spend a few years not getting very much sleep and going out and genuinely supporting people. Not just because you want to get booked there someday, but because these are the places you like to hang out — this is your community and you genuinely enjoy being there.

Cast a Wide Net and Ask as Many Places as Possible

The more places you ask to play, the more likely it is that at least one of them will say yes — it's just simple numbers.

Think about booking a doctor's appointment. If you call one doctor's office, chances are they won't have any availability. But if you call three, five, or ten offices that all provide the same service, chances are at least one or two will have an opening.

The same logic applies to getting DJ gigs. Whenever Kiki travels internationally, she reaches out to venues that look interesting, promoters she follows based there, and clubs she'd like to contribute to. That's how she's been able to play in so many different countries.

You never know who's watching. They might see you post from somewhere and then invite you to play somewhere else, and it kind of creates this snowball effect. It also plants the seed in your mind that you are an international DJ — someone who can play in all different environments.

Make a list of all the venues you want to play in your hometown, the promoters you know, the local record labels, and the radio stations. Then just reach out to them. Tell them who you are and why you want to play there, and always make it about them and not you.

Send them playlists or even go there in person. DM places on Instagram, email them, call restaurants and ask for the booking manager's contact info. Getting booked as a headliner in Las Vegas happened exactly this way — just looking at clubs and reaching out.

Pro tip: When you reach out, always make it about them, not you. Talk about why you love their venue, what you admire about their events, and how you can add value to their lineup.

The House Party Network: Getting Gigs Without Social Media

Most DJs aren't getting booked because of social media — they're getting booked because of relationships, and that hasn't changed.

A lot of people are saying if you don't have a big social media account, how are you expected to get shows? And honestly, that's going to pretty much screw you up if you hate social media.

Let's say you're over 40, perhaps you don't know anyone, and you're thinking to yourself, does that mean am I locked out of playing live altogether? Like is this idea of playing live just like a pipe dream?

You go online, everyone's looking young, everyone's posting, everyone's got a brand. And you're feeling, well, if I'm not part of that, have I missed my shot?

Back when I was booking events every single week for about 17 years, sure, if I knew someone could bring a crowd, I would look at them. But the majority of DJs that I was booking were people that I knew, people that I trusted, people I'd played with.

What the House Party Network Actually Is

This is one of the most underrated ways to start playing live, and it's what I call the house party network.

This isn't just playing the odd house party. This is an idea that I've personally come up with on my own, and I know firsthand that it works.

You find two to five DJs. They can be your mates, they can be people just starting out, they don't need a following, they don't really need experience, they just need a willingness to play and a love for music, and hopefully be someone that you like.

Instead of waiting to get booked, you create your own gigs. Each person commits to throwing one party a year, so that's five parties per year, and you can throw it in your house, your backyard, your garage, it doesn't matter.

Even if there's 10 people there to start with, that's enough. And if you've got five of you, that's five events per year, and you're all playing every single one.

You're getting real gigs without social media, without promoters, and without asking for anyone's permission to play.

Why This Makes You a Better DJ Faster

The DJs who improve the fastest are the ones that have got a show they're working towards — they've got a goal.

You've got a stream of shows, you've got five per year at least, you've got something to work towards. You're not just messing around on the decks anymore, wondering what to practice next, you're actually preparing for a set.

That means they care more, they practice more, and they actually follow through. Because you've got multiple events, you don't fall off — you finish one show, and then you're straight into preparing for the next.

How to Theme Your House Parties

You can theme each party to make it something people are genuinely looking forward to.

You could have Afro house where everyone gets dressed kind of in an Afro vibe, you could go a '90s party, even a techno bunker party, even a sunset session. Whatever you're into, get creative and make it fun.

Why House Parties Can Beat Club Gigs

Some of the best sets that you're ever going to play may not even be in a club.

Don't get me wrong, I love playing in clubs, but house parties and private parties sometimes feel more personal. The other night, we had some mates over, and we thought, do we want to go out, or do we just want to hang out here and just play music?

We ended up staying in and playing in here for 8 hours straight, and honestly, this was so much fun. In my opinion, sharing music and DJing is one of the best bonding experiences there is, and that's the energy that we're building here.

Let's say you've got a gig at a club, and you're the first DJ on the lineup, and you're playing in a huge space with only 10 people there — honestly, it can feel kind of defeating. Yet when you play small spaces, small crowds pack them, and honestly, the energy can be insane.

How the Network Grows Over Time

Imagine that energy spreading across your entire network — 10 turns into 20, 20 turns into 30.

If everyone brings a few people, suddenly you're running regular events that people are raving about, and from there, more opportunities can start showing up. People are going to hear you, and if they like your sound, they like your vibe, you could start getting invited to play at more similar style of events.

And that's actually how this builds.

What to Do If You Don't Have a Place to Host

You can hire a small space — a function room at a bar, a community hall, a yoga space, or rotate between whoever can host.

Try not to overcomplicate this. Keep it simple and aim to make progress through taking action, not by thinking about what you should do and finding reasons why you can't.

Just do it and figure it out as you go through real life experience.

What to Do If You Don't Know Any Other DJs

If you don't know any other DJs, just start with one person — that's it.

Perhaps you could teach a friend, or find a friend that maybe wants to learn to DJ. Once you have another person that's keen, perhaps they know someone that also knows how to DJ, or someone that wants to learn as well. Before you know it, there's already three of you.

Trust me, once you set your intention to run a house party network with other DJs, and you actually believe in it, you're going to attract the right people. There are so many DJs out there in the exact same boat as you, and if you run the house party network idea past them, before long your problem won't be having enough DJs — your problem is going to be that you have too many people that want to be involved.

This idea has legs, and it's a great way to not only get gigs and share and even develop your sound, but also to network and build a community of like-minded legends.

Creating Your Own Opportunities Beyond House Parties

There are places everywhere you can play once you start looking for it.

You could go small bars, cafes — even up the road here there's this small pizza bar that operates in a car park, and you could just go up and be like, hey, can I play some music here for a few hours? You can do it for free, at least until you're adding value to the event.

You can use each gig as a chance to get experience, increase your network, and meet people. When you play and you're a DJ, it's easy to connect with people. I find being a DJ opens up all these opportunities naturally, but the real key to your success is to start, not think about it.

Pro tip: The best places to start are small businesses with no sound system — cafes, bars, pizza joints. If you bring your own speakers and offer to play for free, you're solving a problem for them, not asking for a favour.

Create Your Own Events

Hosting your own events is a surefire way to get booked because you get to book yourself.

You can book yourself as the headliner if you want, or as the opening act. So many famous DJs started out this way — people like Richie Hawtin.

In hosting your own events you learn all of the skills. You learn marketing, how to become a promoter, how to book other DJs, how to reach out to headliners, and how to deal with clubs, venues, and payment.

Most importantly, you learn how to bring people together to enjoy the music you want to share with them. That skill of knowing how to build a crowd and bring people — whether it's to a house party, a bar, a club, or a major festival — is going to serve you throughout your whole career.

Get Really Good at Bringing People to Gigs

If you're always the one bringing a huge guest list and selling tickets with your promoter code, venues and booking managers will take notice.

Other DJs will take notice too, because they want to bring people together and build a crowd. If you work on that skill of being able to bring people to clubs and venues, it honestly doesn't really matter how good of a DJ you are.

All that matters is that you're selling tickets and you're selling drinks. Don't worry about trying to play the perfect set or spending hours practising and putting together playlists — spend those hours promoting your event and making sure all your friends are coming. You're going to have a great time and the rest of it will work itself out.

The Content and Social Media Path

Why Content Is the Most Important Thing a DJ Can Do Right Now

In today's DJ landscape, content is king, marketing is king, and putting everything out there for the world to consume is king.

If you're a producer, make tracks and spread those tracks to everybody you know — and especially to people you don't know. You have to make as many tracks as it takes to get where you want to be. Whether that's 10 tracks, 100 tracks, or all the tracks, so be it.

Post those things on all your social media accounts. Make sure the right people hear it, and make sure you grow a following in the process.

Why Growing Your Follower Count Directly Affects Your Bookings

If your numbers of followers, listeners, listens, and views grow, your chances of getting booked will also grow.

As a DJ and as a creative, you always have to capitalise on what you're good at. If you're good at mixing, scratching, and doing tricks, then capitalise on it.

Get your phone camera, get a video camera, get any camera, and record yourself doing your routine. Record yourself doing your mix and post that up on all your social media channels.

Build an Audience and a Brand on Social Media

Having a following and building a brand can get you booked even if you have absolutely no DJ experience — because venues care about who can sell tickets.

Whether you're a Twitch streamer, an athlete, or Paris Hilton getting booked to play at Tomorrowland, it doesn't matter how good you are as a DJ as long as you have the skill of being able to sell tickets and bring people into the venue.

You can give yourself a challenge like posting one Reel per day on social media for 30 days. Choose TikTok, Instagram, or start a YouTube channel — anything you can do to find your community of people, the ones who like the music you play and vibe with your personality.

Over time you're going to create a fan base that wants to see you play in person and wants to meet you in person. If you don't already have a huge profile in the industry, it's going to be really hard to break through without any kind of social media presence. So choose a platform that works for you and go for it.

Social Media Is Optional — Building Something Real Is Not

Social media can help, but it's not the only way, and if you don't enjoy it you're probably not going to stick with it anyway.

Instead of forcing it, build something real. If you want to DJ, you don't need permission to start, you don't need followers, you just need a few people, great music, a willingness to play, and somewhere to play.

Start small and build your own scene. And the funny thing is, if you still want to play in clubs by doing this house party network first, you're going to build the experience, the confidence, and the network to be able to pull off whatever comes your way.

Maybe after doing this and organising these house parties, you may even choose to run your own club event and take your new DJ mates with you. Remember, the path is made clear by walking it.

Elements of an Online Profile: Everything a DJ Needs to Promote Themselves Online

Once you've built relationships and started creating content, you need a home base for your online presence. This section covers every platform a DJ should consider.

Don't get overwhelmed. You're meant to get this stuff slowly over time. Most DJs haven't got all of this stuff and never will, and that's cool.

There are only a couple of things which are really important, and we're gonna start off with those.

Your Website: The Heart of Everything

Your website is your little place on the internet — it feeds out to and back from all other services.

Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Mixcloud, SoundCloud — your website connects to all of them and back again. It's also where your contact details are so people can get in touch with you.

No one can take your website away from you. These services come and go. They fall in and out of fashion, but your website is yours forever.

One page will do, but preferably a few more pages. Your website should cover why you got into DJing, who you are, what your services are, and a contact form is perfect.

Your Email List: The Secret Weapon

Your email list is the secret weapon of DJs who promote themselves properly online.

You need to have a list of people who you email regularly. The best way of doing this is not to use Gmail or Outlook, but to use an email list provider.

They give you forms that you can plug into your website so people can fill in the form. They also give you automation, so you can say every month send out something — you can put emails in there in advance, or you can just say on month one send them this mix, on month two send them this, and it will just do it automatically for you.

People sign up and it does it without you doing a thing. It doesn't have to be complicated. MailChimp is one option. Tiny Letter is even simpler — that's another one you could try.

The email is the gold standard of getting people to do stuff. If you want to get someone's attention, put something into their email inbox. It's absolutely no surprise that all the wonderful social media services email you when they want you to do something. Everyone checks their emails. It works on everything and it's not going away anytime soon.

Social Media Profiles: Where to Focus Your Energy

You want at least a couple of social media profiles beyond your website and email list.

Here are all the different places you can claim on the internet that are going to help you in this promoting yourself quest.

Instagram

Instagram is currently the darling. It's a great place to post behind-the-scenes stuff — behind-the-scenes pictures when you're playing gigs, stuff behind the DJ booth, packing your car, anything that people wouldn't normally see about what you do.

Little videos are great, and Instagram Stories are far, far more — ten times more effective apparently — than Instagram posts. If you can do tiny little Instagram Lives, even better.

Instagram is about letting people behind the scenes. It's about showing people little things about you as a DJ that they wouldn't normally see. You're gonna go to a record shop because you want to find some records to play on your controller — that's really interesting to people. Take a few photos, do a little video, do a little live outside the shop.

It's all that impromptu behind-the-scenes stuff. It might appear mundane to you, but it could be really interesting to your audience.

Facebook

Facebook was once the darling. It's kind of fallen from grace a little bit, but it's still massively important. Use a Facebook page rather than your personal Facebook profile — go into Facebook and set up a page for you which is separate from your personal stuff. That's really important.

Keep an alternative version of your homepage here. All the stuff that you would normally put on your website, put a copy of it on your Facebook page. Facebook has got an About section, a Contact section and all that — populate that with all the stuff that you would also put on your website.

Facebook is a good place to share links to all the other services we're talking about here, in the same way that your own website is. It's also a good place to share other people's stuff.

One of the things about promoting yourself online is that you're gonna get more coming back to you if you are generous to other people. When other DJs, when clubs, when magazines, when bands you like do stuff that impresses you, post about it. Facebook is one of the great places to do that, because of course you can't easily post shared links on Instagram — it's just a more limited platform.

Twitter

Twitter — some people it's great, some people not so great. If you're a person who likes writing a lot, writers tend to like Twitter. Twitter is good for starting and joining in conversations. It's good for asking questions as well.

If you've got a little following of DJs and you follow DJs and you need help with something, Twitter can be a good place to get that help and to test the water on stuff. I like to think it's the text version of Instagram — it's the throwaway stuff, it can be the behind-the-scenes stuff, but you don't need pictures.

Instagram you've gotta have a picture or it's nothing. On Twitter you just want to quickly say something without much thought and see the things other people are saying without much thought. It's always a good place to jump on the top of breaking stories because Twitter is the breaking news channel.

If you don't want to have one of these channels, I'd say Twitter is probably the one you might not want to have at all.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn could be completely out of bounds because of your day job. If you're using LinkedIn for your day career, you really possibly don't want to get your DJ stuff on there at all, and that's absolutely cool.

If you are not using LinkedIn in your day job — indeed if DJing is important enough to you that it's going to become your main job — then it can be a smart place, especially if you want to court corporate work. Because guess what, you might be just another DJ everywhere else, but trust me, on LinkedIn you're going to be the coolest kid on the block.

LinkedIn is deathly, deathly dull. So you go in there and start posting DJ stuff in a way that appeals to corporate customers, corporate clients, people in your city who might book you, your local administration or whatever. You promote this kind of acceptable face of DJing on there, and you're immediately the coolest kid on the block.

LinkedIn is a place that you might want to consider using, but most DJs don't.

YouTube: The Second Biggest Search Engine in the World

YouTube is kind of social media and kind of a search engine — and you definitely want a presence on it.

This is the place to post anything official that you make. If you've got someone who can make a quick video about you, or you make a quick video yourself — they're not too hard to make nowadays — a little promo video, this is where you want it to live.

It can also be used for DJ mixes. Do be aware that a lot of people get away with it — there are channels that just post DJ mixes and they seem to get away with it, other channels don't fare so well. You can get away with posting little DJ mixes. It's probably best to post demos, but expect them to be taken down.

What normally happens on YouTube is you get told off a little bit but ads then just appear on your mixes, or the mix gets taken down. It's not often you get the copyright strikes — at the time of recording this anyway. You have to get three of them and your channel gets taken away, and that doesn't happen very often in my experience.

However, you've got to be careful. You've got to be aware that posting copyrighted material is definitely a grey area on YouTube. But little DJ demos and stuff — get your camera above your decks, get the sound out of your decks into some kind of digital recorder, put the lot together and post it on YouTube. This can be immensely powerful to show off your skills.

It can be used to post your own productions if you're a producer. Any old video will do — just take your webcam, hang it out your window with your laptop, go like this a bit, post your music with it. Just get something moving. People even post audio only — that's a little bit lame, but don't think you can't post your own productions on YouTube.

It can also be a great place, especially at the beginning of your career, to post vlogs, to post free tutorials, advice, tips. As you go through your DJing journey you will come across problems, and you'll solve those problems — stick your camera on, record it, just use your smartphone, and stick it up on YouTube to help people along the way.

There's a rule here: show people your journey. You don't have to show them the finished result — show them your journey. You will attract viewers and you'll attract fans that way.

Even if you haven't got anything to post on it at all, at least get your YouTube channel set up and get it ready for the time when you have.

Mixcloud: The Only Legal Place for DJ Mixes

Mixcloud is currently the only legal place that you can post DJ mixes — and everything you post there will stay there.

You post a DJ mix up here and it will stay there. People can't download it. It is a bit of a DJ echo chamber — in other words, there's only other DJs on there, so you are gonna need to promote your mixes elsewhere.

But if you want a URL, a profile, a place where your mixes and stuff hang out online so you can put it on your business card and on all your other websites, then it is the place to do it. Because guess what, everything you post there is gonna stay there. It's a channel that is reliable. Mixcloud for your mixes is kind of a no-brainer.

SoundCloud: Great for Productions, Risky for Mixes

SoundCloud has a huge reach for DJ mixes, but posting them there carries real risk.

You can get away with posting your mixes on SoundCloud in a lot of instances. A lot of people's mixes stay up there forever. The trouble is, some of them don't, and some people have even had their channels closed down. So beware if you're going to do it.

SoundCloud is a lot better for your own productions. It is the place for you to post music you've made yourself. The grey area of course is remixes — that kind of thing is the same as posting DJ mixes. You could easily get slapped.

There's an awful lot of stuff up there that's been up there for a long time and no one's ever been told off for posting it. So again, you just gotta tread carefully on SoundCloud.

Other Sites Worth Claiming Your Name On

Directory sites and DJ profile pages are worth signing up for even if you never get work directly from them.

If you're into mobile or wedding DJing, there are directory sites like Wedding Wire or The Knot for weddings, for instance. Other directory sites depending on your country and your kind of DJing — you will know the sites, and if you don't, a bit of Googling in your country or region will show you them.

You might never get work from them. You might not even care if you ever get work from them. But guess what, it's another listing when people Google your name on that front page of Google, which is what you want.

There are other sites like Resident Advisor — you can get a Resident Advisor profile. Beatport lets you have a profile as well on their site. So you can have a little page on there with your DJ stuff.

Anywhere else that DJs have got profiles, spend half an hour signing up and getting up there. Because you're getting your name there, you're getting your picture there, and you're getting some other little corner of the internet claimed for you. You'd be amazed, after signing up for everything pretty indiscriminately, how many of them push up to that front page of Google when people search your name.

The Minimum Viable Product Version

If this all feels overwhelming, here is the bare minimum you need to set up and nothing more.

You're gonna want a one-page website. A single page — your name, your picture, one sentence, and a link out to your social media services. You can manage that.

You're gonna want a little form on that website if possible, linked to a very simple email provider. And they're free — Tiny Letter is free for like 2,000 signups or something. That is totally free and that is not beyond you. Get that set up. Trust me, you're gonna thank me for making the effort to do that now.

You're gonna want one single DJ mix. You're a DJ — a DJ mix is never gonna get you work on its own, but you have to have one. You have to have a mix that you can push people towards and say hey, go have a listen — that's me. So you're gonna want one DJ mix, and you're therefore going to want to register on Mixcloud to get that mix up.

And you're gonna want at minimum Instagram and Facebook. The rest of it — Twitter, LinkedIn, even YouTube — it can wait. But definitely Instagram and Facebook.

Instagram gives you the chance to post the throwaway stuff, the behind-the-scenes stuff, the quick photos from your phone. Facebook is good for the kind of longer-form stuff — you can post whole videos on Facebook, you can post articles on Facebook, it's a little less throwaway than Instagram. And of course Facebook works in and out for sharing as well.

Those two, combined with your website and email list, is enough. If you can add in YouTube because it's just so important nowadays, great.

One thing that you're gonna want if at all possible is at least a good picture of you. You can take an awesome photo on your smartphone — you don't need anything else. Just get someone to hold that camera and do the photos. Do your hair, get your best clothes on, get yourself out in daylight somewhere cool and get a few photos taken. Chop them up and use the same photo shoot across all your services.

Use a logo if you've got one. Use your DJ description — just write a one or two-sentence description about who you are and what you do. Get that everywhere.

The Production Route

Focus on Music Production If Nightlife Isn't Your Thing

If sleepless nights aren't for you, focusing on production is a completely valid route to getting booked as a DJ.

It's kind of like the chicken or the egg — producer or DJ, DJ or producer. Some people start with producing and then get booked as DJs without even really knowing how to DJ, just because they produced amazing tracks.

A lot of producers didn't even know how to DJ when they first got booked. Some went straight to the top, getting booked at major festivals without playing any smaller gigs first.

Ideally you'll have an idea of what kind of music you want to make and a sense of your sound. Then you can send your tracks to all the friends you've made while networking and meeting people, and they can support your tracks and play them in clubs. That's the circle of life of the music industry.

As a bonus, if you start your own record label to release your own tracks, you can also release other producers' tracks — people you admire or look up to. When you support them, they will in turn support you.

What to Do If You Can't Produce Music or Scratch

"I don't know how to produce" and "I don't know how to scratch" are just reasons — and reasons are not enough to stop you.

Everybody who is successful in life showed the world and the universe their tenacity, their passion, and their drive to succeed. They use what they have at their disposal to get what they want.

If you're a good producer, use your crappy laptop to make great music. Use Apple Loops, use everything at your disposal to get you where you want to be. If you're a DJ who just mixes, then get good at it, start recording it, and start producing content featuring just that.

Does a DJ Need a Record Label to Get Festival Bookings?

You do not need to sign with a record label to get booked at festivals or clubs.

What you need is content, a growing following, and the drive to put yourself out there consistently. Bookers book DJs whose numbers justify the booking.

Develop a Unique Identity and Live Set

Standing out as a DJ means thinking carefully about what makes you different and what you bring to a lineup that no one else can.

Are you just somebody who goes around with your USB, sticks it into a CDJ, and calls it a day? Or are you somebody who uses different types of equipment — external effects, an Ableton Push, a different type of mixer, or a live set?

If you spend the time and dedication to learn how to produce a live set, you'll get a lot more unique bookings and you'll also get paid more for those bookings.

Think about what type of music you want to share with people, what resonates with you, and then how you can take that to another level. Not just downloading the top 40 hits on Beatport, but what can you do that's a little bit different?

Can you incorporate your own production, singing, or spoken word? Maybe it's something about your appearance and the way that you dress, or your performance — maybe you wear a mask like Marshmello. What is it about you that showcases your uniqueness as a human being? Make yourself irreplaceable, adding that little bit of something extra to every event you play at.

The Real Story: How DJ Carlo Went From Zero Bookings to a Full Calendar

In 2014, DJ Carlo placed third in the world at the Red Bull Thre3style World DJ Championships — and almost nothing happened immediately after.

He competed against DJs from every country in the world and finished third. He thought his life would be set, that clubs and festivals would line up to book him the moment he landed back in the Philippines. Nothing happened.

What eventually led him to where he is today is the content he made. He thinks of that content as stepping stones to his success.

At first, he and his friend Vince Cabrera made videos that got around 500 views and a couple of shares. Those videos weren't easy to make. A lot of quality and work went into the routines he wanted to showcase.

At times it felt depressing to see the numbers, to see no bookings in his email, and to see his phone not blow up. He didn't want to give up. He still believed that if he made enough videos, made good quality content, and made routines and mixes that people would want to share, he would get somewhere.

Eventually, he made a video featuring the Chainsmokers song "Roses." The next day, the Chainsmokers saw the video, reposted it on their own social media channels, and the video hit a million views. Suddenly, his calendar was filled with gigs.

In that moment, the lesson was clear: content is king, and consistently putting out work is the most important thing you can do as a creative.

Stop Waiting Until You're a "Perfect DJ" — This Is the One Thing You Should Never Do

The number one mistake DJs make is hiding out trying to get perfect at their skills while ignoring everything else that actually gets you booked.

There is some validity to the concept of being so good that people can't ignore you, but that also takes a lot of time. The more DJ gigs you play, the more you fail, the more you mess up — and that's how you actually get better.

The other day the cue button got accidentally hit and stopped an entire set. Things are going to happen. The more gigs you go out there and play, the better you will be as a DJ.

It doesn't matter what level you think you're at right now, because a few months from now you're going to look back and think that mix sounds terrible. Far too many people hide out trying to get really good with their skills and ignore networking, making friends, and building their audience — because they think it should be all about the music.

The more impact you can have, the more gigs you play, the more people you can reach — that is really what the music is about. It's not about just being at home being a perfect DJ.

At the end of the day, all of this starts with a decision. Do you want to wait, or do you want to create? So set a date, plan your first party — you've got this.

House Party Network: Quick Reference Summary

DJ Online Profile Checklist

Complete Summary: All Paths to Getting DJ Gigs

Key Takeaways

DJing is one of the most competitive things you can do right now, and setting yourself apart with your uniqueness and your numbers is key.

Think of every track, mix, video, and routine you make as a stepping stone to your success. If you make enough of those that get enough traction and enough numbers, you are going to be a successful DJ.

Practice hard, make the content, and don't give up.

The path is made clear by walking it.