A DJ’s guide to gigs

• By DJ Tom Oleson
• 02 Mar 2011

Ever wondered how DJ’s get their gigs? Tom Oleson, aka Trol23 is a London based DJ, producer, and clubbing editor for Spoonfed. He’s part of DJ collective Disco Shed, and recently started Sindica, a Music PR Company. He talks to MOO about getting work, self promotion and why every freelancer needs a good Business Card.

Hi Tom. When did you start DJing?

I started collecting records from the age of 11 – the first one I ever bought was Public Enemy’s Rebel Without a Pause! When I started DJing in 1995, there was no online music sharing– it was still all mixtapes and CDs. I got into the drum n bass scene through skateboarding and graffiti, and started doing warm up sets at club nights and raves around Oxford – my first gig was at a placed called The Cellar. I’d give my tape to anyone and everyone to get more time on the decks.

Fifteen years on, I have regular gigs all over London, like The Big Chill Bar, The Book Club, Vibe Bar, and East Village and I’ve been lucky enough to open for some amazing acts like Mad Professor and The Nextmen.

How do you find work?

Being a nice person and working hard helps! But I mostly find work through a network of friends and contacts in the industry. It's no different to any other business in that respect.

Having a staff job within the industry or connected to the industry is also really useful for finding work. Working for Spoonfed, I have contact with promoters and have relationships with a lot of the people I want to approach for work. Most of the successful DJs in London all work for labels, promotional companies, newspapers or websites.

Did you have to be pushy to start getting paid?

Everyone is a DJ these days, not just record nerds – the market is totally saturated and people get paid less as a result. So you absolutely have to be pushy in order to get time on the decks, let alone be able to make a living out of it.

If I'd worked in any other industry for as long I'd probably be making much more money! Very few DJs make their living exclusively from DJing these days though, even some pretty big names have to have their fingers in a lot of pies or they'd be on the road 24/7.

With that in mind, do you have to take self promotion seriously?

Self promotion is everything! Most DJs are their own agents and you've got to sell yourself. How do you book that gig over someone else? Being better helps - but in reality it's more about who you know or who you can get to know.

Networking is key – which is why having a Business Card is crucial. If you’re asked for a card and you’re forced to admit you haven't got one on you, it looks lame! I know everyone just uses their phones these days, but nothing beats physically putting a card in someone's hand - particularly if it's quirky and a talking point. It makes you look professional and organised.

What kind of marketing style works for you?

I prefer guerilla style marketing, probably because I have a background in graffiti. Stickers are such a good way of covering the city in your logo quickly. Look at someone like Only Joe - they're a great band but I doubt I’d know their name if they hadn’t plastered every bare surface in London with an Only Joe sticker.

When it comes to promoting events, I prefer to use social media and direct mailing to our mailing lists. I need cards because I’ve started a new Music PR company, and I want to be able to give people I meet (via writing for Spoonfed) a card that reminds them that I'm not just a DJ and a journalist. Also as a lot of my networking gets done in fairly boozy situations, it's more likely people will remember you through a card, than a random “guy from the bar last night' in their phone.

That’s why ideally, I’d have three cards in my pocket, all with the same contact details - but branded differently.

How else do you promote your music?

I love SoundCloud – it’s the easiest, cleanest way to share music online.

Mostly I use it as a collaborative tool – I’ll often put up half finished stuff for people to critique or for people I'm working with (or want to work with), to get an idea of a track. I love the look of it too; the fact that you can see a waveform and skip to breaks in tracks, and the fact that there's a community of producers and DJs on there who are really supportive of each other's work.

Tom Oleson, aka Trol23, is the clubbing editor for Spoonfed, and part of the DJ collective Disco Shed. You can listen to his music here

Are you an aspiring DJ? Then you’ll probably need some Business Cards!

Written on:

02 Mar 2011

Categories:

Networking