Can we just discuss how some EDM and big room DJs not only got that big in the first place, but also how they remain headlining huge festivals when they have done nothing for the past 15 years. I’m sooo confused 😂.
Every single DJ who supports you is important no matter how big or small the artist. Every show play, radio spin or playlist helps share your music with new people so you should always be grateful. If you want ongoing support be respectful & show your appreciation to everyone 🙏🏻
Whether you popped on tiktok
Whether you local DJ’d for 20 years
Whether you had 1 big hit
Whether you started 6 months ago
Whether you’re mates with a big DJ
Whether you blagged a good manager
Whether you’re a bedroom producer
Who cares? You’re doing it, please carry on 🚀🙌.
I get demos rejected, tracks refused, missed off line ups on a daily basis, rejection is a massive part of music for us all. Don’t be put off by this, use this to drive you. Your determination is what will make you stand out from the rest. Never stop trying.
Smaller DJs & producers are by far the most sustainable & rewarding supporters. They grow with you, champion you & expose you to specific pockets of fans that would almost be impossible to reach any other way. Make sure you’re grateful to these guys, they are super important 🙏🏻.
Remember I invented Chapter & Verse from absolutely nothing when I was 39 years old. If you have a dream, no matter what is, just remember it’s never too late. If you’re willing to work & are committed to succeeding you will always find a way 🙏🏻.
Never understood why DJs turn up to shows like 15 minutes before their sets. I like to turn up at least an hour before I play. See what the crowd is doing, check out what the DJ is playing and get in the mood. What you guys saying?
I dunno about anyone else but if I hear the DJ before me play a track I’ve got in my set list I just don’t play it. Even if it’s 4 or 5, I take them all out. I don’t want to play the crowd something they’ve already heard like 10 minutes before. Thoughts?
An A&R told me that I have to be ‘realistic’ with the collabs that I aim for. I absolutely have to do nothing of the sort. I shall stay being delusional thank you.
Any of my DJ friends be interested in a free pack of C & V edits for shows? Drop me a comment let me know guys. If there’s enough interest I’ll get to work.
When labels automatically refuse a track because it uses a
@splice
sample just remind them - John summit Deepend, Creeds Push it, Navos Believe Me, DJ Snake Taki Taki - All over 100m streams 🤫
Please don’t judge people by their position on a line up. The majority of the time the difference is the fanbase & the pull the artist has, not their ability as a DJ. Go early, leave late, support everyone 💙.
Has anyone noticed that DJs around the same size as you stop liking and commenting on your posts but still follow you? I wonder what the reasons is, it’s very bizarre to me 🫤.
Don’t send your music to labels and wait months for them to get back to you, they may never reply at all. Send to the biggest labels & work your way down the pecking order until you get signed. Not everyone will agree with this method but it works, I’ve tried & tested it 🤝.
Some labels will release anything you send because they want you on their label. Others will release nothing because they don’t want you on their label, irrespective of what you send. Making good music isn’t enough, you gotta make them want you too.
Thinking about doing a sick free to enter competition for beginner - intermediate DJs where you can win courses, plugins, help & advice from me, a release on my level & DJ hardware. You guys down? 🙂
If you do not share, comment or like your friends or peers things on social media you are just being weird. Why wouldn’t you support someone in the same industry who is trying to be better? There’s no reason why we can’t all work, grow & be great together 🙏🏻.
Some labels won’t sign your music ‘cos for whatever reason your face doesn’t fit, you don’t kiss the right arses or you’re not in their clique. Don’t beat yourself up, honestly those labels aren’t important, keep going & find your home even if you got to make your own 🙏🏻.
Been making the best songs of my life from
@splice
samples. Don’t care what anyone says you got the same chance with a sample from splice as you have with a great top line.
Remember you can wake up on any given day and make a song that will change your life. You don’t need to be a superstar producer, you don’t need a big following but what you do need is to keep trying because that’s the only way it’s gonna happen. It is possible and it can be done.
The best way to deal with demo rejection or lineup exclusion is to go about your business and show them what you are made of. Believe me they will be watching 👀.
You can support your fellow artists for absolutely nothing by commenting, liking or sharing their content. Interact with your peers, it really does help 🫶.
You might have heard your own tracks 1000 times and they may be a bit boring to your ears but remember the crowd are hearing it in the same way you did the first few times. Don’t be afraid to play your own music, people will love it 🙏🏻.
The industry is hard. It’s surrounded by gatekeepers & people that will purposefully ignore you & try to block you & your career. Do not let this stop you. Do your own thing, build on your fanbase & keep going. Focus on yourself, your music and believe in yourself. You can do it.
If you ignore me until I’m really big I’ll fully take that as an apology and welcome your support with open arms. Some people are late to the party, others will only support you for what they can get but a supporter is a supporter so never cut your nose off to spite your face 🤝
Artists large and small use
@splice
. If you get your record rejected because it uses a splice vocal what the label actually means is you don’t have enough fans. Let’s be honest.
You’ve got to be prepared to work your ass off for the smallest of wins and be grateful for what you get; a demo or radio play, a comment or like or even a message open, everything is a win. If you’re willing to grind & repeat that process every day, you’re in with a chance 💪.
Believe me this job is a complete roller coaster. You put yourself out there every day and you get ups and downs, that’s just how it is. Don’t worry about it, embrace it, it’s all part of the process 💫🙏🏻.
Build your fanbase with fellow DJs and Producers. Help & support each other & spread positivity & you will be rewarded in so many different ways. That is the kind of energy you need surrounding your music 💙.
Grow your music, fanbase & streams until people have got no choice but to book you & play you on their shows. Fuck the gatekeepers, haters & politics. Do not let them stop you. In the end the streets talk, the numbers do not lie & people will go wherever the business is. Fact.
For whatever reason I didn’t get booked for anything during EDC week but even if I had have been I’d have had to cancel due to illness. Instead I’ve got an almost full US tour in the summer which is absolutely perfect timing. Crazy how things have fallen into place really 💫🙏🏻🥰.
I got sent 30 tunes from an unheard of guy & honestly they’re all good. I bet there’s so many of you guys out there. Half these A&Rs are lazy man just singing stuff off profiles & virals. Atom Bomb gonna be so different to this.
You don’t need to belong to a club.
You don’t need to be in a clique.
You don’t need to kiss peoples arses.
You don’t need to involve yourself in bullshit politics.
You don’t need to do what labels say.
Be individual, be an artist, do what you want.
Best advice I can give anyone is to keep releasing quality tunes on a regular basis, even if you don’t see them as being perfect. Don’t go round in circles forever, if you get a big tune you’ll probably know about it in the first hour. Keep trying new sh1t til you hit 🏅.
I know it’s hard to get anyone to listen to your demos, nevermind get on labels & shows but you got to keep creating, sending, asking & banging at the door. Be patient & embrace rejection because it’s doing you the biggest favour by forcing you to get stronger, better and grow 💪
No matter what you are going through or how you are feeling, just remember you can fight and you will win. Keep believing, keep working your ass off and never ever give up. Empower yourself in this way and nothing or anything can stop you 💫.
Working my ass off to finalise my label so I can give the best possible service to those who trust me with their hard work. I’ll be creating a wicked brand, using the best promo companies and putting everything I got into this. There will be zero politics with me that’s a promise
Never quit because you can’t get on a label or event. Never quit because you are being purposely ignored or excluded. Never let them win that way. Things aren’t always fair, you don’t always get what you deserve but stay strong, be relentless & keep working. Your time will come.
Most people get to 30 & think they’re too old to or it’s too late to follow their dream. Don’t let this stop you. Don’t stop working, grinding & hustling cos you’re doing what you’re doing for a reason. There is always a way through if you believe.
My response to every label who says no to a demo I send is ‘no problem, back soon’.. I get knocked back single day but I carry on and I keep going because that’s the only thing I know.
Most people have got no idea what a CDJ is, nevermind what the buttons do. All this banging on about quantize, sync & fader etc needs to stop. The listener DOES NOT CARE. You do not need to criticise others to make yourself feel better. No one cares about your 12-10s. Bore off 😴
When people come to see you, play as many of your own tracks as you can. As my own biggest critic I know that can be tough sometimes, but trust me, give the people what they want to hear… YOUR music 🫶.
If people unfollow you why would you care? Every day I lose 50 followers and I’m happy about that, because they aren’t the followers I want & it improves me interaction rates. Concentrate on retaining the valuable ones and naturally more will follow 🤝.
In general, if you support other artists, they will support you back. I put a lot of my success down to the mutual support of my peers. Keep supporting each-other guys, I promise you good will from other artists will really help you grow 🤝🙏🏻.
If you follow someone make sure you support, encourage and celebrate them. Following someone but not doing any of the above is kind of damaging because people know you see them, yet don’t support them. Don’t be weird. Support your friends & peers whenever you can 🫶.
I dunno why some people get ‘Big’ and stop supporting everyone else. Really confuses me how you wouldn’t keep supporting those who helped get you there in the first place 🤔.
Trust me when I say you do not need to be under anyone’s wing to succeed. You do not need handouts from bigger artists & you do not need a free ride from a major label. Do your own thing, believe in yourself as an artists and you will get there by your own merit in the end.
If you keep pushing and keep trying eventually something has got to work. If you give up you’ve literally wasted every bit of energy you’ve used getting to where you are. Never give up, keep going and it’s a matter of time.
If I don’t get shows (even though really I should be on some of these lineups) I take it as an opportunity to stay at home and make more banging tunes, meaning people trying to slow me down are unknowingly speeding me up so thank you 🤝😂
If you notice someone putting themselves out there why not go & support them by dropping them a comment, like, share or sending them a message. It will costs you absolutely nothing, gives people people much needed reassurance & even gives you a little bit of good karma too 👊.
Bigger DJs be getting tossed off for playing 1 new ID in a set. I see smaller DJs play full sets of their own new music on a weekly basis. Be nice to see some of the bigger media outlets champion those people too 🙏🏻.
Don’t beat yourself up trying understand why you can’t get on certain labels, festivals or shows. The politics in music are deep & things aren’t always fair, that’s just the game we’re in. Concentrate on your music and your fanbase and let them do them talking long term 💪.
Best advice I can offer any touring DJ who has no late check out and a late flight is to find the nearest movie theatre and find longest film you can find. $10 well spent 🤝
Never be too big to support other artists in the same industry. We are all in the same business and it’s cool to support everyone. Remember, you can always make a difference to someone 🙏🏻💙.
No matter what level you are at, remember nobody is any better or worse than you. Do your own thing and enjoy your journey , after all nobody is better at being you than you 💫.
If you follow someone and stop supporting them because you perceive they are doing better than you, you are a total loser. That’s so lame man. I’m sorry it’s got to be said.
I like and comment on everything, I message everyone back, basically I’m a busy body because I want as many people as possible to know me and my music exists. Yes it is very time consuming but this industry is hard and you got to keep pushing and stay in peoples faces 🎯.
Music is so disposable now & there’s just so much of it you can’t just release 1 or 2 decent tracks & expect it to see you through your career like in the old EDM days. You got to release quality, cutting edge music on a regular basis or drop on a big hit, both are hard work.
You don’t have to be cliquey. You don’t have to belong to a gang of music snobs who think they’re cool. You can be approachable, open minded and respectful of others. It’s much better to be like that.
I don’t wanna make tech house like everyone else, I wanna make weird new stuff that gets noticed. When you’re doing that it really is hit and miss but I believe in the sound & my vision so I’m gonna carry on regardless 🙏🏻.
When sending demos do yourselves a favour and send radio edits. I been doing it wrong for so long and sending full extended versions out. Save some time and learn from my mistake 🙏🏻😂.
If you want to work in music get used to people taking 3 weeks to provide the answers to the most simplest of questions. Everyone’s either on holiday or too self important to reply 😂.
You don’t have to be commercial, you don’t have to be underground. Just be yourself and do your own style and stick to it. Do not be bent by others, make and play what you want 🙏🏻.
If you’re on the music scene in any way the chances are you are working your ass off. People don’t know what goes on behind closed doors and they have no idea what it takes to stay relevant. This space is massively over crowded so big up to all my amazing musical peers 👏🔥.
Remember guys, in just a few hours you can achieve more than you’ve accomplished your entire life. You could get that show, make that record, sign to that label. You just never know. Keep going, keep working & keep believing because today might just be that day 💫🙏🏻.
Don’t be scared to post things because you’re afraid of how many likes you’ll get. I’ve found it’s better to post something than nothing, even if you only get a few likes or comments. Anything is better than nothing imo 🤝.
Just a little reminder you can help out your fellow artists by liking, commenting & sharing their posts on social media. It costs nothing, takes literally 2 seconds and can mean so much. Go support your friends & make them feel good 🫶.
Social media is tough right now & so many artists depend on it to get their music heard. Make sure you take the time to interact with your fellow artists; comment, like & read their posts whenever you can. It’s totally free & it makes all the difference to posts being shown ❤️.
Play what you like, not what everyone else plays, don’t get caught up in being like everyone else. Be individual, be yourself & be noticed. Sometimes it’s risky but it’s a risk worth taking. That’s how you stand out from the crowd.