The Right DJs in the Right Order

The art of creating the right DJ lineup for your event

Creating a magical night of social dancing is not a simple task. While we could spend an entire post on WHY it matters what DJs you bring (and consequently, why you should pay for great DJs), I hope what follows here will at least explain a little better what makes a great night of social dancing and how it can make your event stand out. To dive a little bit more into the how and why of creating the right line-up, lets first talk about the general party flow.

Though each party is different, and each event might have a particular flavor that is celebrated or expected more than another, there is a pattern to a usual zouk social. My experience of this general pattern is of course governed by what I have experienced or learned from others. Based on that experience, below are the parts of a typical zouk social that goes from 10pm-6am (for sake of example).

10pm-12am: Getting it Going

This slot is to get the party warmed up and ideally to get people to start dancing right after the shows. It should be relatively beginner friendly and ramp up the energy into the prime time slot without trying to over do it. Leave some room to go up for prime time.

12am–2am: Prime Party Time

This is usually considered “prime time” and should usually be a well know DJs who can ramp the energy and really get the party rocking. Certain events might focus on a different vibe. If that is the case, this slot can go to a DJ that fits that specific vibe.

2am–4am: Story Time

Ideally this is what I call the storyteller’s slot. Usually, It needs to be something that gives a contrast to the party vibe of prime time without losing the energy and forward momentum of the party. Whem parties die, its usually right here. They either just spend an extra 2 hours in “prime time” vibe, or the storyteller loses the forward momentum of the party. It should probably be no surprise to most of you that I prefer this slot — more on that later

4am–6am: Finish “Correctly”

This varies widely, especially depending where in the world you are, as well as how long the party actually goes. In Rio for instance, I am told you will ramp the energy back up and basically burn the dance floor down to send everyone home tired. In North America, closing is often down tempo music that ramps downward ending with a fade out instead of a bang.

While Interfusion is definitely a unique event and it is not a purely zouk event, there is a zouk room and the DJs there were all very accomplished and well known. There was a lot of thought that went into both who the DJs would be, and where they would play in a given night. Note that it is pretty easy to correctly line up a set of DJs for a single night, but to do it over 3–4 nights without having it be the same party each time, is very challenging.

To explain this fully, we need to note something about the individual DJs first. While I could write entire blog posts about the amazing DJs I have gotten to work with (and I might at some point) I am going to stick to just mentioning what I consider their superpower as a DJ.

Superpower: Does anyone groove better than Chuky? I certainly don’t think so. He manages to mix groove, with Rio beats and traditional ghetto zouk in a way that is distinctive and widely appealing.

Superpower: The perfect chameleon. He can literally walk into a room and know in 3 min what the next song needs to be. He will never mess up your party and can adapt to any room all across the world.

Superpower: There is this vibe that I honestly cannot describe with words that Tom finds. He manages to weave RnB and old school with such groove and sauce. It is truly a vibe I am continuing to study because I do not have access to it — but those of you that have heard him know exactly what I am talking about.

HAHA I am 100% NOT going to talk about any superpowers here. All I will say is I like telling stories, and I do not often enjoy playing “prime party time” vibe.

Superpower: I mean have you heard his mixcloud sets? They are good enough and famous enough I literally don’t have to say more. He can create an atmosphere and loves to bring the downtempo flow.

Superpower: Hands down the most versatile DJ in North America. He has the ability to ramp up to the most banging party atmosphere, move us into lambada, or even chill us out and dance all night. I literally cannot say enough about Vinny.

To give an example of programming I will use a schedule from one of the nights of Interfusion 2020. The schedule was as follows:

Notice how this flow plays in to the strengths of each DJ as well as also provides a good example of the typical flow that a party is looking for.

Chuky knows how to get things going and provides good rhythmic material for both beginners and advanced dancers alike.

Power then kicks off the “party time” vibe and can literally handle anything that the room could ask for.

Fro-yo can take that energy and continue it while bringing a little bit of a different perspective.

Rx then has the freedom to tell a story now that everyone has gotten their fill of the typical party vibe. This is the only reason I was able to create something magical, because the DJs before me set it up.

Ian then gets to slow things down and build off of the story that Rx told.

Vinny then closes the entire event (it was Sunday Night). Because of his versatility, he is equipped to handle either of the two types of possible closings for a party as discussed above as well as adjusting to anything that has happened in the night. Plus, you always want to give the closing set to a veteran that can create a lasting impression of your event.

This schedule was not created haphazardly. After Christian (creator of Interfusion) and Gui (zouk program director of Interfusion) selected the DJs, they enlisted Efosa (a community member familiar with the DJs’ styles) and me to set up the schedules for each night. Our suggestions went to Christian and Gui for final sign off. While it may seem like a lot of work for “just the DJ schedule,” it is that attention to detail that can `sets events apart. Knowing the best DJs to hire, the right mix of different types of DJs, and how to set the nightly program up for success is an incredibly important part of running an event.

While much of this is tailored to organizers, there is a piece for the DJs reading this. Something that can greatly increase you ability to be hired and grow your success — be adaptable. I know you all notice that DJ Power gets hired at literally every type of event. This is because he can play in any slot, between any two other DJs and be equally as effective.

Imagine for a second that you have three hours of social dancing and the three DJs are Lorde Feifer, DJ Amigo, and the creator of Neo Zouk himself. While this sounds like a dream to me, many people would not have a great time because you have three masters of a very similar style. Could they adapt to still give a good night of social dancing, absolutely, but you would not be setting them up for success by putting them back to back to back. This is an example of having three great DJs but not the right programming.

As a DJ you have to be flexible and realize that if you prefer to play only traditional music but you are placed between two people that play predominantly that, you have to adapt and be what is needed on the program for the night. Some will say “what about my sound, I am an artist,” but part of the artistry is adapting your sound to both the crowd and the larger program that you are a part of. Ideally, this is taken into consideration when the lineup is set, but you must be flexible for when it is not.

Great zouk socials have an ebb and flow. This is highlighted by picking great DJs and then programming the night such that each DJ gets to play to their strength and lean in to what makes them great. While you may think that people will show up to the congress no matter who the DJs are, I promise there are people that are evaluating the DJ lineup when deciding what events to attend. Further, for people that are planning marathons, imagine taking what is discussed here but expanding it even more. The DJs are the soul of a marathon. Lastly, even at weekenders, the DJs matter. Take a cue from Deblin: Create a stunning DJ lineup for a weekender in Portland and draw a massive crowd because of it. The quality of social dancing is greatly affected by the DJs.

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