What is a Disc Jockey?

A disc jockey, or DJ, is the person responsible for selecting and playing music for a club, party, radio station or for any other type of audience. A disc jockey introduces the music and usually gives an interesting fact or brief bit of information about the artist of the track. Like every other profession, there are several different types of disc jockeys.

Radio DJ

A radio disc jockey introduces and plays music over a AM, FM, digital or internet frequency. They usually are governed by tight restrictions from the Federal Communications Commission.

Club DJ

A club disc jockey chooses and plays music for clubs, bars, nightclubs and raves. They have more freedom and the focus is more on mixing tracks and controlling the energy level of listeners.

Mobile Disc Jockey

A mobile disc jockey is more like a radio DJ than a club DJ. The difference is that they travel or go on tour with movable sound systems and tend to play for a specific audience. An example would be Armed Forces Radio DJs.

Disc Jockey History

Ray Newby of Stockton, California was the first radio disc jockey when he started playing records over a small transmitter in 1909. DJs hit their prime in the 60s and 70s and exploded in 1981 with the launch of MTV and the video jockey.

Common Disc Jockey Equipment

Sound recordings are the most important piece of equipment for a disc jockey and come in the form of records, mp3s, computer media and sound files. Computer media players are another essential tool. Toss in a sound system for amplification or broadcasting, headphones and a microphone and a DJ tool kit is complete.