How to Get Started as a DJ

I've been DJing (mostly in clubs, okay almost entirely in clubs when clubs would book me) for about 6 years now and can at least tell you how to get started.

Step One: Equipment

You have two choices depending on budget, either get a cheap mixing software (which I wouldn't recommend getting immediately this comes later) or find the cheapest set of CD-J's (with built in mixer preferably) that you can. Only one feature is good for this set, Autodetect BPM. Once upon a time DJ's had to calculate and memorize the Beats Per Minute of each song in their heads if they wanted to mix the way they do in the clubs today. Today the decks do all the math for you, but more on this later. What's important right now is that you get your hands on the worst piece of equipment you can find. This is what you will be practicing on.

Step Two: Practice

This sounds more rigorous than it is, what you're really doing is fucking around. Find some crappy house techno (I don't care if you like it, you need a 4/4 beat around 120 bpm and don't you dare go any more complicated than that) and pop it in then fiddle with shit until you get an idea as to what the hell is going on. Leave no button unpushed or knob unturned.

Next you're going to attempt to mix two songs together, this is why you wanted something crappy. Use auto-detect to get the two songs at the same pitch and just get used to the timing and practice timing the songs so they blend together as seamlessly as possible. You see, all the best DJ equipment can literally do all this for you. It leaves you with more time to focus on your levels, effects, or even running multiple tracks together on a four deck set up. But the technology isn't perfect, some songs can confuse the software and sometimes it just doesn't work (or is available.) And if you don't acquire this skill you won't be able to compensate. Maybe your audience will never be able to tell the difference but believe me other DJs will and that could hurt you as there's always competition.

Practicing on bad equipment helps you in another important way; learning to deal with equipment failure, which happens and often. When I first went to digital I had a buddy who was still running CD-J's. The club we were booked at told him that he could just use the house set (which he'd used before and liked) so he came planning to do so. The house set was down that night; he couldn't spin. 

One night I was asked to patch into another DJs mixer but I had lost the proper cable to hook my decks up, while a friend hunted down the right cable for me I spun off a set of loners that was actually worse than the first decks I spun on. Because I had spent so much time practicing no one noticed that I sandbagged my first set, so I was able to make it up for the second set and packed the floor (I even recorded it.)

So practice with shitty music at first and as you become more comfortable with mixing and beat matching start using the music you like to hear. It's vitally important that a DJ love what they spin. DJs who are passionate about the music they play always spin the best sets. The ones who are bored and just going through the paces are plainly transparent.

Step Three: Mixing Software

This is where it gets better. After spending hours upon hours messing around with your crappy decks move up to a cheap or free mixing software, since now you know the basics you'll be able to pick up the software pretty quickly. Mixxx is free (I've never used it) I would suggest Virtual DJ because its cheap ($50) either way these will give you a better idea as to what a good set of decks can actually do. And here's where you'll want to make your first big decision:

Step Four: To Laptop or Not to Laptop

There's little difference for all but the best DJs and the truth is that most decks like OP is using can be run as controllers. The big difference is that if you already have a decent laptop, then running off your laptop is cheaper. But if you have the cash for a good set of decks (and the cases to protect them) you'll find them more versatile and give a better sound. I run off my laptop because I'm poor and already own a laptop. Though I wouldn't turn down a good univeral Numark decks. Yeah...that's some good deck.

So right about there is where to start. DJing can be as fun and rewarding as you like. Matter of fact, once you learn the basics DJing can be as easy or difficult as you like. If Steve Aoki or Tiesto have taught us anything it's that you don't necessarily have to actually spin to play a big crowd, or to get them dancing. So if you're going to spin, why not have some fun with it? God knows you're not really needed.