What do you pay your DJ?

[Jallen0]

I was thinking about this and wanted to throw it out there. Just looking at getting an average amount...and of course feedback.

[Michael Black]

What's the average set up and spin hours that you are basing this on?

[Jallen0]

Hm Let say working from 9:00pm - 1:30am

Set-up is mixer, cd/turntable units (30 minute set-up time max) but not speakers or amps.

[grpubboss]

justin,l pay my guys for 3 hours 11-2am and are college guys(with there own company and l pay them $150.00,and they are grateful for the fill in pay during the week that they otherwise would not be working.
Karaoke 10-2am he gets $200.00 sometimes a bonus $50.00 depending on how busy/sales were.He uses his laptop monitor and plugs into my speakers.
The other djs just bring their own laptop or can use my computer loaded with mp3s and videos,mixer cd player_basically the house system!!!!
One more thing-my place is only 1200 sq ft so pay l think is proportionate to the income capacity of the size of the venue.l would say a bar that is 3000 sq ft and can fill a room will generate more income than say my place and therefore the bar should /would be willing to pay a bit extra.Bar owners base everything(most things) on what revenue was earned during a night.

[Jallen0]

I think that for your place that is about the average. I think however (as more people answer) you will find that the payscale doesn't move up as much as you would think it should.

But you did say something interesting. You place a higher value on the Karaoke person than on a regular DJ. He can make up to $250.00 per night, depending on sales...and he still uses your equipment as well.

What does he do to command the premium (based on your DJ's)?

[grpubboss]

He uses his own mixer and computer,and just plugs a wire into my speakers.The value of him is he has been with me for 7 years and we have had almost an exclusive busy night on wednesdays compared to other bars that are dead on that night,and as a sign of loyalty and reward l think he deserves it! l am not saying it is because of him as a dj that our night is good(it mabe just the promotion and we are known for it) but he must be doing something right that people keep coming back!.But this justifies your previous statement about paying a good dj what he is worth.l can see the worth to me on my bottom line,so it is worth me paying the extra to keep myself and everyone happy!!!!!

[Jallen0]

But this justifies your previous statement about paying a good dj what he is worth.l can see the worth to me on my bottom line,so it is worth me paying the extra to keep myself and everyone happy!!!!!

That's what I wish many more nightclub owners would see as well.

[scott1988]

If I may add a little to this.............

I too think it's interesting that a karaoke host makes a little more than the music DJ but as you're both saying, it's what "justifies" it that makes it make sense. The reason I'm saying it's interesting is because "typically" DJ's have been getting a little more than karaoke people.

I'm curious about a comparison to a host that brings in ALL of their own equipment versus bringing in just enough to "plug and play". Grupboss, would you pay even a little more to someone that would bring in ALL compared to some equipment or the same? I'll assume you would pay a little more because as you mentioned, it seems like it's been justified by the higher sales over the last 7 years. But I'll assume that it's sort of irrelevant because you already have your own sound system. I was just curious??

I think what is important to point out is what was already mentioned. The size and/or capacity of the place. If a place is only 1000 or in this case, 1250 sq. ft., it only has the ability to make so much money. And if the case is that it regularly makes "x" amount of $$'s on that night, bringing in entertainment other than what's there might only bring a little more in sales. Possibly not enough to justify the pay for the entertainment coming in. On the other side, if a place is 2 or 3 times the size, then they may be able to justify it. Actually, they should be able to jusify it with more sales. If not, then there's something wrong with the entertainer/host or promotion.

A little tidbit about karaoke (that I'm finding) is that karaoke really needs to be held at a place that is not quite so big for a few reasons. Well, actually, only one reason really. If a place is too big AND a lot of people want to sing, it won't reap the benefits of higher sales due to a few things. The reason is, typically in an hour, a decent host can get between 13 and 14 people up to sing. Maybe 15 to 16 if they're pushing and people are paying attention. So, in a 4 or 5 hour night, they might only get 65 to 75 people up to sing. If a place can hold 200 or more people AND a lot of the people that are there want to sing, then everyone will have to wait for 1 to 1 1/2 hours to sing. Maybe longer if they get there late. Now I've been involved in the karaoke business for a while so this is not something new to me but I happened to go to a place the other night and this exact scenerio happened to me. Now, I wasn't mad because it's just the way it goes and I get it but because the place had a lot of singers there, I had to wait an hour and 45 minutes to sing. The place held about 175 people roughly and the rotation of singers wasn't duplicated. It was fair and I didn't see anyone sing twice before my turn.

If the person understands that there are a lot of people ahead of them, then it's fine. But if they don't understand karaoke and how the rotation works, they may get upset at having to wait and as a result, not buy that extra drink and even leave. Thus, not as much sales as a person who gets to stay and sing 3 or 4 times a night. That's why karaoke can be difficult at times.

Now obviously, the idea is to have one singer bring a group of friends so the ratio is kept at 10% to 15% singers compared to total bar crowd. This way, everyone gets to sing more than once and not have to wait forever and be happy and keep drinking getting more sales. But, too big a place WITH TOO MANY SINGERS may not get these results. Owners be aware of this.

That's why DJ's typically work better in bigger places (in my opinion) versus karaoke hosts and vice versa. Just my thoughts. Yours?????

[Jallen0]

Well I bring in all of my own equipment usually (not speakers and amps). Most clubs that I work in do not have the DVJ's and Pioneer mixer that I use...so it usually takes me 30 - 45 minutes to set-up in a new club. And that's assuming that they have the video wired back to the DJ booth.

With clubs that I have a long-term agreement with I usually charge $350.00 per night. One off's are more of course. Think about this for a minute...the $350.00 is $100.00 or so over the "usual" average...is it worth it? Well last summer I spent a few months at a place and their weekly income increased by almost $10,000 after 4-5 weeks. I was there for 4 nights a week, established a "regular" vibe, added videos, established a promotion schedule, and rotated the floor correctly.

Owner spend an extra $1,000 or so per week and saw a return of approx $10,000 per week. That worked for everyone.

[scott1988]

That's the point.

Owners "pay attention" to the man.

[alshorses]

We have 2 DJ's, one starts around 6 till 11 and another 11 to 3AM. Each get about $200 per night. I guess thats about average?
Al

[grpubboss]

Scott,l would expect a dj to have all his equipment including speakers when l hired them,however to make it more attractive and l guess time saving for them l give them the use of my in house system,so l guess it is favorable for both parties with me being to negotiate a less expensive fee and the dj compromising with not having a full set up.
Also l usually give a dj 4-6 weeks to see an improvement in sales/crowd if l see a noticable difference l usually give a pay raise of around $50.00 because l have seen his worth.Obviously there will be a cap or max the bar can realistically make,which the owner will know what that figure is.When he reaches it or is close enough then thats when he has a good thing with his dj and should reward him so!!!!

One more thing,my karaoke guy puts a list of next singers upon the screen,so they know when they are singing next,and he doesnt get harrassed from the customer asking when he is singing<hope this helps!!

[HYDDYN MAVURIK]

The club I worked for: paid the DJ $500 (Friday/Saturday nights). The Karaoke guy who came in on Tuesday and Thursday nights got $300 on those nights.

Promotion/ "Event" Director got $5,000/month. Let's just say that he didn't stay too long. My bosses learned that lesson.

[alchemybar]

We use bands and soloists/duos more than DJ's but the going rate is between $450-$650 for a DJ - roughly 10pm to 2am.

[BigFatLiar]

$150 per night for me

[BigFatLiar]

Agreed.. My place is 100 capacity and I am sticking with a karaoke (who also does a little DJing in between). Bands overwhelm the place and like you said, the sales don't justify the cost. I'm thinking about getting some college acoustic guitar types to fill in here or there.

I also learned there is a big difference BMI/ASCAP/SESAC-wise between licensing a karaoke guy versus a "DJ".. Much more for the DJ since your place automatically becomes a "dance club".

I'm new here, btw... Hello all!

[scott1988]

Hey Big Fat Liar, welcome to the board.

**Not trying to hijack the thread** but wanted to let you know I'm in your area (around Lincoln and Omaha) and just wondered if you would like to talk sometime. I was gonna PM you but you don't have enough posts yet.

[Neal Steffek]

I have a smaller place so here is what I do. I have a good friend who is a decent DJ and he does it for me for free. In return he drinks for free and I take him out for breakfast after we close up. He has a good day job and he does it for the fun of it and the chicks. I can't argue with that since he saves me money. When he can't do it I fill in. Been doing this for a year now and works out well. I give him a few bucks on his b-day and x-mas also to show him I appreciate what he does for me.

[MartinL]

Between 400 and 2000 for resident DJs. But we have top djs...

On tuesdays our DJ is the official DJ for canadian tourneys of many artists (Sean paul, Sean Kingston, Danny Fernandez, Karl Wolf, Belly etc)

Fridays and Sats we also bring in some of the best DJs in the country

Dan Desnoyers comes in once a month, guy has sold over 1 million albums, most of it in our aera and he's on the #1 radio station weekly.