title taken from “Mister DJ” by Sheldon Douglas

Quarantine and the New DJ Business Model

Coronavirus has many of us quarantined and isolated from friends, family, f**kboys, and fetes. Per usual, deejays are taking the time to provide some much-needed relief from the covid struggle. Quarantine fetes have been popping up on Instagram and Facebook as deejays use their platforms to keep their fans engaged. The live streams have been so successful that this may be the new wave for deejays.

On March 20, 2020, I joined the over 100K viewers who tuned in to DJ D-Nice’s Instagram Live “Homeschool” party. The 9.5-hour marathon of music brought relief to people like Michelle Obama, Senator Elizabeth Warren, and Ellen DeGeneres. D-Nice played everything from Motown hits, classic Hip-Hop, and even soca!

While D-Nice will go down as hosting the largest IG Live party, he was not the only deejay flinging tunes online. Dr. Jay, the Soca Prince, from Toronto resurged his radio show Soca Therapy to provide just that. He made the event more interactive by challenging everyone on the Live to take a shot whenever he played his signature “Aye, Aye, Aye” drop… and then proceeded to play it 5 times in 10 minutes.

DJ Private Ryan also went live to showcase his mixing skills while DJ Young Chow energetically played dancehall and soca for his loyal followers.

The increase in live streams is not only good for entertaining us during these uncertain and stressful times. It also opens up a new possible revenue stream for deejays who are hurt by the cancellation of live events. Finding new ways to deliver a quality product to your current customers is the way to weather any economic storm.

Deejays are notoriously independent workers who continue to improve their skills to continually engage their fans. They also need to consistently grow their fan base. Without the live events to gain traction in new markets, deejays would not be able to grow their brand. This is another reason live streaming may be effective marketing. But if the IG Live stream is free, how is that good for business? I’m glad you asked. Brand awareness is key to downstream revenue. If no one knows you exist, they can’t purchase what you’re selling.

Now to monetization. Thankfully, we rarely do business with cash these days. Having a virtual party means virtual revenue. Deejays are including their Cash App accounts to encourage tipping. And why not? Many of us are saving money on fete tickets, Uber rides and our drinks are a lot cheaper at home than in the club. So why not tip the people providing some relief to our covid cabin fever?

The Coronavirus is challenging traditional businesses practices. Corporations implemented remote work, ongoing customer support, and the increased reliance on technology to deliver products.  Direct to consumer marketing is a growing field with corporations investing in this tactic to increase brand awareness and maintain customer loyalty. Now more than ever it is critical for businesses to keep their current customers engaged. According to Entrepreneur Magazine, this is the time to “make sure to communicate clearly and consistently with your customers…. Use your social media presence to keep your customers up to date. If you typically don’t use social media, it may now be time to build one.” Isn’t this Deejaying 101? Deejays rely on social media to tell their fans about upcoming projects and tours and now to engage a “captive” audience. They also vary their online presence with Soundcloud, YouTube, and even Apple Podcasts.

With the coronavirus affecting everything from how we travel to how we interact - or don’t - it is good to know that it is not stopping the party. Although we may not know when the quarantine will end, one thing that’s for sure is that socaholics will still be able to enjoy quarantine fetes thanks to innovative deejays.

If you are a deejay, promoter, or creator, go to BKRantandRave.com to enter our contest to win a custom domain name (e.g., www.iamthebest.com) and website landing page from our sponsor, Andrews Technology Group. Deadline is April 16th!