To all the Haters of other DJs who don't do what they do.
I get really tired of people hating on other DJ's and music producers playing music that "is mainstream", "not good", "annoying", "trend riding" etc.
Most of these people are new and finding their way through the ranks of the music scene trying to find their groove. It would be silly to expect even great DJs to stick to one micro-niche of music to play their whole lives. Some of the greatest DJs to date have moved inside and between genres, and evolved with the times. That doesn't necessarily mean they've just moved from melodic trance to electro bangers.
I'd hardly call my 5 years "experienced", but it took me time to explore different genres, and I honed my craft playing stuff I wouldn't play now to crowds that didn't care less, and getting people moving is much of what makes a solid DJ, rather than what micro-niche it is. The Carl Cox of 1994 is very different to the Carl Cox of 2014, and rightly so. Same could be said for Armin Van Buuren, Paul Van Dyk, Richie Hawtin, and countless other pioneering DJs. Can you imagine if Tiesto's "Da Joker" alias was the one that took off instead? Would that make him any less of a DJ?
I've seen friends who started DJing with borderline pop explore, search and eventually find music which they become passionate for, and they evolve, hone, iterate and refine to improve their skill during that journey. Who are we to write off someone's career for their current musical choices?
I care when people fake their craft, don't give a shit about it, or lack drive to improve and innovate. A skilled and passionate DJ is a pleasure to watch, regardless of what they are playing because they care, and they are always willing to improve their skill. A good DJ is a good DJ, even when it's not the specific 217bpm nudiscoambientdeeptrancespeedcore 3/4 signature tunes you decided was your path going forward.
So the next time you try and deride their choice of music, think instead to encourage them to explore all aspects of this wonderful world of music, and provide them an opportunity to make up their own damn mind. If they still want to play 217bpm nudiscoambientdeeptrancespeedcore, then give it a listen and maybe help them with their dj'ing rather than trying to convert them to your given genre-church.
