A DJ’s Guide To An Awesome New Year’s Eve Set

To wrap up the year, we’ve brought on venerable DJ Angelo from the UK to give us his tips and tricks on surviving and rocking a New Year’s Eve DJ set, as well as our usual tradition of finding some awesome and cheesy tracks for you to use on your parties tomorrow evening. Click through for this year’s guide to making the last night of the year the best night of your career!

Another Year At Its Close

Before I settle into some much-needed downtime and studio geekery for the next few weeks, I’d like to take this opportunity to share some tips from my own experiences for those of you set to DJ this New Years Eve. It can be a very daunting prospect, particularly for inexperienced DJs so I hope some of this information helps you shine on the night. If you’re a superstar DJ already, feel free to contribute some tips of your own in the comments below.

2011 may not have been the most “economically-inspiring” for any of us, however, I’m confident that the party spirit has endured, as tradition calls once more for the masses to unify in celebrating the biggest party event on the western calendar. A chance to seriously let loose and end the year on an ultimate high, so inevitably New Years Eve parties come with greater expectations than regular club nights, and can therefore demand more than usual from us DJs.

With Great DJing Comes Great Responsibility

A good DJ is always at the heart of the party and embraces the responsibility and challenge of ensuring his/her audience has the best time possible. This is no different for NYE, however, the change of circumstances may completely throw you off your game if you’re unprepared. Here are a few things to consider:

• People go to a lot of effort for NYE – Apart from the obvious hype and anticipation that comes with NYE, committed party-goers are known to really push the boat out for this one-of-a-kind evening – whether it’s travelling great distances to party with friends, spending three or four times the regular club admission price, or perhaps investing their entire months wages in their outfit and bar tab. So understandably they will want to be guarenteed an unforgettable night in return.
  
• Your crowd will have chosen to spend their evening with you – Particularly if you’re playing at a club, your audience’s decision to be on your dancefloor is premeditated which means they’ve opted not to spend their hard earned cash with one of your many competitors. With no shortage of options available to them , your crowd is likely to be more fickle than usual and may switch to another party unexpectedly.
• NYE can draw out an unfamiliar crowd – It’s one of the few nights of the year that people are willing to travel to another city (even country), or perhaps the only night of the year that they will go clubbing or visit your particular venue, so you may not be playing to a crowd that you’re used to playing to.
• People may party harder on NYE – Beware that your crowd may get even more drunk and even more wild than they would on any other night of the year, and with extreme partying can come a whole host of issues – the likes of which you’ve never seen before!
• The peak of the night may be different to that of your regular night – you may be used to playing a set in a particularly order/format depending on when the club opens/closes, or when the club usually gets full etc, however, NYE is a night on it’s own schedule with the peak usually sitting between 11pm and 1am.
• The club may open later than usual – Which may influence how you pace your set or require you to stock up on more music to maintain energy levels and keep the party going the distance.

The Best Party in Town

I’ve played my fair share of NYE parties over the years. Some of which have been awesome, whilst others forgettable, but all of them have taught me new things. The biggest lesson of them all is to be prepared for anything. There’s certainly no secret formula and NYE gigs will always differ depending on who you are and where you are playing, but here are some of my tried-and-tested survival tips from my own experiences:

• Feel empowered – It may feel daunting but think of it as a privilege that YOU are responsible for making everyone have an awesome time on such an important night of the year. It’s a fantastic opportunity for you to shine as a DJ.
• It’s all about the crowd – NYE is a night when the crowd’s happiness is priority number 1. It’s not a time for you to be too clever with your track selection or mixing skills. Save that for another more appropriate time. People will expect to hear big tunes they know, and be prepared to repeat certain key tracks if you’re crowd changes throughout the night.
• People will be in a good mood – Despite the high expectations, the majority of people will be in good spirit and will be actively looking to have fun and wanting the night to be great. You should feed off this which will help you to mirror their mood.
• The dancefloor should be full – This is one night that you should have no problems getting people to dance. Your job will just be to keep them going all night and control the energy levels making sure that there are peaks and troughs in your mix. NYE might make you feel inclined to play a harder set than usual but be careful that you don’t tire out your crowd or peak the night too early. Keep them on their toes with genre changes and tempo changes which will help to keep the dancefloor refreshed, and everyone will regularly get to hear something they like.
• Be open-minded – It’s one night of the year when your crowd will expect to hear classic party tracks from different eras and genres, and maybe a few guilty-pleasures thrown in (particularly if you have a diverse crowd). So depending on what your tolerance levels are(!), stepping out of your comfort zone and stocking up on some sing-along curveballs could do wonders for your set!
• Take the crowd on a journey – You are responsible for hooking into your crowd’s mood, getting them worked up into a frenzy in the lead up to midnight and then, taking them over the edge with an appropriate climax on the stroke of midnight. Think big tunes of 2011 and before during the build up and prepare a huge track either side of midnight to fully capture the peak-time part mayhem! Don’t forget the dramatic countdown leading up to midnight, and perhaps an announcement (either on the mic or a pre-made audio sample) every half an hour in the lead up to midnight to build hype, anticipation, and to keep your audience fully locked into your set .
• Have fun too – It can be easy for DJs to feel left out but some of the best NYE parties I’ve worked have been when I’ve let my hair down and been able to connect with the same vibe and energy that the crowd is feeling. I’m not saying that it’s completely necessary to drink alcohol (it helps!) but I would say that NYE is one night where you’re unofficially allowed to enjoy yourself at work a little more than usual and I’m sure you’d be forgiven for partying/drinking with the crowd. Crowd surfing might be pushing it though 🙂

NYE Downloads and DJ Tools!

Everyone needs a good countdown. Try this simple one:
NYE Count Down Original Mix by DJ Luna_

What’s that? You were expecting something cheesier with a mix from Aud Lang Syne into this year’s club dance hit? Well, ok.
We Found Love On New Years Eve-Lowrey Edit-(CLEAN) by djmikelowrey
Oh, so you wanted something even more over the top? Try this three minute countdown on for size.
New Years Eve 2012, 3 Minute Countdown by KRCKRADIO
Finally, if you’re still nervous or need more resources for New Year’s Eve, we suggest that you take a look at some of our New Year’s articles from the past. Instead of having to dig them all up yourselves, check out the links below:

2010: Ean Golden and Charles Feelgood Tips + Awesome Midnight Countdown Downloads
2009: Bearable Holiday Tracks and Remixes + New Years Tools
2008: Ean’s Drinking on New Year’s Eve Tips

Just for fun, tell in the comments us about a New Year’s Eve DJ HORROR STORY that you’ve been a part of or seen happen!