Some people are born great (office DJs), some achieve greatness (as an office DJ), and some have (office DJ) greatness thrust upon them. And some of us are none of those things. But even if you’ve had the job of DJ forced on you suddenly and found yourself here after a furious Google, welcome. We have got some tips for you.
There are many things to consider when agreeing to take on the job and if it doesn’t come naturally to you, well, that’s what we’re here for. Because the role of the office DJ may not be a coveted job, but it’s definitely an important one. Here are our top tips.
Consider your captive audience
This is pretty self-explanatory. If you’re in a dynamic, young office then you may be able to push the boundaries a little more than you would in a more uptight setting. That’s it, just take the most straighty-one-eighty in your office and ask yourself if your choices would offend them, and act accordingly.
Music isn’t always the best choice
If you work in an active workplace, with many ages, and people coming and going all day (think, hospital workers or a teacher’s staff room), then the radio is a solid choice.
Apps like LiSTNR are ideal in these situations because you can stream a radio show as easily as you would a podcast. It has big hitters like Dylan Alcott and Angus O’Loughlin‘s ListenABLE, Dr Mei Ling Doery‘s Alternative Facts, Linda Marigliano‘s The Spin and heaps more.
But sometimes, music is the only appropriate choice
If you work in an industry where people do a lot of writing or generally focus on written words all day every day, then I suggest only ever playing music.
This also takes the pressure off if you’re a fairweather DJ because you can just pop on a crowd-pleasing playlist or album that’s chill and universally-liked. Only you’ll know the vibe in your office (there’s nothing worse than playing Justin Bieber in a Cold Chisel-loving office), but regardless, never choose the top hits playlist or a single artist album more than once, or people will get cranky with the repetition.
If you wanna take the heat off your own choices, LiSTNR also has a great selection of music stations and shows ready to roll. It has a wide variety of moods and genres — like Home Grown, Noughties, Almost Acoustic, Trending Now and some great Friday arvo jams— so you should find something that fits the bill for your office.
Never, I repeat, never play heavy metal
Don’t come for me on this one because I am 100% confident that I’m correct: there is never a time or a place in the office for heavy metal unless it’s in your own earbuds. I don’t want to hear any screaming in the office. Ever. Never. Ever. Ever. Just don’t.
The time of day matters
If you really want to kill it as the office DJ, then you need to be thinking about what the people want at different times of the day. The Monday morning vibe is going to be very different from the Friday arvo mood. As a general rule, it’s best to think about the types of drinks people are consuming and let it inform your playlist. Monday coffee time is good for acoustics, for example, to ease people into the day. But come Friday arvo, all bets are off. Loud singalongs or nothing.
Don’t confuse the vibe
When grilling our office DJ for her best tips, she said: keep it consistent and don’t confuse the vibe. You want to let people slide into the music or radio choices you’ve made so they can bop along or almost not even notice it’s there in the first place (in a good way). Chopping and changing without ever letting anything finish is simply annoying.
Nostalgia always works
I’m a nervous office DJ and will, quite frankly, avoid it at all costs. That’s why I’m such an expert on all the ways you can go wrong when taking on the job because while I’ll never do it myself, I’ll silently judge anyone and everyone who does. So hear this: nostalgic playlists are always a good choice.
Everyone loves a throwback, whether it’s a playlist of ‘90s bangers, a run of the Hamish & Andy podcast, or an interview with an interesting person from your childhood.
