David Guetta Answers DJ Questions

Hi guys, I'm David Guetta

and I'm gonna answer a few questions from the internet.

This is DJ Support.

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From Koorutheguru, what is the theory behind drops?

Music is all about contrast.

If you want something to sound loud,

it needs to be quiet before.

If you want something to sound very wide and stereo,

it needs to be mono before.

So, this is kind of announcing

that something is about to happen,

but at the same time, you don't use kick,

you don't use the bass,

you don't use the elements that are really driving the song.

So, really you miss them,

so when they come back, that's the drop,

and it is gonna feel like an insane energy

because, you know, the volume was there

and another second it's there.

This is the trick.

Even if I would play a very simple beat like that,

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and I put a EQ, I use a filter,

and there is no,

you cannot hear the kick very well

because there's no low end,

and another second I'm gonna put it back

and people are gonna scream

because if I leave you like this, it's like a tension,

tension, tension, tension, tension.

And then when you hear that,

woo, it's like [chuckles] you know,

so it's really as simple as this.

It's just the contrast.

So, from Dradoc,

do most DJs create and practice sets before a gig

or they just know the library incredibly well?

When I started we would never play the same set

because it was about the journey.

So, you read the people,

and for me this is the essential art of DJing.

The technical part of DJing is really easy

to master today thanks to technology.

When I started it was vinyls.

Today everything is done on computers.

So, the beat is always perfect.

It's very easy to beat match today.

When I play a festival like Ultra or Tomorrowland,

you have 10 DJs playing one after the other

and they're all the biggest DJs on the planet

and they all playing one hour or 90 minutes,

we cannot have even a one minute that is so, so,

it has to be on point perfect all the time.

So, in that case, yes, we prepare our set.

I never played a prerecorded set.

I hear so much about those stories of prerecorded set.

I think it's absolutely ridiculous

because beat matching is so easy.

Like I can teach a kid that is 10 years old

how to beat match in a couple of hours

because today it really became easy.

So, I don't know why people are talking about this,

but what I can say is that yes, we prepare.

When I play a festival like Ultra,

I probably work one full month every day on that set

to make it perfect.

I would create a skeleton

and then when I play, I see,

are people reacting more to this or to that?

Let's say I'm playing my set that I prepared,

but I see that when I play an underground record,

they really into it.

So, I have my underground playlist,

I'm gonna add some of this,

or let's say I play an underground record

and it's a disaster,

the only want hits, and sing along and feel good music,

okay, no problem.

I also have my list

and I'm gonna add that more into the skeleton of my set.

So, yes, more sets are prepared.

From DJFRANKUS, why do DJs always act

like the knobs on the mixer are hot?

If I'm totally honest,

some of it can become like a trick to do that

and some of it is a little bullshit part of the show.

I put the EQ straight

because you have the craziest engineers

that are coming into the club.

So, unless really the club sucks,

you don't need to do all this show with EQ.

So, then there's a little bit of the creative EQ.

So, in the mixing

and also like you can like,

huh, I don't wanna speak bad about my colleagues [laughs]

but I think a lot of this is for the show.

Let's say it like that.

[David laughing]

From LEXN_Beats,

how do you read the crowd when the club isn't vibing?

That's a good question.

Actually this happens even to me.

What you would do is try different things

until one thing is reacting and one,

when that record is reacting,

well, you know you have your different playlists

and let's say you play a tech house record

and it's reacting when you've been playing techno

and it was not reacting,

well, then you go to best of tech house of 2025

in your playlist and then you play more of that style.

And this is why prerecorded set makes no sense

'cause you need to be able to try different things

until you win.

And when you win, you make them happy.

And once they're happy

then you can take them where you want.

From NapLvr,

what's the difference between playing at festivals or clubs?

So, usually when you start to DJ,

you do parties with your friends

and then when you become more professional, you play clubs.

And if you become very famous, you play festivals.

I started as a resident, I would play eight hours every day,

six days a week.

When I play a festival, I play 90 minutes

because people want to hear my music.

The same way you have a festival,

imagine you have the Rolling Stones and AC/DC,

well, you want the Rolling Stones to play satisfaction,

you want the AC/DC to play a highway to hell.

They're not gonna do in a festival Little Jam

and play their favorite records from different artists.

Well, it's the same for festivals.

When you play a festival,

people want you to play exactly your sound

because this is why they're buying tickets.

And usually because the crowd is so much bigger,

you have to play more energy

because of course you need more energy

to move 100,000 people than to move 200 people.

So, really underground music is coming from the clubs.

Sometimes it goes to festival,

but in my opinion, when you play to 20,000 people,

it's not underground anymore

even if you call it underground.

From Throwaway,

best way to start to learn to beat match?

Honestly, beat matching is really easy today

with the technology of today.

So, I just took loops

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for you to understand.

So, let's say that this record is playing

and I need to get into the next record.

So, what I would do usually is turn down the base

because it's just a mixing principle.

If you have too much base at the same time

it's gonna sound horrible.

And then so,

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so now,

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there're two records playing and it's beat matching, okay?

If it was a bad mix,

it would do that.

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If you do that is,

it is horrible, like people are confused,

they don't know how to dance, like where to dance.

So, then you need to adjust it.

And now, okay, again, I'm gonna do that,

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and then I can go to the other one.

So, I kept the beat steady

so that people can dance.

And now let's go to the next level of,

let's say in the [chuckles]

when you learn how to DJ,

the first step is to beat match correctly the way I did,

and the next step is also to respect the key.

So, then you need to know a little bit about music theory.

So, this is in C minor,

this one is in F-sharp minor.

So, maybe you don't hear it,

but it's off key, it's not pleasant.

So, I'm gonna now put it in G.

Now, listen,

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this is pleasant.

So, not only is beat matched,

but it's also in key because G is in a chord.

We call this a fifth, so it's a perfect chord.

C and G goes perfectly well together.

So, if I hear a DJ do that,

I'm like, okay, this guy is good.

Someone ask what they're hearing

in the headphones when they're playing a set

in a loud venue.

Again, let's say I'm playing Record A,

which is would be this one,

I would use my headphones to listen to Record B

and make sure that I started the record at the right time

and that it's bit matching correctly.

And I'm gonna check this in my headphones

because I don't wanna mess it up and just launch it

and put it there and I think it's right,

but maybe it's not right.

So, it's like an insurance policy,

you wanna make sure that your mixing is on point.

And also when you're looking

for the next record to play,

well, sometimes you have an hesitation.

You feel like this is gonna feel good after Record A,

but let me double check how it feels in the headphones.

So, one ear is listening in the headphones

to the next record and one ear is listening to the monitor,

to what's playing on the sound system for everyone.

Mr-x-dj asked,

what were the biggest mistakes you did

when starting out to DJ?

First, there is always a fine line

in how to create your own identity.

In order to be successful, you need to have your own style,

your own music.

Sometimes it is the music you create yourself

or sometimes you just play a lot of the same style

and when it's unique, it makes you famous for that.

And this is cool,

but what I see a lot is sometimes people

so want to create the identity and so want to be cool

they don't even care if people are liking it or not,

especially in the time of today because it's filmed,

they care more about social media

and how people are gonna perceive this behind

their computers or their phones

instead of playing for the people that are in front of them.

So, okay, you want to be cool and unique,

but you don't want to forget why people are paying you.

You're getting paid to give a good time

and entertain the people that are in front of you.

That's what I see a lot DJs that are playing like this

and they never look at the crowd.

That's madness to me because our job is before anything,

to entertain people give them a good time.

So, you need to be able to read them.

So, if you don't look at them, how can you read them?

Doesn't make sense.

From redonios, playing my first gig at 3:00 AM,

how to not be tired?

Oh, I feel you, this is something you need to accept

because this is part of what we do

and it doesn't get any better ever.

Because first there's working at night

and then when you become very successful

you need to travel and be jet lagged.

So, yes, it's, I'm sorry my friend,

there's no perfect solution,

but there is one okay solution,

which is what I do when I play late nights.

I do what I call a disco nap.

I sleep one hour, no more, before the show,

and then I take half an hour to,

so I don't arrive like a zombie.

This is a big problem in our community

because we all have the worst sleep patterns

because of course when you sleep before,

you know, before your show and when you go home,

you're not sleepy anymore,

man, don't take Zolpidem,

it's not good for your health.

From kipthebronzesheep,

can someone help clarify the difference

between mixing, remixes and producing?

Some people think that DJs are creating

the music live with the turntables, which is not true.

Some people think that when I make a record

I'm just remixing it or mixing it, which is also not true.

Let's be clear.

So, mixing two records together means

there's one record that is playing,

most DJs are playing other people record.

You play one record

and then you need to do a transition to the next record.

So, you mix the next record in

and there's a technique for that

that's called beat matching.

So, that's mixing.

Remixing is when you create

a new production around an existing vocal,

you take a famous song that everyone knows,

but instead of playing the original version,

you play a version that you created yourself

with your own style of music.

When you say someone is a producer,

it usually involves all the different steps.

Composition is usually simply chords played on the piano

or the guitar, a little melody.

Songwriting is the song, it's melody,

and then later when you have that, you produce it.

The production is the choice of sounds,

the choice of arrangement

that is gonna make the song go into this style

or that style.

So, for you to understand if a song is great,

I can produce it in so many different ways.

I can make it a ballad, I can make it a EDM song,

I can make it a reggae song.

This is only due to production.

From totallynotagirl,

how do you make a set?

I compare this to a fashion show a little bit.

Let's say that there are two,

three or four seasons in a year.

So, when it's the beginning of the season,

in my case, usually it would be around March,

this is what is going to be my summer collection.

So, before Ultra,

I work like maybe a full month creating a set

and then I'm playing it at Ultra,

I see what works, what doesn't works.

Then I have my season in Vegas,

I see what works, what doesn't work.

Then I'm using some of this

to play my season in Europe in Ibiza,

and I have then probably 50% of my set,

I have to play a little more underground for Ibiza.

So, then at the beginning of the season I have a set,

and every time I'm writing down what works

and what doesn't work,

and then I'm like, okay, this record, out,

this one, works really well.

Okay, that hot new sound,

I was not expecting it to work that well,

I'm gonna put more of that style.

And then what happens is every week

the set is getting better and better and better.

And then in August it's gonna be so fucking perfect

that I'm getting bored of it.

From jijihggg, are jog wheels essentials?

Well, I guess this is the jog wheel.

This is actually coming from the idea of vinyls

because it was a similar way to mix

and, you know, you would like,

if it's not perfectly beat matched,

you would move the vinyl a little bit forward or backward

until it's perfect.

This is one technique

that comes from the old school way of mixing.

There would be a possibility to use other ways,

but I think this is very practical.

So, yes, it's useful.

Okay, those were all the questions.

Thank you for watching DJ Support.

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