While others are grabbing their licenses and keys to get ready to go out to the bars on the Strip, Brett Hodinka is reaching for his mixer and his computer. When others have been thinking all Friday about where they’ll be going out, Hodinka has been thinking about what he’ll be playing for them.
Hodinka, a junior majoring in biology from Philadelphia, Penn., has been DJing since his senior year of high school, when he bought his first mixer, or an audio mixing machine with two disc jockeys for making easier transitions between songs.
“It was just based on the idea [that] I liked watching people do it, and I was like, I want to be that person,” Hodinka said. “When I came down here is when it really started to pick up, and I started playing at places.”
Hodinka performs under the DJ name DMND Club, or “diamond club” without vowels. He and a friend chose the name to signify a duo and even went so far as to create their own logo, though the two split when they went to different colleges.
Hodinka said he finds DJing is generally a self-taught industry, and he was lucky to stumble across a mentor when coming to Tuscaloosa in Jeremy Walters, a senior majoring in international relations.
“A lot of it is self-taught. Like, who goes out and gets lessons for DJing? A lot of it is picking it up, like me. I follow Jeremy around. He taught me different aspects of DJing – what’s good to do, what you shouldn’t do so much,” Hodinka said.
Walters, or Alchemy as he’s known on the stages of Tuscaloosa bars, said a lot of the DJ industry takes intrinsic motivation to get good, and all the effort pays off eventually with a newfound confidence. He cited Hodinka as an example and he said was introverted at the cusp of their friendship.
While mixing a song and setting up the next one, a DJ has to examine the crowd to see who’s dancing and who’s not to figure out his next move steps ahead. Hodinka said the key is not to spend too much time dwelling on pre-determined music, and that a good DJ understands a need to work off the cuff.
“When I started DJing, I was always like, ‘Oh my God, I need to create something to play, there has to be something.’ But really you just wing it. You go in, and if the crowd isn’t feeling what you’re playing, you switch everything up,” Hodinka said.
Clay Woods, a junior majoring in mechanical engineering, has been a DJ since last May when he first performed at Harry’s under the name DJ Flex. Since then, Woods has picked up more shows and changed his performance name to SNVPBVCK, referring to the hat style “snapback,” which he said he often wears.
Woods motivation for DJing plays along with this aim to please the crowd, he said.
“When everyone’s enjoying the music, then I can. I can get in the zone or whatnot with what I’m doing, and it makes my performance much better. It’s just a good time,” Woods said.
It’s no small job being a DJ. A lot of effort goes into it, and sometimes the results can be slow. Still, a minority flocks to it, filling the void for clubs and fraternities alike.
Most DJs take the long weekends and sacrifice their nights for two reasons: the fun and the income – bars can drop up to $300 a night for a gig. Woods said in reality, however, DJing is a close equivalent to going out and having a good time.
“Listening to music has always been one of my hobbies,” Woods said. “If I’m DJing, I get to hang out with my friends still, and I get to have a lot of fun.”
