08/15/2026
THE SECRET TO BEING A GREAT DJ? VERSATILITY
Last night at the Northwest Michigan Fair was a perfect reminder of something I’ve learned over many years as a DJ:
A great DJ doesn’t just play music. A great DJ learns how to play for EVERYONE in front of them.
Early in the evening, I had elementary-aged kids coming up asking for songs from Moana and Sing!
Then the crowd started getting older.
Suddenly the requests shifted to songs like “No Hands” and “Fe!n”. The high-school crowd wanted THEIR music, THEIR energy and THEIR moment.
And later in the evening?
The adults took over.
The requests got a little rowdier, the music changed again, and the party became something completely different from where we started.
And I loved every minute of it.
It got me thinking about how important musical versatility really is for a DJ especially at a wedding.
Think about the people sitting at a typical wedding reception.
You might have grandparents in their 70s and 80s. Parents and relatives who grew up with Motown, classic rock, disco and ’80s music. Thirty-somethings who remember when ’90s and 2000s music was NEW.
And a dance floor full of twenty-somethings who want today’s country, pop, hip-hop and dance music.
Every one of those people wants to feel like the DJ noticed them.
The trick isn’t simply knowing all those different styles of music.
It’s knowing WHEN to play them.
It’s knowing how to move from one generation to another without emptying the dance floor.
It’s watching who’s responding and realizing when it’s time to change direction.
And sometimes it’s taking two completely different generations and finding that ONE song they both love.
That’s one of my favorite parts of DJing.
A wedding shouldn’t feel like five separate playlists for five different age groups. It should feel like one party where everybody gets their moment.
Different generations. Different music. Same dance floor. And THAT is what makes DJing fun.
Anybody can make a playlist. The art is knowing what to play NEXT.
DJ Mikey
The Proof Is On The Dance Floor.
