By Jason R. Wachter
Introduction
Every night of the week club-goers wait in line for hours to get into the hottest clubs in some of the hottest cities in the world. If they are lucky enough to get past the velvet ropes and through the club doors, in a matter of minutes, they could hear the music of as many as ten different artists ranging from the likes of Madonna, the Rolling Stones, and Nirvana to Christina Aguilera, Kanye West, and Snoop Dogg blended into one musical track. This unique phenomenon in the music industry is the work of celebrity disc jockeys (“DJsâ€), who splice, scratch, and mix classic and popular songs together to create an entertaining musical work of their own. These creations are so entertaining, in fact, that celebrity DJs have developed a new music industry phenomenon that club-goers, club owners, and even radio stations have come to depend on night after night.
Celebrity DJs have created such a demand for their services that they are able to earn up to $1,000 per hour. Most celebrity DJs have “residences†at various nightclubs, often performing a few nights a week. However, due to their popularity and demand, there are times when celebrity DJs may perform at different events every night of the week in different cities across the country. In many cases, DJ performances at nightclubs are even broadcast live on radio stations or over the Internet allowing millions of listeners to enjoy their music. In addition, celebrity DJs pull in profits by hosting private celebrity parties and corporate events. One reason for this rise in the popularity of celebrity DJs is the advent of new technology, which allows not only professionals, but amateurs to remix and package music in their homes with increasing ease and clarity. But is this new age of the celebrity DJ all it is cracked up to be?