Wedding days are limo days. If it is a busy date for weddings I'm going to pass some limos on my way to a gig. Sometimes I pass other DJs, or they pass me. No one on the road can tell I'm a DJ because I drive a new Beetle and I don't have the name of my company printed on my ride.
True story: a couple of years ago I was on my way to Aurora to do a St. Patrick's Day wedding. I'm somewhere on I-88 when I come up beside a white pickup truck with a camper shell, black windows, Indiana plates and the name of the guy's DJ company proudly and professionally painted on the back window. I can't remember the name because it was very typical of the "macho" style of DJ company names, incorporating possible words such as Soundzz, Music, Mobile, On the, Machine, Move, maybe it was Music Mobile Soundzz Machine, I can't remember. There were some music quarter notes floating around the words and possibly some shock or sound wave imagery. Anyway, he was haulin' but I had to get a look, so I pulled up beside him. It was pretty cold but he had his window down because he was smoking and I could hear some super loud hair metal. He looked like a more obese version of Booger from Revenge of the Nerds. Long, black scraggly hair. He was wearing one of those black satin baseball jackets that people print the name of their own company on, so I could only guess that he had done the same. I couldn't keep up with him and he sped on ahead.
I was left thinking about the look he had on his face. He was completely stressed out. I remember this because it confirmed that I wasn't the only guy who freaks out about getting to a gig, especially a wedding. I've been DJ'ing a long time and getting to the gig still stresses me out. It's because it's one of those things that is just out of my control. I make a point of doubling the amount of time it is supposed to take but I still just never know for sure. It's a feeling that just up ahead there is something that is going to totally screw me. Plus, there is also the unknown factor of the venue itself. You never know when there is going to be some dumb thing at the venue, like a broken elevator or a florist blocking the loading gate. I can't really relax until I'm in the room completely set up and I hit play and music comes out of my speakers. The good thing about it is that I usually get a feeling of "Hey, now I can relax and enjoy myself at the wedding. I'm here."
I got to the Aurora gig no problem and everything went great. The funny thing is, right after I set up and before the doors opened the DJ I saw on the highway walked in to the room. Turns out he was DJ'ing down the hall in another room. He just dropped by to check out my set up, as Djs do. To make my point, he was pretty relaxed and casual because he was set up and good to go, and actually had a little time to kill. I asked him if he was Dj'ing a wedding and he said in the most casual and offhanded way "No, I'm doing the Leprechaun Toss down the hall." I had no idea what he was talking about. He explained it: "You know, they get little people to dress up like leprechauns and people try to throw them as far as they can. I play music and get on the microphone and really try to pump the people up". I was blown away. I had never heard of anything more surreal in my life. He invited me to drop by later so I could check out his speakers. He gave me a card with the same logo from his truck and as he walked away it was confirmed that his black satin baseball jacket had his company name and logo proudly and professionally printed on the back. I wondered what kind of person books a DJ because of a logo on a truck they pass by or from a logo on the back of a jacket that some dude is wearing.
I still had a few minutes so I went up to an older woman on the wait staff and said my usual line of "at some point could I please get a pitcher of water for the DJ?" She looked at me like I was completely insane, paused for a moment and replied "We don't have that. You think we just carry that around with us???" It seemed like a completely reasonable request to me. I went over to the bar and asked for glass of water. As I'm walking back to my table the woman I had just talked to asked me if I would like a pitcher instead. I told her I just asked her for one a second ago. She said "Oh, I thought you asked me for a picture of Walter!" You see, I was DJ'ing at Walter Payton's Roundhouse.
