what the drinks policy where you DJ?
Fatback
6,746 Posts
never paid for drinks at the gig.this place charges me for every drink. full fucking price too. sorry, i need a couple of drinks while i'm in the club. i don't get shitty drunk. i never have more than three. always myers and pineapple. not top shelf, by any means.if i do pay, why the fuck does it have to be full price? but seriously, I think the most restrictive drink policy I've experienced is tickets or a monetary limit. most places let me drink whatever and eat as long I don't order a bottle of top shelf and fucking hunnerd dollar plates.look, if I want to spend my money at a bar, i'll go out when I'm NOT having to work.last night I brought a flask. lame.goddamn why does this other me?that is all.bonus: some dude rushes the booth looking all asshurt and requests "some hip-hop" while Big Poppa is playing--dance floor is full--people singing along--hands in the air. see why i needs some drank?
Comments
I feel your pain dude. I had so many Becky requests last night that I think I talked to every female in the building. Least they can do is give you a drink in exchange for having to deal with asshurtedness.
Problem with a lot of clubs these days is that they are some computerized system that measures and makes the manager account for every ounce of liquor.....as a bartender I wouldn't work in a place like that.
The day these computerized programs began to be used was the beginning of the end for bartenders getting blow jobs behind the bar.......and that can't be good.
A happy bartender usually = a happy crowd.......same with the DJ I imagine.
this place has cocktail waitresses who totally hook me up. not only with drank, but dank.
but the drink ordering computer system requires them to do some fudging and i'm not trying to put them out like that.
this is really a management issue.
HAS ANYBODY EVAR HAD A SPOT WHERE THEY HAD TO PAY FULL PRICE CASH MONEY FOR DRINKS WHILE DJING?
As a drinker, I would NEVER drink in a place like that!!!!! A good true bartender is a dying art. The bar I frequent here in Seattle has real bartenders that make REAL drinks! All old school traditional cocktails and very good whiskey and Scotch. They carry no vodka of any kind. No red bull or silly shit to mix with your drinks. No jagermiester. No kids doing shots and acting stupid. The bar manager takes good care of me and always does "free pours" when making all my drinks. The liquor is never measured. My man will also use rare bottles of stuff like the real French Amer Picon and Carpano Antica vermouth. It is very important to frequent the same bars and build a rapport with the staff. Also make sure to always tip well. If it is a good establishment, they will in turn take very good care of you. We need to start a whole thread on bars. Coming soon.......
Don't tip on the first drink, OVERTIP!!!!
True indeed, true indeed.
Here's what you do at this wack club that charges you for drinks. Get on the mic every few songs and tell the crowd "Remember to take care of the bartenders and tip them well. They are working hard. IF YOU AIN'T GOT NO MONEY TAKE YOUR BROKE ASS HOME!" The bartenders will love you and hook you up with mad drinks.
i cant even drink where i work. im pretty sure its illegal to consume booze whilst working.
That was how I worked it, although I was getting drink tix
anyway, and would just give the tickets to girls and get my
drinks for free from the tender by playing his couple of requests.
Silly question, but have you tried approaching management about it?
Sometimes people are clueless, and if you say "hey this is the only
gig I have ever had or even heard of that makes a DJ pay full price
for drinks - I just get one or two a night, can you help me out?" it
might just turn out fine.
That depends on the state and or country's liquor laws. I have had many drinks with bartenders and cooks while they were on the clock.
I've worked in bars where you wouldn't get hired unless you DID drink.
And we had a "buddy system" arranged so that every bartender had a 'buddy" to bail them out of jail if they got a DWI on the way home or on their way to the 5:00AM After Hours joint!!
Maybe a "buddy system" where people weren't allowed
to drive shitfaced would have been better?
I've never met a bartender who got 'shit-faced"......you wouldn't be a bartender very long if you did......we'd leave that "I have no clue how to hold my liquor" stuff to the "weekend drinkers".
That's not to say the Cops wouldn't be waiting for a car to pull out of the club parking lot at 4:30 playing the safe bet that the driver had been drinking.
I'm 100% in favor of enforcing all DWI Laws.
And make sure that drink policy covers guest DJs too!
On the other hand some spots give enough drinks to give out to friends even. Last night we ordered 20 to 25, didn't pay for any.
You sound Finnish.
(Did Markus drink 7 of those?)
but this one gig the dude was such a prick he wouldnt even tell me i was paying for drinks, just took the tab right out my loot at the end of the night. While trying to stiff me a $20. That gig only lasted a month.
I agree that you should approach the manager or owner. This was a huge issue for me dealing between the owner and the DJ's. I fought with my boss over and over again as to why DJs should get free drinks. In the 3 years I did the booking we went from giving away 4 free drinks, to NO free Drinks, Free Tap Beer and Finally 50% off drinks. That is what it is now and I never agreed or thought it was ok.
I tried to explain the whole "first one in, last one out" theory, I tried to explain the cost of Cabs, music and equiptment. It didnt matter. We were so inconsistant with our drink policy that as a Bartender, I would just hook up the DJ's anyways or buy them some drinks on my tab.
I can say that in my experience, The DeeJays got raises and more perks when they approached the Owner personally rather than going through the booking agent or bartenders as it is easy for him to say no to them because he does it all the time. My boss just didnt get it, or I couldnt break it down so he could understand it even when all of his friends are bar owners who comp food and drink. Its pretty much bullshit and I know of a few DJ's bringing thier own six pack which is really NAGL and it should never come to that.
Talk to the dude and tell him what you need.
I think consistency is key, as is never assuming anything when you start a gig.
The place I am at (pretty much exclusively through a combination of choice and laziness) regularly is top notch when it comes to being more than fair about drinks and food, IMO, but then I don't drink much and I usually order the cheaper end of their menu when I do remember that I get a free meal. I know other cats there who have felt short-changed, but it is usually the result of some kind of beef with a specific bartender or manager. Most monthly Saturdays the manager on duty comes down and buys US shots, which is a nice gesture. Keeps things fun, which is the whole point of having any kind of entertainment at a bar.
I will say this, though, most DJs need to respect that they are one part of a team effort, and that the owners/managers need to know up front what you expect out of them, otherwise it's a quick trip to Asshurt city.
P.S. Sorry for the edit above was just thinking I tend to get too a little wordy sometimes and hadnt really got going yet this morning.
Unfortunately there's a lot of tight ass bar managers out there (especially in Richmond) that don't appreciate DJs. I think this has a lot to do with the number of little dudes out there that will play for nothing. I've had bar managers tell me I can be "replaced" for free, to which I respond with a nice 'fuck you' and watch the place go down the toilet. It's happened more than once, and sadly it often takes letting the bar crash and burn with unexperienced DJs before they realize the value a veteran DJ can bring to a party.
Now I make sure I talk drink situations at the same time I'm discussing pay, so when I show up there's no surprises. If they don't hook up the drinks, I'm asking for for. So usually it benefits the bar to give out those few drinks, since they're paying less for the liquor than what I'll charge them if they don't comp me. As long as the manager isn't a complete douche they're going to see the business sense behind this and get on board.
Ha!
Gee, that sounds familiar.
NEW.YORK.DELI?
Speaking of Richmond VA
The other night...
I was approached by a dude who is opening a club in the next few months. He was digging my early Brasilian/Jamaican/Jazz/etc warm up set. Said he's going for a grown and sexy "18th Street Lounge" type vibe and asked for a card. He seemed cool and we had nice conversation. Then I asked him if he was going to have a DJ booth with equipment. To which he immediately replied "No" and looked at me like I asked him something completely crazy and out of line.
Who do you think you are Paul Oakenfeld? Next you will be asking for a room full of coke and hookers after your set.
What's gauche about drinking vodka?
Jagr is my shot. Fuck a Red Bull though.