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Are DJs Musicians?

Are DJs Musicians?

  • Yes, a DJ is a musician.

    Votes: 130 20.5%

  • Hell no, what qualifies a DJ to call him/herself a musician?

    Votes: 433 68.4%

  • Carrots...

    Votes: 70 11.1%
  • Total voters
    633
#622
factory presets said:
With respect, this was pretty much agreed upon on page one. Since then we've seen various attempts to find definitions of music that could exclude what DJs do without including our friends in our bands. None of them so far have really stood up to closer examination. Well, unless they were between pages 13 and 18.

Also, I have an impression you've never really heard what is on the records turntablists use. Which, in turn makes me think you might not be aware of what is created and what is pre-recorded on the snippets of scratching scattered throughout the thread.
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True. Your post was open to all TBers to vote in. I did. Whether or not you agree with my opinion on this topic my vote still counts. There also was/is the option to explain and/or expound on your answer to clarify it. I did that, too. If you don't agree with my opinion or musical taste regarding DJs that is your right to do so. By understanding the opinions of others whether or not you share them only serves to educate you as to where you stand in relation to those polled. If you believe that red is actually yellow and have a vote on it, you may find you're in the minority. Most people believe red and yellow are different colors. You can try arguing your point but most folks wouldn't budge on what seems to them to be such an obvious truth. Due to the wide parameters of what can be perceived as art/music/creativity/expression, some DJs get a bit of a free pass to include themselves in the category of musicians despite not having to do the work needed to actually fit the bill. We talk about hacks and posers here and everybody knows what we mean. DJs are not all the same and surely there is a bell curve in their numbers like in every other pursuit. Brilliant visionaries who revolutionize their art and fake wannabes who stink. Lumping them all together in order to label them isn't fair. The real question should be "CAN DJs be respected and accepted as legitimate musicians?" A fact of life is that whenever you ask people to vote, the people you are asking are all not on the same level and that colors their judgement. At different stages of life you look at things differently. Toddlers don't worry about their retirement. This applies to all facets of life and may account for why tastes change. It's okay, you'll grow out of it.
 
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#625
jamro217 said:
True. Your post was open to all TBers to vote in. I did. Whether or not you agree with my opinion on this topic my vote still counts. There also was/is the option to explain and/or expound on your answer to clarify it. I did that, too. If you don't agree with my opinion or musical taste regarding DJs that is your right to do so. By understanding the opinions of others whether or not you share them only serves to educate you as to where you stand in relation to those polled. If you believe that red is actually yellow and have a vote on it, you may find you're in the minority. Most people believe red and yellow are different colors. You can try arguing your point but most folks wouldn't budge on what seems to them to be such an obvious truth. Due to the wide parameters of what can be perceived as art/music/creativity/expression, some DJs get a bit of a free pass to include themselves in the category of musicians despite not having to do the work needed to actually fit the bill. We talk about hacks and posers here and everybody knows what we mean. DJs are not all the same and surely there is a bell curve in their numbers like in every other pursuit. Brilliant visionaries who revolutionize their art and fake wannabes who stink. Lumping them all together in order to label them isn't fair. The real question should be "CAN DJs be respected and accepted as legitimate musicians?" A fact of life is that whenever you ask people to vote, the people you are asking are all not on the same level and that colors their judgement. At different stages of life you look at things differently. Toddlers don't worry about their retirement. This applies to all facets of life and may account for why tastes change. It's okay, you'll grow out of it.
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Its not my poll but your points are good ones. I expect if the question was can DJs be accepted as musicians the endless debate would be around by whom.

Also suspect most DJs don't really care whether or not they are considered musicians. They know what they do and no doubt take appropriate pride in the amount of work they put into doing it. I know turntablist have no respect for wedding DJs or beatmixers.
 
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