DJ Toolkit – Biographies and Media Kit

As a DJ, it is of paramount importance to have the correct promotional tools in your armoury to showcase your story and journey in music and enhance your profile and project it in the best light possible. 

Many DJs often struggle with the marketing side of the profession and the materials required to highlight career-defining moments, production releases, schedules of performances, personal sound style, influences and the story leading up to the current time.

Artist Biography

All DJs and producers should have a regularly updated personal profile, a musical journey CV if you like. The main aim of the biography is to highlight achievements, performance and sound style, track releases and future idealisms or happenings. It is a highlight reel of your acoustical story and is truly important to inform, convince and describe. When all these elements are combined, a high level of engagement will be reached with the intended recipient, whether a promoter, venue or agency. 

A good DJ biography should introduce you as an artist, your background, your style of music, your accolades, your achievements and your future plans. 

We all know that writing about yourself is a hard thing to get right. It does not come down, necessarily, to writing ability but rather, being able to achieve the right tone. Some people find it hard to put their thoughts down on paper. 

Choosing your writer is also hugely important as it reflects the style you want to project and how you want your story to read; after all, it is your career.

With years of experience in this area, I can affirm the best biographies contain meaning; they are factual but tell a story. The best biographers will take time to listen to any of your productions, question your history and influences to create the best profile vision possible. Many online platforms offer this service, but independent writers would spend that bit of extra time creating a bespoke piece of work. 

Ideally, your biography should be updated 6 monthly or yearly, depending on any changes in circumstance, highlights or schedule. 

How much should you be paying?

It depends on your writer. However, the general range is between £40 – £80 depending on the length required and artist profile.

Media Kit 

Once you have your hand-crafted profile, where does it go? The Media Kit is the ideal place to store your biography. 

Within the pack, you will find a one or two-page bespoke artistic design, social media links and any booking and contact information, plus the tailored artist biography. You can include your DJ logo and any press shots that you may have. Think of it as a humble abode for your story to take it to the next level. A one-stop shop if you like for promoters, venues, agencies, and others to view your professionally presented credentials and social media outlets. 

Many biographers will also offer the media kit option as an add-on to the biography at an extra cost. Still, it is also possible to have any graphic designer take this project to your specifications and ideas. 

What are the cost implications? 

Variable. Graphic designers will be more on the pricey side as it’s their profession. If your biographer offers it as an add-on you may find it to be slightly less in price. 

In summary, the DJ toolkit should include these two pieces of promotional material as they are vital to elevate yourself as an artist and get the information required professionally to the intended audience. 

Often, the little details can be overlooked and undervalued, when in fact, they should be the polar opposite and a must-have for your DJ journey.