As much as I love the music library provided by Control Play (formerly FEC Music) for roller skating rinks, it should never fully replace a live DJ. Unfortunately, I see the role of DJ as the first to be replaced by automation in a skating rink. It will never compare to a live person. The rink DJ sets the vibe, controls the floor, knows why BPM (Beats-per-Minute) matters, and the importance of a downbeat. Certain songs sound great in the car, but not during a skate session.
Here’s why a DJ is an important team member that should never be replaced by full automation.
- A DJ is the extra set of eyes on the floor, partnering with the floor guards to maintain a safe environment, turn up the lights when there is an accident or injured skater, and keeps the momentum. That means not too many fast or slow songs in a row.
- A DJ knows how to serve the audience. Is it mostly beginners? Toddlers? Adults? The music selection will be different for each.
- The DJ can personalize live announcements for a particular situation. A common one that happens all the time is the parent who thinks it’s cool to skate with an infant in their arms. It’s up to the announcer to tell these rule breakers that the consequences can be dire.
- Canned announcements provided by the music supplier can work in a pinch, but they should never replace a live emcee. I’ve noticed rinks with no DJ has guests that tend to ignore canned announcements.
- Music Selection. While Control Play has several categories for running music programming, it can become awfully repetitive and incongruent with the time of day and audience. For example, on three separate Sundays, I visited a local Skate Center only to hear the same songs played at the same time. Hearing Katie Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl” right after church services end is probably not appropriate for a Sunday at noon. However, for Adult night, that’s a different audience. In radio, it’s called day-parting. And on all 3 of my Sunday visits, the YMCA played within 20 minutes of the session starting. Each time there were fewer than 10 people on the floor. It’s a lot more fun when the rink is full, and the skaters are doing synchronous arm movements to the Village People. These old time favorites build excitement and fun, but only on a crowded floor, whether it’s a wedding or a skating session.
- Emergency response. People are going to get hurt in a skating rink. It’s the nature of the sport. Control Play does not have eyes or ears, nor the ability to react to an adult who hasn’t been on skates in 30 years. These folks are more likely to get injured due to lack of ability, balance issues, and brittle bones. The DJ can decide to clear and close the floor until paramedics arrive, or get them expeditiously moved to the sidelines if it’s not a serious injury.
- The DJ needs to understand how to set up and regulate the beats per minute from fast, to medium, to slow, and back. Much like a wave, this is how radio stations program their shows. Too many sad and slow songs will bring down the vibe. And, too many fast songs in a row will overheat the crowd. Clean/positive lyrics, with the right volume (decibels) is essential. So is a good knowledge base of music.
Control Play is worth the money for the huge music library it provides, but the end-user needs training on how music selection works in a roller skating rink. It is best used when the rink operator and the Director of Entertainment work in tandem to select a suitable playlist for their skating rink, how to day-part it, how to use the wave method for tempo, and most importantly, not repeat the same songs, at the same time, week after week at sessions. They can set up folders in Control Play for each of their sessions, with a wide selection of songs to choose from. Otherwise, the loyal customers will get bored (as well as the staff). We all love variety.
What gets played and who presents the entertainment needs to be a high priority when it comes to Skater-tainment. You can’t just hit play, and walk away if you expect to grow admissions with repeat skaters. Otherwise, your rink will be no more than exciting than trying to dance to a jukebox in a nightclub.
For more on how the DJ sets the vibe, read how one Tennessee rink has set the bar.