Meet Dave Lawson

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dave Lawson. 

Hi Dave, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
As a longtime musician, songwriter, and producer, I’ve always been an avid music listener and collector. From early mixes for friends, I’ve always been interested in sharing my passion for music with others. Becoming a DJ was a bit of an accident, and a wedding DJ even more so. 

I first started DJing my vinyl collection in public more than ten years ago. For nearly five years, I did a weekly DJ night at the Loving Touch in Ferndale, inviting a different local DJ every week to trade song for song all night long. Each week was a different genre, based on the collection of the guest, which served as an education and fuel for my growing and diverse LP and 45 collection. From this weekly gig, I was invited to play larger events at venues such as the Masonic Temple, the Henry Ford, and Motor City Casino. Then, coincidentally on the same day, two couples asked me to DJ their wedding. In my mind, wedding DJs were a completely different role: cheeseballs who played the same tired hits night after night. But I figured I’d try it my way and see how it worked out, playing the dance party hits the felt truly timeless for all generations. Both weddings were incredibly fun, and, thanks for the emphatic encouragement of the photographer (“Dude, people are looking for you, and they don’t even know it!”), I made a website for my DJ services. Almost immediately, people started to track me down. 

Ten years later and hundreds of amazing dance parties later, I’m still an avid collector of rare and forgotten records, but I’m also something else – a wedding DJ. I’ve played nearly every venue in the Detroit area, and I am as busy as I want to be. I’ve met countless amazing couples and consider myself very fortunate to have hopefully made their day a little more joyful. It’s a great gig and a very happy accident! 

I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
I’ve been pretty lucky that most of the people who are looking for a vinyl DJ already care a lot about the music, so we usually get along pretty well. In fact, I’ve gotten into a lot of great songs from people’s requests. I try to always keep my ears open. 

As far as challenges, every event can have its own unexpected obstacles, but I try to be ready for anything! Looking back on some of my earliest events, I was working with some pretty basic beginner DJ equipment. The investments in better equipment I’ve made through the years have made my life much easier, but even with better speakers and digital/wireless capabilities, I’ve stuck to my roots as an analog DJ operating without a laptop and keeping vinyl records the focus of the DJ set. 

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m always learning and collecting more about music, and as a resident of Detroit, a place with so much musical history, I’m always interested in finding objects in dusty bins that help shed new light on the many chapters of local music lore. When I’m not playing music, I’m often reading books or listening to podcasts on music history. Knowing the stories behind the songs helps me appreciate the music even more. 

I enjoy collaborating with a wedding couple to create a mix of music that feels uniquely tailored to their music tastes and fits the vibe and flow for the occasion. Trying to get to the heart of what different people like about music helps me understand it more too. 

On my website, I regularly post mixes of newly acquired 45s. I do this partly so I can listen to them on the go but also so that other people can enjoy them. I love it when I get messages from folks about specific on a mix songs, they’re excited about – that’s what it’s all about. As you can imagine, my always-growing collection is pretty large. When she was little, my daughter asked if the walls of our house were made of records, if that helps paint a picture. 

Also, around the holidays, I always post a mix of fun, obscure holiday tunes. If that sounds up your alley, there is a lot of great stuff on my website to discover (and more to come). Each year I also guest host the special holiday episode of Jon Moshier’s show on WDET. 

How can people work with you, collaborate with you, or support you?
Visit www.djdavelawson.com and check out some of the mixes, or follow me on Instagram. I’m always down to talk music with another enthusiast. And for anybody who was a Detroit musician back in the day, get in touch! I love hearing all the stories about the yesteryears of Motown. 

Contact Info:

• Website: http://www.djdavelawson.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/djdavelawson/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/djdavelawson
• Other: http://www.mixcloud.com/djdavelawson

Image Credits
E Ribant
Doug Coombe
Jill Devries