#(cue smooth transition into a song)

[kansasjustgotgayer]

Can we have someone other than lin manuel miranda writing songs for disney now? Theres a lot i did not like in encanto.

[zincbot]

mario movie made me emotional more at 10

[bangtaninink]

Hello friend! Glad to see you're alive and I hope doing well 😊

For the drabble prompt, I'm feeling a little angsty with a hopeful ending using Lewis Capaldi's Forget Me with either Koo or Suga. Thank you! 💜

drabble 003 member min yoongi (suga) au idol

—— here's the song!!

the way you see it, right now, you have two options:

stay, compose yourself, and pretend like bts' 20-minute stage starting right now is not going to kill you

excuse yourself to go to the bathroom, where you'll camp out until they're off-stage.

as much as you want to take option two, disappearing for that long — with fans filming their next lot of fancams as long as you're in sight — will arouse too much suspicion, and you're under enough heat from management as it is.

you take a deep breath, and out of sheer instinct, clap as the crowd does, feigning a smile as the host announces bts' stage is commencing.

next to you, iseul — the only group member who knows why you can't stand bts — subtly eyes you, gauging your reaction.

you're proud to say you know enough about music to know how to keep in time with a beat, and the way your head nods along to their song is a reflection of that; but it's automatic, habitual, and happens as you stare at a prop on the back of their stage at an adequate enough distance that it looks as if you're watching bts themselves as they dance.

next to you, iseul shifts in her seat as if fixing her posture, but the way her arm conveniently nudges your side doesn't go unnoticed by you. your eyes widen, lips forming an o, as you pretend to be impressed at a signature bts dance break, hands clapping a little faster.

you hate these end-of-year award shows. you hate that you probably look like a seal right now too.

for the rest of the performance, you plaster on a polite smile, taking your cue from the rest of your group members to react appropriately to what happens on stage. as one song transitions to another, iseul leans over, hand cupped around her mouth, whispering in your ear as if she was gossiping away like a teenage girl about the cute boys in front of you both.

"how much are you hating this right now?" she asks.

you nod your head frantically, grinning.

"i hate my life so much, dude," you reply with clenched teeth.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"guys, guys, guys!" yuki says, waving her hand frantically to gather the members together. she leans into the circle, lowering her voice. "i just heard from sana senpai that there's an after-party happening at a club in hongdae."

"oooh, an after-party!" sara says, grinning. "wait, are we invited?"

yuki rolls her eyes. "i don't think sana senpai would've told me if we weren't."

"so cool," nari says.

"apparently bts are actually gonna be at this one too."

your shoulders fall, and you sigh quietly, reaching for your hoodie.

"yeah, i'm gonna pass on that," you say, rummaging around in your bag for a hairtie.

"what? why?" sara asks, eyebrows furrowed momentarily before they smooth out again when she smirks. "oh. do you have a date?"

"no, i just don't feel like going to a party."

"please," nari says, rolling her eyes. "you? miss three-soju-bottles-minimum? i highly doubt that."

"maybe i just want to look after my liver for once, unnie."

"tch. whatever. killjoy. come on. let's hurry up and get back to dorm so we can change."

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"you're really not coming?" yuki asks, holding a dress up to her body as she looks in the mirror.

"i'm good," you say, not looking up from the book in your hands.

"damn. i was really looking forward to taking shots with you, nee-chan."

"have some with iseul. she's the next best drinker after me."

"yeah, but... i wanted to dance as well, and she doesn't dance as good as you."

"i heard that," iseul says, looking pointedly at yuki as she walks into your shared room, holding a pair of false eyelashes. "_____, help me put these on."

you snort, but sit up on your bed, putting your book down and taking the eyelashes and glue iseul holds out to you.

"the blue one's pretty, yuki. wear that one, not the green skirt," you say, spreading glue along the band of one set of lashes.

"yeah? really?" yuki says, grinning. "okay, thanks!"

iseul scoffs as yuki runs out of the room and into the bathroom to change, shaking her head.

"'doesn't dance as good' she says," iseul says. "she's lucky she's cute, or i would've ripped her extensions out."

"she's right though. i dance way better than you," you say, blowing on the glue.

"wow. bitch."

you laugh, nodding your head for her to shut her eye as you position the eyelashes on her lid.

"okay, i was thinking."

"wow. that's rare," you mutter.

"shut up," iseul says, pinching your leg. "i was thinking you should come to the after-party."

"are you for real? you know why i don't wanna go."

"i know, i know — but! you could wear that lace bodysuit, and that nice leather skirt, and look super hot. maybe make out with someone and piss yoongi off. make out with someone more famous than him. god knows you could pull anyone in that outfit."

"no one's more famous than bts. you're crazy."

"so make out with one of the other members then," iseul says, shutting her other eye for you to apply the lashes onto.

"are you kidding? those guys are all loyal to each other. they'd never even look at another member's ex. they have their own weird bro code on top of the universal bro code," you say, frowning.

"c'mon, dude. you could totally do it. if you don't make out with someone... i dunno. collect some digits. show your tits. just do something to piss him off, because if you don't come to the after-party and we all do, he's kinda gonna win."

you sigh as you cap the tube of lash glue, annoyed that somehow, iseul's right. being the only member of your group to not attend would say a lot, and you'd be damned if you let yoongi have the upper hand — not after he'd included a song on their new album that the both of you had worked on years ago without crediting you anywhere. you were certain that, even with your history, as an artist, he'd understand better than anyone how important credit was. it was a petty move, a childish move, one that you were sure he made just to piss you off.

it was sad to say that he succeeded.

"okay, fi—"

without finishing your words, you look up to find iseul standing in front of you, already holding out your outfit.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"senpai!" yuki calls out, waving her arm.

"yuki! you made it!" sana says, jeongguk's hold on her waist loosening as she runs over to your bandmate. "is it just you?"

"no we're all here." yuki looks around, confused. "i guess everyone must've split off already. hi, sunbae."

jeongguk raises his glass with a smile and a nod when yuki greets him.

"come on, let's get a drink," sana says, excitedly taking the younger's hand and leading her to the bar.

at iseul's side you sigh, but there's very little chance it'll be heard with how loud the music is. you nod at her suggestion to get a drink, following her to the bar, leaning up against the sticky countertop as she orders drinks for you both.

to iseul's credit, she's cleaned you up very nicely for tonight, if the way heads turned towards you the minute you all walked into the club is anything to go by. the bartender sets your drinks down in front of you, and you don't miss the way his gaze quickly falls to your cleavage before back up to your face with a grin.

"enjoy, ladies," he says; you don't grant him a response.

"look at that," iseul says, leaning in close to speak into your ear, loud enough to be heard over the music. "and you didn't even need a boob job to make your chest stand out. where do you wanna go?"

"home?" you suggest, taking a sip of your drink; iseul shoots you a look. "i dunno. wherever. i'm just gonna follow you tonight."

"nee-chan!" yuki cries out, waving you over. "let's have shots — before i'm too drunk to remember!"

you and iseul laugh as you walk to the other end of the bar, greeting sana and mina when you see them. it isn't long when five tequila shots are laid in a row on the bar, and you all pause as yuki retrieves her phone to take a video.

"cheers!" she cries, sana and mina doing the same.

"cheers, bitch," iseul says, knocking her glass against yours before downing the shot in one go.

"idiot," you say, doing the same.

"let's do another one," yuki says, despite the wince that clouds her face.

"are you sure?" mina asks, laughing and signalling to the bartender for another round. "it doesn't look like you enjoyed that."

"yes i did!"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

as much as you hate to admit it, for a while, you do have a good time, switching between drinking and dancing. you almost forget why you didn't want to come.

that is, of course, until you see him.

your hips slow when you spot yoongi against one of the walls, one arm draped across the shoulders of one girl, the other around another girl's waist. the three of them laugh at something hoseok is saying, but you can't hear anything but the music, and you barely feel the hands on your waist, none of your attention on whoever it is you've just been dancing with for the last ten minutes.

since the two of you broke up months ago, you thought you were somewhat okay, while also stupidly holding onto the idea that maybe he was also quietly, in his own way, taking his time to grieve and get over everything the way you were. seeing him now, however, looking perfectly fine, makes you realise that may not be the case.

you weren't ready for this. you'd made a conscious effort to distance yourself from anything that could possibly lead back to yoongi and to bts, even going as far as changing up your music style entirely when producing new songs, since your normal style had yoongi written all over it — it was a risky move, but one that had, surprisingly, benefitted the group and gotten you on everyone's radar after the release of your second album. still, only you — and to a degree, iseul — know how many times you've stood in the shower, letting your tears mix with the water, or about the password-protected folder on your camera roll you look through in the dead of night when you should be sleeping, or the USB drive tucked away in the bottom of your bag filled with songs that no one will be hearing anytime soon.

is yoongi really ready to forget you?

"hey," iseul says, bringing your attention back to the present as she leans away from whoever she's been dancing with for the last ten minutes too. "you good?"

there's concern written all over her face, and belatedly you realise it's because of the way your eyes have started to water, clear enough to see even with the strobing lights. when you don't reply, she follows your line of sight, dread washing over her.

"oh no. hey, ___—"

"i think i'm gonna go home now, seul," you say, brushing away the hands on your hips to weave through the crowd of people on the dancefloor.

"wait! hol— wait, _____!"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"woah, woah, woah! is that _____ noona?" jeongguk says, craning his neck to look over people as you step away from the dancefloor, passing the bar. "damn, she looks hot in that outfit."

"stop that!" sana cries, slapping his chest.

"i'm just saying! i still like you more though, babe."

"not that!" she jerks her head to the side, and jeongguk finds his gaze falling upon yoongi.

"oh. shit. my bad, hyung."

"i told you, hyung," namjoon says, shaking his head. "you had to go and put on that whole playboy act tonight, and now look."

"what, namjoon? what am i looking at, huh?" yoongi asks, frowning.

"hyung, she saw you," hoseok says. "when she was dancing. she saw you with those other girls."

"if your goal was to piss her off, well then, you succeeded," namjoon says, taking a sip of his drink.

"i was trying to see if she was over me or not, actually," yoongi says, scoffing.

"well then that was literally the most idiotic way you could've gone about doing that," seokjin says, rolling his eyes. "seriously, yoongi. if you wanna get back together with _____, maybe be an adult about it."

"oh yeah? and what do you suggest i do, hyung?"

"how about, hmm, i dunno, go after her? like, right now? that would be a nice first step, don't you think, guys?"

"i'm gonna get a stomach ulcer from this," jimin groans, picking up his drink.

"no, you're gonna get a stomach ulcer because you've been chasing tequila shots with vodka sodas," taehyung says, eyebrow raised. "this will give you a headache, because that's what i've got right now."

"why are you still standing there? go already!" seokjin says, shoving yoongi's arm. "god, seriously."

"well, what if i get to her and it turns out she is over me?" yoongi cries, motioning towards where you'd gone. "what, i'm just supposed to go be an idiot in front of her? let her laugh at me and mock me?"

"jesus christ, i give up." seokjin groans, motioning for namjoon to take over.

"hyung," namjoon says. "why would she run off like that after seeing you with another girl — sorry, girls? if she was over you, she wouldn't have cared and would've kept on dancing with... i dunno who that was. did anyone see who had their hands on her waist?" the other members shrug.

"yeah, hyung," hoseok says. "if _____ noona was over you, she'd probably be going home with someone tonight, because i dunno if you guys saw that skirt she was wearing, but holy fucking sh—"

"i will punch you in the throat, jung," yoongi says, glaring.

"so fucking go already, hyung!"

yoongi huffs out a frustrated sigh, finishing off the rest of his drink in one last gulp before grabbing his jacket, muttering a half-hearted apology when one sleeve unintentionally hits sana's arm. he leaves the rest of the members to talk amongst themselves, no doubt airing out their frustrations about him, but he doesn't care — not when he needs to find you somehow.

he deduces that you're probably no longer in the club anymore when he spots the rest of your group members scattered in the crowd. frantic, he approaches iseul.

"hey. do you know where _____ went?" he asks, eyebrows furrowed.

iseul looks him up and down, crossing her arms over her chest. "why should i tell you?"

"iseul, come on. i need to talk to her."

"could've talked to her back in august, sunbae. or september... october... even novem—"

"okay! okay. i fucking get it." yoongi looks up at the ceiling and sighs, ruffling his hair. "look. i get that i've been a dick about this whole thing, but this hasn't exactly been sunshine and rainbows for me either."

"mmm, could've convinced me back there — and, oh, actually! i think you did convince _____ of that! respectfully? you should go back to your girls, sunbae. just leave _____ alone."

yoongi knows he deserves to be chewed up and spat back out onto the pavement like stale, tasteless gum. he has no energy to fight iseul because he realises she's completely correct.

fortunately for him, as if by divine timing, just as iseul finishes lecturing him, the door to the female bathroom swings open, and you step out, dragging your finger under your eye where your mascara has smudged.

he can tell you've just been crying, but instinctively, yoongi looks at your outfit first.

hoseok was right.

holy fucking shit.

"oh fuck."

[aaryan-mwa-blogs]

Essential DJ Skills: How to Read a Crowd and Keep the Energy High

Being a DJ is more than just mixing tracks—it’s about understanding your audience and keeping the energy of the room alive. Whether you're playing at a club, a party, or an event, knowing how to read the crowd and maintain high energy levels can make all the difference. Here’s a guide to help you master these essential DJ skills.

1. Understand Your Audience

The first step to keeping the energy high is understanding your audience. Different crowds respond to different music styles, so it’s crucial to gauge their mood and preferences.

Observe the Crowd: Watch how people are reacting to the music. Are they dancing, chatting, or standing still? Their body language will give you clues about what type of music they enjoy.

Listen to Feedback: Pay attention to any verbal or non-verbal feedback from the crowd. If someone requests a song or shows excitement for a particular track, take note.

2. Build and Maintain Energy

Maintaining energy throughout your set requires a good sense of timing and the ability to read the crowd’s reactions.

Start Strong: Begin your set with an upbeat track to grab the crowd’s attention. Setting a high-energy tone from the start can help build excitement.

Use Track Selection Wisely: Transition smoothly between tracks to keep the energy consistent. Avoid abrupt changes that might disrupt the flow. Use tracks that complement each other in terms of tempo and style.

Control the Pace: Adjust the energy levels by varying the tempo and intensity of your tracks. For example, you might play a high-energy track followed by a slower, more relaxed one to give the crowd a brief break before ramping up the energy again.

3. Read and React to the Crowd

Being able to react to the crowd's mood in real-time is a key skill for any DJ.

Adapt Your Playlist: If you notice that the crowd isn’t responding well to a particular genre or track, be prepared to switch things up. Have a diverse selection of tracks ready to match different moods.

Use Cue Points: Set cue points in your tracks to quickly jump to the most energetic or engaging parts if you need to boost the energy.

4. Engage with the Audience

Creating a connection with your audience can enhance their experience and keep the energy high.

Interact: Use the microphone to engage with the crowd. Announce upcoming tracks, thank them for their energy, or encourage them to dance.

Read the Room: Pay attention to how the crowd reacts to your interactions. Adjust your approach based on their responses to keep the vibe positive and energetic.

5. Master the Art of Mixing

Seamless mixing is essential for keeping the flow of your set smooth and maintaining high energy levels.

Beatmatching: Ensure your tracks are beatmatched so that transitions are smooth. This helps keep the energy consistent and avoids any jarring breaks in the music.

Effects and EQ: Use effects and EQ adjustments to add excitement to your set. For example, use filters to build tension before dropping into a high-energy track.

6. Stay Calm and Confident

Your attitude as a DJ can influence the crowd's energy.

Be Confident: Confidence in your set can translate into energy and excitement for the crowd. Even if you encounter challenges, stay calm and composed.

Enjoy the Moment: Your enthusiasm and enjoyment will be contagious. If you’re having a great time, it’s likely that the crowd will too.

Explore DJ Gear and Tips

Looking to upgrade your setup or need more tips on DJing? Visit some professional   shops like VIP PRO AUDIO  for the latest equipment and expert advice. Whether you’re perfecting your skills or starting out, we’re here to support you in creating unforgettable sets.

Mastering the art of reading a crowd and keeping the energy high takes practice, but with these tips, you’re well on your way to becoming a successful DJ. Keep experimenting, learning, and, most importantly, having fun with your music!

[charlesmwa]

How to Create Your First DJ Mix: A Beginner's Tutorial

Creating your first DJ mix can be both exciting and a bit overwhelming. If you're new to DJing, you might be wondering where to start and how to make a mix that sounds smooth and professional. Don’t worry—this guide will walk you through the basics of making your first DJ mix, from choosing your tracks to recording and finalizing your mix. Let’s dive in!

1. Gather Your Equipment

Before you start mixing, make sure you have the right gear. For beginners, a basic DJ setup usually includes:

DJ Controller: This is your main tool for mixing tracks. It often comes with built-in software, so you can start mixing right away.

Headphones: Good headphones are essential for cueing up tracks and ensuring your mix sounds perfect.

Speakers: Quality speakers or studio monitors will help you hear every detail of your mix.

DJ Software: Most DJ controllers come with software. If not, you can download free or paid DJ software that fits your needs.

2. Choose Your Tracks

Selecting the right tracks is crucial for a successful mix. Here’s how to choose:

Variety: Pick a mix of genres and tempos that you enjoy and think will flow well together. Don’t be afraid to experiment!

Harmonious Keys: Try to choose songs that are in compatible musical keys. This helps ensure that the mix sounds harmonious and pleasant.

BPM (Beats Per Minute): Aim for tracks with similar BPMs or those that can be easily adjusted. This will make beatmatching easier.

3. Plan Your Mix

Before you start mixing, it’s helpful to plan:

Structure: Think about the flow of your mix. Will you start slow and build up, or dive straight into high-energy tracks?

Transitions: Plan how you’ll move from one track to another. Common transitions include fading out one track while fading in another or using effects to blend the songs smoothly.

 4. Beatmatching and Mixing

Now it’s time to get hands-on:

Beatmatching: This involves aligning the beats of two tracks so they play in sync. Use your DJ software to adjust the tempo of one track to match the other. Your headphones will help you hear the beats clearly before you bring the new track into the mix.

EQ and Levels: Use the EQ controls on your DJ controller to adjust the bass, mid, and treble frequencies. This helps to ensure that the tracks blend well and that one track doesn’t overpower the other. Monitor the volume levels to avoid distortion.

5. Recording Your Mix

Once you’re comfortable with your mix, it’s time to record:

Set Up for Recording: Most DJ software has a built-in recording feature. Ensure your recording settings are configured properly before you start.

Record Your Mix: Hit record and perform your mix as if you were playing live. Keep an eye on the recording levels to make sure they’re not too high or too low.

6. Finalizing Your Mix

After recording, it’s important to review and refine:

Listen Back: Play back your mix and listen for any issues. Pay attention to transitions, volume levels, and overall flow.

Make Adjustments: If needed, go back and make adjustments to your mix. You might need to tweak transitions or re-record parts of the mix.

7. Share and Get Feedback

Finally, share your mix with friends, family, or online communities to get feedback. Constructive criticism can help you improve and grow as a DJ.

Ready to take your DJing to the next level?  Try regularly visiting  professional Audio shops like VIP PRO AUDIO to explore the latest DJ equipment and get expert advice on everything from gear to techniques. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to upgrade your setup, we’re here to help you achieve your DJing goals.

Happy mixing, and enjoy the journey into the world of DJing!

[lgcrp]

◔ ┈ LOADING … TRAINEE PROFILE INITIATED !

MIN CHAEYEON ( READ MORE HERE )

AGE 18 ( 14 FEBRUARY 2006 )

TRAINED FOR 7 MONTHS ( SIGNED JANUARY 2024 )

              INTRODUCTION VIDEO FOUND … PRESS PLAY ?

chaeyeon decides to do on a little dance routine for the filming, a freestyle really she and another trainee had created together some weeks ago. the moves aren't too safe, but they are clean and smooth. she also focuses on perfecting her friend's solo parts since she's not there. she finishes as the song fades, then bows at ninety degrees. she always wants to toss her long hair around dramatically. "hello, this is min chae-yeon," she begins, raising one finger before transitioning to a peace sign and continuing, "or chae-rry, your born-to-be idol. i'm a first-year legacy entertainment trainee, and I'll always surprise you with my many charms and skills." she punctuates her intro with a playful wink, being sure to show her confident smile. chae-yeon has a youthful and naive look that often belies her many moods. she continues, "i wanted to be an idol ever since my mom got me dancing to son dam-bi's 'saturday night' with her," she laughs lightly, thinking at the memories. "a fond memory that's become my passion." though chaeyeon hasn't been a trainee for long and knows she needs to improve her skills, her words flow with hardly a pause. well-rehearsed, yet only partially ringing true; her dedication is strong. "i hope you'll cheer for me whenever you hear my name." she smiles shyly. when no cue to stop came, she looks sideways, awkwardly (still smiling) at the staff behind the camera. she breaks into a genuine laugh and it's probably the most authentic moment in the entire take. she waves at the camera and the filming wraps up, so she thanks the crew warmly, her eyes shining excitedly.

            INTERESTED ? REACH OUT TO THE TRAINEE !

[sar--ang]

DJ and Live Music Combo: Elevate Your Event with Dynamic Entertainment

Choosing between a DJ and live music for your event can be challenging. Each brings its own unique appeal, but combining the two creates a powerful and captivating experience. The DJ and live music combo is a modern approach that blends the seamless beats of a DJ with the vibrant energy of live musicians. This hybrid setup is gaining popularity, transforming ordinary events into extraordinary celebrations. In this article, we explore the magic of the DJ and live music combo and why it’s the ultimate choice for your next event.

Why Choose a DJ and Live Music Combo?

The DJ and live music combo offers a versatile and dynamic entertainment solution that caters to a wide range of musical preferences. By leveraging the strengths of both DJs and live musicians, this combination creates an immersive audio-visual experience that keeps guests entertained and engaged. Here’s why this combo is becoming a favorite among event planners:

Vast Musical Range A DJ can play almost any song, providing a vast library of music that spans multiple genres and eras. When paired with live musicians who add their unique flair and improvisation, the result is a rich and diverse musical experience that caters to all tastes.

Elevated Energy and Engagement Live musicians bring an undeniable energy to the stage, creating an interactive atmosphere that encourages audience participation. Combined with a DJ's ability to keep the beats flowing and the transitions smooth, this combo ensures an electrifying ambiance that keeps the dance floor lively all night.

Seamless Transitions One of the biggest advantages of a DJ and live music combo is the seamless transitions between different musical styles. DJs excel at maintaining the party's momentum, while live musicians can seamlessly integrate their performances with the DJ's set, ensuring a continuous stream of entertainment without any awkward pauses.

Customizable Experience This hybrid approach allows for a highly personalized musical experience. DJs can take requests and mix tracks to match the crowd's mood, while live musicians can tailor their performances to fit the event's theme. This ensures that the music perfectly aligns with the vibe of the party.

Crafting the Perfect DJ and Live Music Combo

Creating an unforgettable DJ and live music combo experience requires careful planning and coordination. Here are some tips to ensure flawless execution:

Select the Right Performers Choose a DJ and live musicians who have experience working together and can complement each other’s styles. Look for a DJ with a diverse playlist and musicians who can adapt to various genres to ensure a cohesive performance.

Plan the Setlist Together Collaborate with both the DJ and the musicians to create a balanced setlist that includes both pre-recorded tracks and live performances. Deciding in advance which songs will be played by the DJ and which will be performed live will help avoid clashes and ensure a smooth musical flow throughout the event.

Ensure Equipment Compatibility Make sure the sound systems and equipment for both the DJ and live musicians are compatible and properly set up. Professional sound engineers can help manage audio levels and ensure high-quality sound throughout the venue, preventing technical issues during the performance.

Rehearse as a Team Joint rehearsals are essential to synchronize the DJ and live music performances. This practice allows both parties to get comfortable with each other’s cues and transitions, ensuring a polished and professional show on the event day.

Impact on Different Events

The DJ and live music combo’s versatility makes it suitable for various events. Here’s how this dynamic duo can enhance different types of celebrations:

Weddings For weddings, the combo provides the perfect blend of elegance and excitement. Live musicians can perform during the ceremony and cocktail hour, adding sophistication, while the DJ takes over during the reception to keep the party vibrant.

Corporate Events Corporate events often require a mix of formal and relaxed entertainment. The DJ and live music combo can cater to this need by providing live background music during networking sessions and high-energy DJ sets for the after-party.

Private Parties Whether it’s a birthday, anniversary, or other celebration, the DJ and live music combo ensures the music is tailored to the host’s preferences. This combination keeps guests entertained with various music styles and interactive performances.

Festivals and Public Events For larger gatherings, the combo offers the perfect blend of continuity and live entertainment. DJs maintain the energy between live sets, ensuring the audience remains engaged throughout the event.

Conclusion

The DJ and live music combo is a powerful entertainment solution that combines the best of both worlds. By merging the DJ's adaptability and extensive repertoire with the vibrant, personal touch of live musicians, this hybrid approach creates an unforgettable musical experience. Whether planning a wedding, corporate event, or private party, the DJ and live music combo promises to elevate your celebration, making it a night to remember. With careful planning and the right talent, your event will be filled with seamless transitions, energetic performances, and personalized musical moments that will leave your guests in awe.

[jeanjane]

Maintaining a Daily Routine in Child Care: Benefits and Tips

Child care services play a vital role in the upbringing of children, providing a supportive and educational environment when parents or guardians are unavailable. A structured and consistent daily routine is crucial in child care settings, as it offers numerous benefits for the children's development, behavior, and overall well-being. In this article, we will delve into the importance of maintaining a daily routine in child care, highlighting its benefits and providing valuable tips for child care providers to create an effective routine that enhances the children's experiences.

Benefits of a Daily Routine in Child Care

Development of Predictable Environment

Children thrive in predictability and familiarity. A well-structured daily routine in child care creates a stable and secure environment that fosters a sense of trust and comfort among children. When children know what to expect next, they can anticipate transitions and activities, reducing anxiety and promoting a positive atmosphere.

Emotional Regulation and Behavior Management

Consistent routines help children develop emotional regulation skills. When children understand the sequence of events and transitions, they are better equipped to manage their emotions and behavior. This, in turn, reduces instances of tantrums and emotional outbursts, creating a more harmonious atmosphere in the child care setting.

Cognitive and Physical Development

A daily routine that incorporates a balance of educational, creative, and physical activities supports holistic development. Engaging activities such as storytelling, art and crafts, outdoor play, and structured learning time contribute to cognitive stimulation and physical well-being. Child care providers can use this routine to introduce new skills and concepts, enhancing the children's overall development.

Social Skills and Peer Interaction

Structured routines provide ample opportunities for children to interact with their peers. Group activities, meal times, and play sessions facilitate socialization and the development of vital social skills such as sharing, cooperation, and communication. Through consistent interactions, children learn to navigate social dynamics and build friendships.

Smooth Transitions

Transitions between activities can be challenging for children, especially in a child care setting. A well-organized routine with clear signals for transitions (e.g., a song or a visual cue) helps children shift their focus smoothly from one activity to another. This minimizes resistance and disruptions, contributing to a more efficient and enjoyable day for both children and child care providers.

Tips for Creating an Effective Daily Routine

Understand the Age Group

Different age groups have varying needs and attention spans. Child care providers should tailor the routine to suit the developmental stages of the children under their care. Infants may require more nap time, while toddlers might benefit from shorter, engaging activities.

Flexibility within Structure

While consistency is crucial, flexibility is equally important. Unexpected situations may arise, and child care providers should be prepared to adapt the routine accordingly. This adaptability ensures that the children's needs are met, even when unexpected changes occur.

Incorporate a Variety of Activities

A well-rounded routine includes a mix of activities that promote physical, cognitive, and social development. Structured learning sessions, creative play, outdoor exploration, and quiet time for reading or rest should all have their place in the daily routine. This variety keeps children engaged and enthusiastic throughout the day.

Communication with Parents/Guardians

Maintaining open communication with parents or guardians is vital. Child care providers should share the daily routine with families, allowing them to reinforce similar schedules at home. This consistency between the child care setting and home environment further supports the children's sense of stability.

Allocate Time for One-on-One Interaction

Amidst group activities, child care providers should set aside moments for one-on-one interactions with each child. These moments provide opportunities for individual attention, allowing child care providers to better understand each child's needs, interests, and progress.

Create Visual Aids

Visual aids, such as charts or pictures, can help children understand and anticipate the daily routine. These aids serve as visual cues for transitions and activities, aiding in the seamless flow of the day.

Be Mindful of Transition Times

Transitions can be challenging, so child care providers should allocate extra time for these moments. Allowing children ample time to finish ongoing activities and prepare for the next one helps reduce stress and resistance during transitions.

Embracing Challenges and Celebrating Progress

Handling Unpredictable Situations

Child care providers should be prepared to handle unexpected situations that can disrupt the routine. Weather changes, unexpected visits, or children's individual needs might require on-the-spot adjustments. Remaining calm, adaptable, and communicative helps navigate these challenges smoothly, ensuring that the children feel safe and secure.

Celebrating Milestones and Achievements

Every child's progress is worth celebrating. Child care providers can incorporate moments of recognition and celebration into the routine. Whether it's acknowledging a child's effort in completing a puzzle or applauding their cooperation during group activities, these small gestures boost self-esteem and motivation.

Conclusion

Maintaining a consistent daily routine is an invaluable tool that not only nurtures a sense of stability and predictability but also fosters essential aspects of a child's growth. Whether you're a child care provider or a dedicated child sitter, the benefits of a structured routine are clear: from emotional regulation and cognitive development to social interaction and smooth transitions. By understanding the unique needs of different age groups, incorporating variety, communicating effectively with parents, and embracing flexibility, child care providers can create an environment where children thrive. As we navigate challenges and celebrate milestones, the power of a well-maintained daily routine shines through, laying the groundwork for a brighter and more fulfilling journey for every child under our care.

[mmorgfor]

Vibe sound usb turntable listen to record on mac

Mixers are also used to pre-listen to sources of recorded music in headphones and adjust upcoming tracks to mix with currently playing music. DJs often use specialized DJ mixers, small audio mixers with crossfader and cue functions to blend or transition from one song to another. Often, this involves aligning the beats of the music sources so their rhythms and tempos do not clash when played together and to enable a smooth transition from one song to another. DJs may adopt the title "DJ" in front of their real names, adopted pseudonyms, or stage names.ĭJs use audio equipment that can play at least two sources of recorded music simultaneously and mix them together to create seamless transitions between recordings and develop unique mixes of songs. Originally, the "disc" in "disc jockey" referred to shellac and later vinyl records, but nowadays DJ is used as an all-encompassing term to also describe persons who mix music from other recording media such as cassettes, CDs or digital audio files on a CDJ, controller, or even a laptop. Most common types of DJs include: radio DJs, club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile DJs (who are hired to work at public and private events such as weddings, parties, or festivals), and turntablists (who use record players, usually turntables, to manipulate sounds on phonograph records). A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience.

[cesimnida]

[KDRAMA REVIEW] Our Beloved Summer

I am a sucker for slow-burn romances, angst and all that and this one is just right up my alley!!! If you love those things, I definitely recommend OBS for you! To be honest, my mind's a little clouded and I am not yet done crying as I am drafting this but I want to write this as soon as possible so I won't forget the feeling.

Note: I want this to be as spoiler free as possible but I might have spoiled some minor things.

Our Beloved Summer is one of my most anticipated dramas; Wooshik's acting got me ever since I saw him in Train to Busan and I really liked Dami's performance in Itaewon Class. I haven't watched The Witch Part I yet though but yes, I'm planning to watch it soon (maybe this weekend?). Initially, I expected this as a typical rom-com drama where they were high school friends whose relationship developed through the years and ended up as lovers in the present. Amazingly, adding up the ex-lovers trope SERIOUSLY SEALED THE DEAL FOR ME. However, I started the drama 3 weeks late because I was trying to finish another drama before committing myself to OBS. Since reading the plot, I was pretty sure that I won't be able to finish any other drama once I start this because I will be so invested in it. Turns out I was right and thankfully, I managed finishing my previously currently watching drama before starting it.

Watching Our Beloved Summer was such a treat because the story-telling and transition is so smooth even though we have two timelines - the past and present lives (or documentary) of Ung and Yeonsoo. Even with this, I never felt confused while watching which is a plus for me as I get confused with alternating timelines easily. Additionally, I LOVE the OSTs! The songs play just in time to make a scene more meaningful and emotional which was very effective in triggering my tears most of the time. I have also read the OST translations and I kid you not, being able to know the meaning behind the lyrics adds up to the emotional effect of the songs every time it's played in a certain scene. I never NOT cried hearing There For You ever since I read the translations, I swear! The lyrics are related to their story, it felt like they're Yeonsu and Ung's letters for each other. It was such a wonderful feeling being able to watch a drama that can make you feel like you are also involved in the story because watching Our Beloved Summer made me feel like I was watching Ung and Yeonsu’s story behind Ji Ung's lenses.

Dami and Wooshik went above and beyond my expectations! The ✨chemistry✨ was over the top, their micro-expressions and the little details they add in their acting (e.g., those on cue tears, facial expressions, little adlibs, etc.) made a big difference and they definitely owned Yeonsu and Ung. They made themselves as their characters and it's hard to imagine different actors playing the roles they played in this drama. Actually, the supporting characters did a stellar job as well! This is why I really liked the ending: they gave their friends and family their well-deserved spotlights in the last episode! Honestly, this is one of the best endings I have ever watched, they wrapped it up so beautifully I'm so speechless, all I did was cry happy tears.

Our Beloved Summer is not just about ex-lovers meeting and falling in love again but instead, it's a tale of two individuals finding the path in confronting their fears and past that haunts them, being able to overcome these with the help of the people they love most and of course, themselves. It's about acceptance of past mistakes, forgiveness and growth. They also perfectly showed that healing is a painful process but it isn't impossible to overcome if you have the right mindset and a good set of support system - that quality is better than quantity and communication is always the key. And most importantly, it showed us the beauty in finding a love you thought was lost and it taught us to trust the process - that there's always a chance in discovering what you truly want for yourself and being happy again.

It's heartwarming to see the relationship and dynamics they have with the people around them. Even though small in numbers but it is of good quality - just what they needed. It made me realize that having just the right amount of people you can trust is the life I wish to have. Having these people around and sometimes telling them what they needed to hear allowed them to grow outside their comfort zones and realize, albeit later than I expected, how lucky they are for having them in the good and bad times of their life. Being able to witness their journey was such a ride and I'd love to experience it all over again by re-watching it!

Thinking of it, the plot is simple but it was written and executed so beautifully and will most certainly stay in my heart for a long time. The way they showed us the different love languages being present in the leads' relationship added a different kind of intimacy to the scenes, it's such a wonderful thing to watch. The journey was full of tears, happy and sad, but definitely worth it! My only complaint is that I thought this was a rom-com but why do I feel like I cried most of the time? Lol. But still, 100/10!

Thank you OBS team! That was a good run. I'll probably have a hard time watching a new series so I'll just bask into the OBS greatness for now.

[brocflowers]

Sang so loud, sang so clear.

Weak and tired, his sister’s slowly fading life in his hands, Adrian makes a choice.

word count: 4797.

Tags: blood magic, liberties taken with spirit healer lore, everybody lives/nobody dies, (this is not necessarily a kindness), familial dysfunction, warnings obviously for blood, self-injury, and what I'm going to call "mild gore" just to be very, very safe.

Title from Bird Song by Florence + the Machine.

[AO3]

-

“Wait.”

“Seeker, if you keep stopping me while I’m talking we’re going to be here all day-”

“What does Bethany’s recovery have to do with the fact that Hawke was arguing with his mother?” she asks, ignoring him.

“I didn’t say that.”

“Yes you did,” Maker, she wants to hurt him, “you said “of course, Leandra was still uneasy with him after what happened with Bethany back in Ferelden”. Why would Hawke saving his sister’s life make his mother uneasy?”

Varric’s jaw flexes. It’s subtle, barely perceptible, she almost misses it.

It was a slip of the tongue, that much is obvious. But it was not something untrue, spoken in error, it was something honest that he had not meant to say. And it clearly is not an issue of protecting Hawke’s privacy. Between the book and what he’s already told her, it’s clear that the man’s personal business is not something Varric is particularly shy about revealing.

No, he’s hiding something, actively. And it’s something much more than the details of a simple interpersonal squabble between a mother and her son. Cassandra fully intends to find out exactly what that something is.

Varric taps his fingers against the tabletop once, twice. He’s watching her closely, weighing his options. After a moment, he sighs, and Cassandra thinks she sees hesitance in his eyes for a moment before he slips back into his usual expression, a calculated smile, easy and roguish, unreadable. The transition is unnervingly smooth.

“You want to know? Because I’ll tell you if you really want to know.”

“I told you, I want to know everything.”

“Well then,” he says, reaching up to scratch at the stubble on his jaw, “we’re going to have to go back a little, all the way to Lothering.”

“I’m listening.”

She must sound too interested, because suddenly Varric looks too confident. He’s made a decision of some sort, one that Cassandra doesn’t believe she’ll be able to understand until she hears what he has to tell her.

“Alright,” he says, leaning forward to put his elbows on the table between them, “so Bethany is with her mother, and the ogre is coming-”

“And she rushed out,” Cassandra says, remembering this part of the retelling very clearly, “to protect Leandra.”

“Right. She rushed out to meet it, and it grabbed her right around the middle, lifted her high above its head before-”

--------------------------------------------------

Bethany’s body crunches when it hits the ground, and the sound is so loud, so sick and awful that it takes everything in Adrian not to just lean over and vomit when he hears it. The ogre releases her, leaving her limp on the ground, bloodied. The sight of it makes everything slow down, his hands go numb and he feels dizzy, as if he might faint.

Adrian has seen some horrible injuries in his life. Mortal wounds, festering flesh. He’s even seen violence, the broken bones and bruised, torn, bloody skin that it leaves behind. None of it has ever made him feel like this. Distantly, he wonders if this actually is the worst thing he’s ever seen, or if it just feels different because it’s his sister he’s watching it happen to.

Your sister, he thinks, charging towards the ogre with Carver and Aveline more on instinct than anything else. Your sister, Adrian. Your baby sister. What are you going to do now? You promised. You promised your dad you wouldn’t let anything happen to her. Adrian that’s your sister that’s Bethany your baby sister Bethany your-

His body is choosing how to move with no direction from his mind, taking cues from the other bodies around it while his thoughts remain static, locked in on one subject, a simple repeating refrain. He thinks that he might not have moved towards the ogre at all had he not seen the two warriors do so first. Might have just stood there utterly still, staring.

Fire and lightning leave his hands at intervals. He doesn’t feel them. He can’t. When he sees the magic collide with the ogre’s body, it doesn’t mean anything.

The thing falls quickly. Or at least it feels that way to him, simultaneously a few seconds and a lifetime. Carver has barely managed to pull his sword from its body when Adrian’s head starts working again, the fog finally clearing and letting him think well enough to choose how to move, and rushes immediately to Bethany’s side. Hopes that he isn’t too late.

Their mother is there already, but Adrian can barely see her, can’t comprehend her presence. He kneels at Bethany’s opposite side, sharp stones digging into his knees as he fumbles around for a pulse. He doesn’t feel one. He tells himself that it’s because he’s tired, because his hands are shaking. He tries again, fingers pressing to a different spot on her neck. The feeling of her limp muscles and unmoving body under his hands makes him feel sick all over again, but he pushes it down.

Nothing, still nothing. He tells himself that that can’t be right, that it’s there, that she has a pulse. That she must, that she has to. He’s just having a hard time finding it over the sound of his own heartbeat pounding in his ears, the sound of the horde in the distance, his mother shouting at him.

“This is your fault,” she says, tears streaming down her face, and he flinches. He can’t help it. “How could you let her run off like that? You were supposed to be protecting her, how could you-”

“Shut up.” He says, giving up on finding Bethany’s pulse point and shifting around so he can press his ear against her chest, try to find a heartbeat that way, “shut up, I can’t hear.”

It’s harsher than he meant to be, but he can’t really find it in himself to care. His mother ignores the request, continues to sob and shout at him. He really wishes she wouldn’t. Nothing she’s saying is false, but none of it is useful. It is his fault, he did fail her, but he doesn’t need his mother to tell him that. He’s said it to himself enough times already.

Adrian closes his eyes, tunes her out as best he can so that he can listen. He wonders if he should pray. You’re supposed to pray when you want something very badly and know it’s not likely at all that you’ll get it, right? And he wants his sister to be alive so very very badly.

He swallows, tries not to think about how unlikely it is. About the fact that he heard her bones break inside of her, saw her body hit the ground like wet blankets, no tension in any of her muscles. He just needs something, anything. A faint murmur that will let him justify using the last of his mana on trying to revive her. Anything, anything, anything at a-

There.

“What?” Leandra asks, her litany of accusations stopping dead at exactly the moment his eyes fly open, “What is it? Did you-”

“Move,” he says, scrambling back up onto his knees, pulling mana out of his center and into his hands, “you can’t help, I need you to leave.”

“Adrian if you don’t tell me what’s happening-”

Patience thin, he ignores her entirely and instead turns to Aveline, hovering uncertainly nearby.

“Get her out of here.”

Aveline responds to the order immediately, hurrying over to help Leandra up and guide her away. It’s far more gentle than he would’ve been, and much more understanding. As unhappy as he is that Aveline and Ser Wesley are here at all, he is thankful that there’s someone here that isn’t family. Someone that doesn’t have to feel the weight of all their history coming together with the tragedy before them and help in a way only outsiders can, give his mother patience when all he can feel is anger and frustration.

“And get Carver,” he calls after them, casting magic deep into Bethany’s body. Not to heal, not quite yet, but just to get a look around. See where the damage is worst so that he can focus his untrained, low mana healing spells starting where they’re most necessary.

His heart sinks once he gets a feel for what’s inside of her, bile threatening at his throat again. It’s so much worse than he imagined, and he can’t believe she’s still breathing, even as faint as those breaths are. It reminds him of the Smith’s old, rotted barn after the storm hit it. Nothing to salvage but the strongest of the supports, and even those battered and weak. It makes him feel frantic, and pushing that emotion down in order to stay calm enough to start healing her is one of the hardest things he’s ever done.

He starts with the bleeding inside first, because he knows that’s what kills you the fastest. She’s bleeding outside as well though, and it worries him. He really isn’t sure how much he can actually get done before his energy runs out, he doesn’t think he has enough to put everything back together and muster up the pulse necessary to get her heart going again if it stops. And he definitely doesn’t have enough mana to numb the pain while he does all that. Adrian swallows. He might use up all his mana and it might not be enough. Worse, it might hurt the whole time he fails to save her. His sister’s final moments might be agony and it will all be his fault.

You won’t be able to live with yourself if you don’t try, he tells himself. It feels like such a weak argument, hollow as it echoes around in his head.

Carver kneels in the space Leandra vacated, sword sheathed. His front is covered in purple-black darkspawn viscera, he looks tired and tense, ragged.

“How can I help?”

Adrian sighs in relief. He at least sounds even and collected, far more put together than Adrian feels. He’s thankful for it.

“She’s bleeding.”

It’s not really instructions. It’s half a thought, poorly communicated, but he can’t manage anything else over his forced sense of calm and the focus he has to put on the damage before him. Damage that’s far beyond his skill level of repair.

Carver seems to understand what he means though. There’s a bone-deep fear in his eyes when he looks down at their sister’s body, but it doesn’t affect the way he acts, the way he moves. He presses his hands to the wound in Bethany’s side and he does it without flinching, without hesitation.

Adrian is so, so proud.

“How bad is it?” Carver asks, voice quiet in a way that Adrian has never heard it before.

He doesn’t reply.

Flesh knits back together with his coaxing, internal wounds sealing up, a miracle not possible without magic, but as he feared, it isn’t going to be enough. There’s precious little mana left in his body, and still so much left to fix. He still hasn’t stopped her external bleeding, hasn’t mended any of her bones and, oh Maker, her heart is slowing. He’ll need to restart it, but after that he’ll be out of mana entirely, he’ll have to start tapping into his own life force to keep going. It’s a dangerous thing to do. It’ll definitely hurt him. It possibly might even kill him.

Adrian feels like he could cry. He wishes they hadn’t already used the two small bottles of lyrium their father left behind when he died. He wishes Bethany was awake so that she could at least try to help him help her, or at least so that he could apologize. He wishes Malcolm hadn’t given up on teaching him how to heal, how to summon. A spirit healer could do all that was needed and more but he isn’t- he was never- Father never could teach him how to-

“You need to stop,” Carver says, and he sounds so worried that Adrian knows that his exhaustion is visible, that it’s clear how much he’s pushing himself, “Adrian you’re- you’re going to hurt yourself, don’t-”

“It’s just a little more,” he says, “If I can just get her conscious then-”

“Adrian.”

Adrian meets his eyes. He feels frantic and desperate, and he almost certainly looks it, but Carver looks oddly calm, his gaze sharp and serious. At the end of the week he’ll be nineteen years and six months old exactly, but looking at him right now you’d never guess it. He looks aged, tired and resigned in the way that only old men get, and it makes Adrian’s chest hurt. He didn’t look that way before Ostagar, he was still a kid.

“I can’t carry you both,” he says, so matter of fact and so breathtakingly sad that he can barely stomach it.

Adrian understands what he means, and unfortunately, he knows that he’s right. He’s weak, right on the verge of tapping into something deeper than mana to keep going. If he continues like this the best-case scenario still involves him nearly killing himself, and their little group can’t handle two half-dead mages and getting away from the horde alive all at once. And that’s if he even makes it. More likely is he’ll pour so much into healing her that he dies in the process. Which would be worth it if she lives, he thinks, but there’s no guarantee of that. He might just leave them both dead.

But if he stops… if he stops she'll die for sure. He'll be letting her die, making the choice that does it. It will always feel like he chose his life over hers. Like he killed her.

The whole thing just makes him want to scream. He has to choose. He doesn’t want to choose. It’s not fair, none of it’s fair. He doesn’t want to die, he doesn’t want Bethany to die and he doesn’t want to choose. He wouldn’t even have to choose if he was just a little stronger, if he just had a little more energy, a little more-

(A familiar tickling in the back of his skull. A creeping little almost-voice that says, you could have more. I could give you more.)

(His father always told him he shouldn’t listen, that he should ignore the voices that come to him when he’s dreaming, that he should send them away, fight them off if he needed to. But Adrian was young and rebellious and never good at doing what he was told. He figured that as long as he never actually did it, it wouldn’t really matter if he let the voices teach him how.)

Weak and tired, his sister’s slowly fading life in his hands, Adrian makes a choice.

“Give me her knife.”

“Why?”

“Carver.”

His brother frowns, pulls the knife out of her belt, passes it to him handle-first. There’s a grimness in his eyes as Adrian takes it with his free hand, the other remaining pressed palm-first in the center of Bethany’s chest. He’s pretty sure he knows what Carver thinks he’s about to do, and wonders if when he sees what’s actually about to happen he’ll be relieved or horrified.

Adrian doesn’t give himself any more time to think. He flips his grip on the knife and digs it into his other arm, opening a wide diagonal wound underneath his elbow.

“Adrian, what-”

Horrified it is then, he thinks, tossing the knife aside. He supposes it also could have been that his brother was just startled, but Adrian doesn’t really have it in him to interpret that generously, at the moment. If his brother is horrified, Adrian doesn’t blame him.

He stacks his free hand over the one against her chest, straightens his shoulders. Blood pours in streams down his arm, pools in between his interlaced fingers, seeps into Bethany’s already stained shirt. He closes his eyes. Malcolm tried to teach him spirit healing when he was younger, and gave up when it became clear that Adrian would never be able to summon easily on his own, that despite the vividness of his dreams he just wasn’t built for it. But before that he would practice with weaker spirits that his father would call for him, and he still remembers all the steps.

Adrian exhales, imagines himself hollow and empty, a place behind his sternum that he silently gives permission to be filled. The spirit has to enter you to help. You have to let it. As much as the Chantry and the Circles would like to deny it, it is a form of possession. Albeit an incomplete and very temporary one.

(Maker, he hopes what’s about to happen is temporary. He isn’t Harrowed, he has no way of knowing.)

The wound on his arm pulses sickeningly, and the rivulets of blood trailing down his arm start to feel both hot and cool at once, like lyrium when it goes down your throat. There’s an iron smell in the air suddenly, like wet rust, like monthly blood.

Something slips in, fills his chest and arms, all the way down to his fingers. Adrian shivers. It feels nothing like any of his father’s spirits. It’s foreign to him, terrifying and strange.

He can feel that his natural mana is still exhausted, but now there’s this new well of energy for him to tap into, and even just lightly poking at it he can tell that it is deep. It feels like something pulled straight from the Fade, like having one foot in the waking world and one in a dream. What the spirit, the demon, is providing for him is far beyond anything he’s ever experienced before, the magic potential of it stronger than anything he ever thought he’d have access to, and the excitement he feels at that realization scares him.

(He understands the temptation now. Feels the pull, a tugging in his stomach like looking over the edge of a cliff. The doors this opens, the things he could do with magic like this… it’s seductive. And he understands, better than ever, why his father was so scared of it, the paranoia that led him to instruct his children against asking questions, against even thinking about it. Against even saying its name.)

The demon tells him what to do. Whispers instructions to him in something that isn’t really a voice, it’s impressions and colors, knowledge without form. If you asked him to, he probably couldn’t translate it into words. He simply Knows what it is he has to do next, and he knows that that knowledge isn’t coming from his own head.

Adrian breaks the old healing spell, casts a new one. It’s strong, and he directs the magic out of himself and through Bethany with ease, bypassing her natural resistance entirely, like it’s not even there. He’s never been able to do that before, usually his magic “catches” in the body’s defenses, and he has to delay healing while he works around them, convinces the flesh to let his magic in. But this flows easily, like water over rocks. It’s a spell his father would have been proud of him for, in another context.

Her external wounds start to close, and he can feel the flesh inside of her start to knit as well. There’s enough energy running through him that he can heal her everywhere at once, instead of focusing on one injury at a time, and pretty soon he feels her broken bones start to shift and move underneath her flesh. Slowly at first, and then-

All of her misaligned bones snap into place at once with a sound like a tree right before it falls, the jagged edges then clicking and grinding against each other as they settle into position before beginning to mend. Bethany’s eyes snap open, and with a sick feeling settling in his stomach Adrian realizes that in his desperation, there’s something he forgot to do.

Her back arches. She screams.

“Shit,” he says, quickly trying to readjust his dislodged hands, “Beth, I’m-” she writhes, knocking his hands off of her again, “-shit, fuck, Carver-”

He’s already moving, leaning in to hold her down by her shoulders. He looks overwhelmed and desperate, hands straining as he tries to keep her still.

“Beth- Bethany it’s okay, it’s okay-” She kicks out with her legs, and Carver throws one of his out over them in an attempt at further restricting her movement, “easy, easy. Be- calm down. Adrian has you, it’s going to be okay. It’s gonna be okay.”

It’s awkward to get his hands repositioned properly with Carver most of the way over her, but he manages it. Casts a numbing spell as quickly as he’s capable of.

He was always good at numbing spells, despite otherwise lacking in related magics, and the effect is immediate. Her face goes from tight to soft within seconds, movements easing until she is finally still, her breathing regular, even, conscious.

Carver releases her slowly, then turns to him.

“She is, isn’t she? She’s going to be okay?”

His voice still sounds oddly small, scared and relieved in equal measure. Adrian sends another curl of magic out of his fingers to check her internal injuries, then nods. Tentatively.

She’s going to be okay.

He hears his mother say something, and Carver answers her, but he isn’t paying enough attention to make out any individual words. He closes the wound on his arm, but it doesn’t heal all the way. A thick pink band of new scarring remains, jagged from the haste with which he made the cut, the awkward angle at which he held the blade.

He breaks the spell he’s using on Bethany, aware of her eyes on him the whole time, and as the last tendrils of magic dissipate the demon leaves him. He doesn’t notice at first, doesn’t feel it as it leaves, just feels very empty all of the sudden. Light, as if someone reached inside of him and removed a big lump of lead that was wedged in with his organs. He can’t believe it was that easy. That it just left, didn’t fight to stay, didn’t linger. That’s not how demons are supposed to act at all, and it makes him worry that there’s some other consequence coming, something he couldn’t have predicted.

(Deeper down, he worries that there will be no consequences at all. That maybe everything he’s been told is a lie. That maybe there really isn’t anything to stop him from doing it again.)

(He won’t do it again, he tells himself. He won’t, he won’t.)

He leans back, starts to pull away when Bethany’s hand shoots up, wraps around his bicep in a death grip. He starts, then looks down at her. Their eyes meet, and hers are very serious, very scared.

“What did you do?” she asks, voice rough and raw. She squeezes his arm tighter, and it almost hurts, “Adrian, what did you do?”

It’s not actually a question. She knows what he did, she just doesn’t want it to be true. She wants him to tell her that it’s not true, that she’s mistaken. He can’t.

The seriousness of what’s happened hits him suddenly, sinks to the bottom of his stomach like a rock. He cut himself, summoned a demon, cast spells with its help. Even worse, he did it somewhere he could be seen. He looks up at Carver and swallows, throat clicking and dry.

“Did the templar see?”

Carver’s eyes flick up over Adrian’s shoulder, then back to him. He shakes his head.

“What about the wife?”

“I don’t think so,” Carver says, quietly. Not whispering, whispering draws attention, just his normal voice, low and even, “she’s with mother, your back is blocking their view.”

He looks scared, they both do, and Adrian can’t fully tell whether they’re more scared of him, or for him. He can’t blame them for either.

“I didn’t see anything either,” Carver says, surprising him, “Beth, did you see something?”

Bethany turns her head, face tightening like she’s sore, and shares a look with Carver. It’s always been a joke in their family, the “twin thing”, their ability to talk without speaking, make decisions the rest of them aren’t allowed to know about. It feels nostalgic for a moment, like the three of them are kids again, and Adrian broke something and they’re all agreeing not to tell mother and father about it. That it’s going to be a secret, a sworn oath of silence kept between the three of them, something they’ll all laugh about being so serious over, once they’re all big.

Bethany nods, and Adrian is relieved, even though he can tell that this isn’t the end of it. They’ll want an explanation, there will be a talk, once they’re all safe.

“Can you stand?”

“Probably,” she shifts, grimaces, “maybe not on my own.”

“I’ll help her,” Carver says.

Adrian pushes himself up, a sudden dizzy spell hitting him once he’s on his feet, vision going briefly black at the edges. Maybe it’s stress, maybe it’s the blood loss, probably it’s a combination of the two. It’s not pleasant.

Bethany bites back a lot of pained noises as they help her to her feet, and Adrian thinks about all the kinds of injuries he doesn’t know enough about to heal properly. Delicate nerves, crush injuries, how soft tissue can hurt for years after the initial trauma, how easy it is to misalign bones when you’re in a hurry. The blood magic just gave him more raw energy to tap into, the demon a little bit of a guiding hand, he’s still held back by his own lack of skill and training. She’ll need to see a real healer, eventually. Hopefully they can find one in Gwaren.

If they make it that far, he thinks, hearing the darkspawn roar and realizing that the sound isn’t as distant as he hoped.

Once they have Bethany settled, one arm around Carver’s neck and his hooked under her armpits, taking most of her weight, Adrian turns to survey their surroundings.

Aveline and Ser Wesley are not immediately visible, which he can’t help but find mildly concerning. Mother stands a few feet away, hands covering her mouth as she watches Bethany. He can tell that she’s holding herself back from running over and fussing over her, pulling Bethany into her arms. Her expression is full of shock and relief, love for her daughter who was three-quarters dead just a few moments ago. Who is pale and weak now, but nonetheless alive.

Then her gaze lands on Adrian, and everything changes.

She knows. Leandra’s hands drop from her face a little, and Adrian’s stomach drops with them. He doesn’t understand how she could know. There’s no way she saw him cut himself. Bethany was bleeding, so it’s not unusual that he has blood on him, But nonetheless she knows. He can see it on her face, can feel the air go cold between them as they look at each other.

“Adrian-”

She doesn’t finish. Aveline swears loudly, and all heads turn immediately towards the sound.

They stayed still for too long. The darkspawn have found them, and Adrian swears too as he watches their mangled forms come over the ridge towards them. It’s more than they can handle. Even if everyone was in top shape, he can only imagine them winning against this group by a slim margin. And they are far from being in top shape.

The ground shakes beneath them, and Adrian has just started to prepare himself for another ogre when-

--------------------------------------------------

“-when the dragon swoops low overhead, its roar splitting their ears and the skies alike. Etcetera, etcetera,” Varric says, making a circular gesture with his hand, “darkspawn defeated, the dragon transforms into a witch, you remember this part.”

Cassandra looks at him blankly. The way he tells it is so casual, nonchalant. As if this is a story about Hawke getting lost on the way to the market, and not revealing to her the moment that the Champion of Kirkwall became a maleficar.

(And to save his sister’s life, risking death or possession to fulfill a promise made to his father for her safety… if she was asked, she would admit that it’s the closest thing she’s ever heard to a good enough reason. If it weren’t unforgivable, she’d be tempted to even call it noble.)

They watch each other silently for a moment, waiting to see who speaks first. She thinks she sees doubt in Varric’s eyes for a moment, maybe even regret. Why tell me then, she wonders, why tell me, why not just lie a second time?

“That all you needed to hear, seeker?”

Cassandra doesn’t know what to say.

[whatgaviiformes]

Turning Circles

A/N: Okay, so this is the last idea I had in my head for Olympics stuff, and it’s the one that kind of did what it wanted to do. Remember how I said I don’t write ships.... well Gordon had other plans. 

So Pen and Ink - and I abandoned the summer Olympics for the Winter. Because, fun fact, I don’t know anything about the other sports. But what I do know is ice skating. 

So you can tell me if you enjoy this or if this is weird. I dunno. 

I don’t write ships, this is weird for me. please beniceomgomgomgomg

-----

TURNING CIRCLES  

It was official.

Gordon had a crush on his brother’s pairs partner.

By all rights, Penny should be representing Great Britain, not the US. But loopholes with her mother’s ancestry aside, it was obvious she and John just fit as a pairs team, and their ease with each other translated beautifully into their performances.

Their fit hadn’t been immediately obvious; it took Coach Moseley reaching out to John directly and asking him to just come give it a try. What could be the harm? Up until then, John had considered himself a singles skater. But in his past competitive performance, his programs had just felt flat, and dispassionate. The World Stage knew it.

And Penny – well she was, rightfully so, a little –uh, selective after her previous partner was willing to abandon her safety for the thrill of the win. The partnership of Fischler and Creighton-Ward had dissolved a few years ago, right before the national championship, in a major upset that reached even the most remote television screens.

There was video of the qualifiers, and Gordon fumed thinking about Penny’s fall. Pairs was about trust, about knowing each other’s cues and speaking silently, soul to soul. Penny hadn’t been prepared when Fischler changed the throw to a more difficult one that would score them a higher technical score. He hadn’t warned her, and she hit the ice hard with a cry that still sent goosebumps up his arms when Gordon thought about it.

Then again, that could just be the cold of the rink this early in the morning. He rubbed his gloved hands together to spread a bit of warmth up his frozen limbs. Gordon had bundled himself into a pair of long jeans and a thermal bomber jacket, with faux fur adorning the hood for this morning’s visit to their family’s Ice Arena and Sports Complex.

In comparison, Penny and John wore their practice outfits, and for Penny that still meant tights and a cobalt blue skating dress with a sheer skirt and rhinestones framing her chest -stop looking, Gordon. John wore a pair of black joggers and a long sleeve grey Henley. His red hair was messy from their warm-up, looking like absolute bed head in comparison to Penny’s immaculate high ponytail.

They kept warm somehow, but then again, they were the ones currently practicing the salchow. Gordon was just the one who ran for drinks.

Penny’s rotation was a bit faster than John’s. Coach Moseley echoed it as he thought it, clapping her hands together and shouting, “Again!”

The pair started with the footwork sequence right before the triple salchow, setting up the back left inside edge that started the jump. They turned, one-two-three (and it had taken Gordon a few months to get comfortable recognizing the rotations, but it was obvious now), and then landed on an outside edge on the right leg.

Better that time.

From his jacket pocket, Gordon pulled out his phone and the stylus he used to make notes and opened his digital notepad for John. He’d lost some height in his jump - an increase in his calf exercises should help correct that.

Coach Moseley skated over to the edge of the rink to greet Gordon and gestured for the pair to join her as they finished off their edge with the next few steps of the next sequence.

“Did you get that, kid?”

“Yep,” he confirmed. “All right here.” He tapped the stylus against the side of his phone. So, in all truth, he did more than bring drinks. It took a village, and John and Penny had Coach Moseley, a Choreographer, a ballet teacher, and, well, Gordon had the honor of being their nutritionist and personal weight trainer.

“I’d like you to work with Penny on her forearms, too,” Coach Moseley added. “They had a wobble in their twist lift yesterday.”

Gordon’s heart jumped. “Is she ok?”

“She didn’t fall, kiddo. John held firm. I’d just like to be a bit on the safe side.”

He understood that. A few taps with the stylus later and the note was added into Penny’s file. Then he pocketed his phone to greet his brother and his partner with a grin.

“Morning!”

“Gordon, Darling.” Penny reached for the pink thermos he offered. It was filled with warm green tea to start her day. “Thank you,” she hummed. “You’re a Godsend.”

He ducked his head as his cheeks flushed, pretending to check the other two drinks to make sure he had the right ones for each.

“Ah – here you go, John. Black with honey and cinnamon.” Pen and John were allowed natural sweeteners only. And for their coach – “Caramel macchiato with hazelnut.”

“Thanks, Gordon,” John said, humming happily into his coffee as he took a sip.

“I brought some honeycrisps too.”

“Wonderful. Okay kids, take five,” the Coach said. “We’ll drop jumps down to doubles when you get back. I want to focus on footwork this morning.”

He noticed John’s galaxy blade protectors sitting to his right on the barrier of the rink, so Gordon slid them over to his brother, stepping closer to the rink doors just in case he needed a hand. John had a habit of tripping when transitioning from gliding on ice to the awkward process of walking in heavy skates.

For Penny, taking five meant she went right back to what she was doing. Turning circles, weaving grooves of figure eights onto the smooth ice, beautiful like crystal and as hard as glass.  Much like the woman herself.

She’d taken her thermos and abandoned it on the other side of the rink.

Gordon watched her skate. And saw resilience, strength, intensity. When she first came to them, there’d been a shield around her, and slowly John and the rest of their family had started to help her bring that shell down.  Much the same as when Kayo joined their fold.

But Gordon knew Penny could still cut him down with just her words and her stare. And though she knew it was a power she held, Gordon tried his hardest to hide the extent to which he knew she could truly and utterly break him if she wanted to.

If she knew.

A crunch to his right startled him; he jumped as Virgil came up beside him and bit into one of the apples he’d washed this morning and thrown into the thermal bag.

Virgil had his pair of hockey skates draped over one of his broad shoulders, and his red flannel was rolled up a bit at the sleeves. He casually leaned forward over the edge of the rink to mirror Gordon’s position, watching Penny as she skated freely.

“We need a fourth for even teams,” Virgil offered. He placed a hand on Gordon’s shoulder, turning to look him in the eye. “What do you say? You and me against Scott and the Sprout?”

“That’s hardly fair.” Virgil was a tank as goalie, and Scott had yet to figure out Gordon’s tricks for finding openings where there didn’t seem to be any.

“I wouldn’t underestimate them, Gordo. Alan’s been getting quicker on his feet. Which you would know if weren’t spending so much time out here lately.”

Gordon shrugged Virgil off and grabbed an apple for himself as well, taking a bigger bite than he probably needed.

“Gordon.”

“What? What are you trying to say, Virgil?”

Virgil sighed, sitting back on the bleachers behind them. “Nothing. Just – when you’re ready we’ll be over on rink two.”

“Sure.”

He slid back and grabbed his hockey bag by the door. “Don’t be too long.”

And as Virgil left, John returned. They whispered a few words to each other in the doorway, and Gordon tried to ignore the way his ears burned, even in the cold air of the rink in the morning

End Note - if it feels very “The Cutting Edge” it should. Turning Circles is a song from the movie, and the concept is....eh, similar. and Moseley is the last name of a character

[reidamancy]

🎶 idk if you've heard of it, but there's a song called learning to love you by Jake Scott that makes me 🥺

hi ty for putting me on this song it’s in my playlist now haha

a/n: i feel like this went from 0-100 real quick but i didn’t know how to make the transition LOL and if i keep trying to change it i WILL spend 834 hours on it so i’m just gonna post it now okay bye

(spencer reid x gender neutral reader)

---

“Spencer?!”

The man turned around and revealed himself to be your first boyfriend. You let out a gasp upon seeing his face. “Y/N?” He brought you in for a hug and you immediately reciprocated.

As you pulled away you took another good look at his face and said, “Wow, I almost didn’t recognize you.”

He ran a hand through his hair as he answered, “Yeah, it’s been so long.”

“I, How are you? What are you doing back in Vegas?” You stammered.

“I’m good, yeah.” He nodded. “I’m just back visiting my mom.”

“Oh! How is she?”

“She’s good! The meds are really working, I think we’re making a lot of progress.” He smiled at you.

You couldn’t stop the smile forming on your face either. “That’s really good! I... I’m not gonna lie, I miss her.”

“You only dated me for my mom.” Spencer laughed.

“That’s not true!” You giggled. Spencer narrowed his eyes at you. “Okay, maybe I did.”

You both laughed.

His phone chimed and when he read the message he let out a sigh. “Hey, listen, I gotta go... But um, would you maybe like to get dinner?”

You bit your lip to hold back a smile. You nodded, making sure you weren’t being too overenthusiastic, and replied, “I’d love to.”

As he walked away, you stared at his receding figure, remembering the last time you saw him. You were high school and college sweethearts, your first and longest relationship. They say you never forget your first love, and boy were they right.

After Spencer moved to D.C. your relationship was never the same. The distance strained your relationship and you had to call it quits. But your separation had nothing to do with the lack of love for each other. You both cared about each other deeply, but just couldn’t maintain a healthy relationship. But every once in a while, he would cross your mind. You wondered if he ever lived out the plans you two would talk about on those late nights, or if those plans were just teenage wishful thinking.

As you got ready for dinner with Spencer, your phone chimed with a text from him.

Wear something fancy :)

You wondered where he could be taking you, then quickly changed into more formal attire. Next thing you knew, he was waiting for you outside.

“Wow... you look...” Spencer’s voice trailed off as he admired you.

You laughed before placing your hands on his shoulders, smoothing out his blazer, and saying, “You’re not too bad yourself, Spence.”

He smiled, then opened the car door for you and ushered for you to get in. As he began to drive you asked, “So where are we going?”

“I’m taking you to France.”

“Woah, I didn’t know the FBI payed that much.”

He laughed, “I meant I’m taking you to Paris.”

As if right on cue, the bright blue Paris ball of the Las Vegas Strip came into view and you gasped. “That’s where...” You trailed off.

“Yep. And it was our best date. I figured this would be good just for the... nostalgia.”

You bit your lip at his words. That night in Paris truly was your best date. After having one of the best dinners of your life then sneaking into (and winning lots of games at) the casino, you went to the top of the Eiffel Tower. And Spencer told you he loved you for the first time.

Spencer led you inside and he was right. It was just like old times. Although the years have changed everything around you, stepping back inside here with Spencer by your side felt surreal. It was as if the universe had rearranged to recreate this moment from your youth. And as you looked at your first love, you couldn’t be any happier.

As you dined together, the conversation geared towards your love lives.

“So are you married? Any kids?” You felt silly asking, considering the romantic atmosphere of this whole night, but you had to be sure.

He laughed. “No, no. I've been too focused on my career.”

“Same here.”

“It's so weird, I always thought I'd be married at this age.”

You smiled. “Me too.”

To you.

“Remember that night, when we laid out our entire life plan together?” You laughed, “We thought we had everything all figured out. God, we were so young and naive. Can you imagine if we actually stuck to those plans?”

Spencer smiled at you. “Yeah, I can actually.”

You raised an eyebrow. “Really? How would we afford a house, 8 cats, 4 kids, and a coffee shop here in Las Vegas, Nevada?”

“I don’t know, your coffee shop could’ve been the new Starbucks.”

You snorted. “Oh please, give me a break.”

Spencer laughed. “No, but there are some parts of those plans I wouldn’t mind making a reality.”

You couldn’t hide the blush that crept on your cheeks. You knew exactly what he was talking about.

He leaned forward in his chair and said, “You know, the odds of a successful first relationship are astronomically low.”

You eyed him as he licked his lips and continued. “But you’ve seen the best and worst of me, Y/N. And even after all these years, you still get my heart racing. There’s just something about you...”

You bit your lip as you asked, “Spencer, do you believe in soulmates?”

He nodded.

“I do too. And I don’t know, this whole night, seeing you again, it just feels like a sign. The years have changed but they’ve rearranged for us to meet again. And I think that maybe we just met at the wrong time. None of my other relationships even compared to what we had.” You paused. “And seeing you again it just feels right.” A sigh escaped your lips. “Am I crazy?” You nervously laughed.

Spencer laughed and shook his head. He bit his lip and smiled. “Do you think we can try again?”

“I’d like that.” You beamed. “Maybe we’re not who we thought we would be right now. But we can still try, right?”

He smiled as he reached over and held your hand over the table. “I loved you then, and I’ll keep learning to love you now.”

prettyboy-reid's 500 follower celebration!

[charlesmwa]

How to Optimize Your DJ Setup for Club Performances

Performing at a club as a DJ is an exciting experience that requires careful preparation and the right equipment. To ensure you deliver an unforgettable performance, it’s essential to optimize your DJ setup. To ensure you're fully prepared for your next club gig, follow this comprehensive guide.

1. Know Your Venue

Understanding the club environment is crucial for a successful performance. Here are some things to consider:

Sound System: Familiarize yourself with the club’s sound system. Knowing its strengths and limitations will help you adjust your setup accordingly.

Space and Layout: Check the DJ booth size and layout. Ensure there's enough space for your gear and that you can comfortably access all your equipment.

Acoustics: Pay attention to the room’s acoustics. Clubs can have challenging acoustics, so be prepared to tweak your sound settings.

2. Choose the Right Equipment

Having reliable and high-quality equipment is key to a seamless performance. Here’s what you’ll need:

DJ Controller or Mixer

Controller: If you prefer digital DJing, choose a controller compatible with your software.

Mixer: For traditional setups, ensure your mixer has enough channels and features to handle your performance.

Turntables or CDJs

Choose high-quality turntables or CDJs that suit your style and preference.

Laptop and Software

Ensure your laptop is powerful enough to run your DJ software smoothly. Keep your software updated and organized.

Headphones

Invest in comfortable, durable headphones with excellent sound isolation to monitor your mixes accurately.

3. Organize Your Music Library

A well-organized music library is essential for a smooth set:

Categorize by Genre: Create folders or playlists by genre, mood, or energy level.

Cue Points and Loops: Set cue points and loops in your tracks to make transitions easier and more creative.

Analyze Tracks: Use your DJ software to analyze BPM, key, and waveforms for seamless mixing.

4. Sound Check and Calibration

Performing a sound check is crucial to ensure your setup sounds great in the club:

Levels: Adjust your gain, EQ, and volume levels to match the club’s sound system.

Test Transitions: Practice a few transitions to see how they sound in the club’s acoustics.

Monitor Placement: Ensure your monitor speakers are positioned correctly for optimal sound clarity.

5. Backup Plan

Always have a backup plan to avoid any technical issues:

Backup Equipment: Bring spare cables, USB drives, and any essential gear in case of emergencies.

Redundant Setup: If possible, have a backup laptop or another playback device ready to go.

6. Engage with the Audience

Connecting with your audience can elevate your performance:

Read the Crowd: Pay attention to the crowd’s energy and adjust your set accordingly.

Interact: Engage with the audience through eye contact, gestures, or using a microphone.

7. Prepare for the Unexpected

Be ready to handle any unexpected situations:

Technical Issues: Stay calm and troubleshoot quickly. Know your equipment well to resolve issues on the fly.

Requests: Be prepared to handle song requests professionally, even if you can’t fulfill them.

Optimizing your DJ setup for club performances involves preparation, the right equipment sourced from right shops like VIP PRO AUDIO in Brooklyn, and the ability to adapt to the venue. By knowing your venue, choosing reliable gear, organizing your music, and engaging with your audience, you’ll be set for a memorable and successful performance. Keep practicing and refining your setup to keep delivering great experiences for your audience.

[sar--ang]

Elevate Your Event: The Dynamic Duo of DJ and Live Music

Choosing between a DJ and live music for your event can be a tough decision. Each brings its own unique charm, but combining the two creates a powerful and captivating experience. The DJ and live music combo is a modern approach that blends the seamless beats of a DJ with the vibrant energy of live musicians. This hybrid setup is gaining popularity, transforming ordinary events into extraordinary celebrations. In this article, we explore the magic of the DJ and live music combo and why it’s the ultimate choice for your next event.

Why Opt for a DJ and Live Music Combo?

The DJ and live music combo offers a versatile and dynamic entertainment solution that caters to a wide range of musical preferences. By leveraging the strengths of both DJs and live musicians, this combination creates an immersive audio-visual experience that keeps guests entertained and engaged. Here’s why this combo is becoming a favorite among event planners:

1. Vast Musical Range

A DJ can play almost any song, providing a vast library of music that spans multiple genres and eras. When paired with live musicians who add their unique flair and improvisation, the result is a rich and diverse musical experience that caters to all tastes.

2. Elevated Energy and Engagement

Live musicians bring an undeniable energy to the stage, creating an interactive atmosphere that encourages audience participation. Combined with a DJ's ability to keep the beats flowing and the transitions smooth, this combo ensures an electrifying ambiance that keeps the dance floor lively all night.

3. Seamless Transitions

One of the biggest advantages of a DJ and live music combo is the seamless transitions between different musical styles. DJs excel at maintaining the party's momentum, while live musicians can seamlessly integrate their performances with the DJ's set, ensuring a continuous stream of entertainment without any awkward pauses.

4. Customizable Experience

This hybrid approach allows for a highly personalized musical experience. DJs can take requests and mix tracks to match the crowd's mood, while live musicians can tailor their performances to fit the event's theme. This ensures that the music perfectly aligns with the vibe of the party.

Crafting the Perfect DJ and Live Music Combo

Creating an unforgettable DJ and live music combo experience requires careful planning and coordination. Here are some tips to ensure flawless execution:

1. Select the Right Performers

Choose a DJ and live musicians who have experience working together and can complement each other’s styles. Look for a DJ with a diverse playlist and musicians who can adapt to various genres to ensure a cohesive performance.

2. Plan the Setlist Together

Collaborate with both the DJ and the musicians to create a balanced setlist that includes both pre-recorded tracks and live performances. Deciding in advance which songs will be played by the DJ and which will be performed live will help avoid clashes and ensure a smooth musical flow throughout the event.

3. Ensure Equipment Compatibility

Make sure the sound systems and equipment for both the DJ and live musicians are compatible and properly set up. Professional sound engineers can help manage audio levels and ensure high-quality sound throughout the venue, preventing technical issues during the performance.

4. Rehearse as a Team

Joint rehearsals are essential to synchronize the DJ and live music performances. This practice allows both parties to get comfortable with each other’s cues and transitions, ensuring a polished and professional show on the event day.

Impact on Different Events

The DJ and live music combo’s versatility makes it suitable for various events. Here’s how this dynamic duo can enhance different types of celebrations:

1. Weddings

For weddings, the combo provides the perfect blend of elegance and excitement. Live musicians can perform during the ceremony and cocktail hour, adding sophistication, while the DJ takes over during the reception to keep the party vibrant.

2. Corporate Events

Corporate events often require a mix of formal and relaxed entertainment. The DJ and live music combo can cater to this need by providing live background music during networking sessions and high-energy DJ sets for the after-party.

3. Private Parties

Whether it’s a birthday, anniversary, or other celebration, the DJ and live music combo ensures the music is tailored to the host’s preferences. This combination keeps guests entertained with various music styles and interactive performances.

4. Festivals and Public Events

For larger gatherings, the combo offers the perfect blend of continuity and live entertainment. DJs maintain the energy between live sets, ensuring the audience remains engaged throughout the event.

Conclusion

The DJ and live music combo is a powerful entertainment solution that combines the best of both worlds. By merging the DJ's adaptability and extensive repertoire with the vibrant, personal touch of live musicians, this hybrid approach creates an unforgettable musical experience. Whether planning a wedding, corporate event, or private party, the DJ and live music combo promises to elevate your celebration, making it a night to remember. With careful planning and the right talent, your event will be filled with seamless transitions, energetic performances, and personalized musical moments that will leave your guests in awe.

[midnightohmnia]

“WHITE NOIZE” EP REVIEW

EP Review by Dawood Kroutz

Wine might be banned but the discussion through the grapevines is very much in demand. You may ask who is responsible for this intoxicating supply…

Coming at the world with an energy and frankness South African Hip-Hop has not experienced in recent memory, the EP ‘WHITE NOIZE’ is fast becoming one of the most acclaimed projects in the country.

Track 1 - ‘WHITE NOIZE’

https://soundcloud.com/memlamli/white-noize?in=memlamli/sets/white-noize

We assume the sonic journey with track number one carrying the title of the EP, “WHITE NOIZE”, loosely defined as; “a constant background noise, especially one that drowns out other sounds”. A fitting title, encapsulating the grace and voracity these artists display their work. Throughout the duration of the opening track the term ”Siyaphambili’, “we are moving forward”  is constantly repeated and absorbed into the listeners subconscious like a mantra. It becomes apparent that the artists are making their intentions as clear as the crystal blue skies (see track 4 ‘CERULEAN’) that they are aiming for greater heights, forging ever forward and never looking back. They are hungry and have a point to prove (to themselves, I understood and not to the world). The cover art speaks volumes too - as if they are telling the listeners that they have arrived (cue the grand entrance) and that they are not here to make a mark, but rather, to leave a scar. With this, the in-your-face and fearless sound is present, combined with an abrasive masculine energy but still very much creative in energy.

Edging into an up-tempo sound I gather a Rockstar vibration elicited at 3:09 minutes into the song. The deep “omnispheric” sound effect of the bass, combined with the kick drums and snares, give a sort of rocking-chair feeling and with this, the new-school Hip-Hop sound emerges but with the elements of a classic Hip-Hop sound simultaneously present.

The rhyme scheme is professional, the delivery is far from monotonous and the flows chosen throughout the duration of the song are impeccable. I can deeply appreciate all the sonic variations present throughout the song, it takes me on a melodic experience when listening through. The lyrics and flow compliment the beat perfectly. The lyrics sort of crescendo with the tempo as the song progresses. The deep touches of distorted bass add to the Rockstar energy emitted from the track (at 2:44 minutes an example of this is showcased) which graciously assists in complementing the sound and lyrical aspects as a whole collective. Technical execution is upheld, the artist’s vocal performance coupled with the producer’s finely executed mix, make a cohesive and retail ready song. A quality of sound capable of competing amongst commercial cats of the industry. 

Track 2 - INTERLUDE 4 YOU

https://soundcloud.com/memlamli/interlude-4-you?in=memlamli/sets/white-noize

The energy from track one carries through to ‘INTERLUDE 4 YOU’. The drive and ambition is still very prevalent here but the artists showcase a softer side of their sound. They are writing for the mothers. A theme that becomes prevalent in this body of work is that, the artists are growing to realize that what they are doing is bigger than them, that their influence reaches beyond the bounds of their circle, and they have an impact larger than what they once thought. As much as I hear a ferocious flame in-your-face attitude within their voices, I attach a deep sense of gratitude to it as well. 

There is a definite sense of familiarity throughout track 1 and 2: the drumming patterns are consistent even though the overall sound is different between the two songs - the producer successfully blends the message, identical instruments, sounds and patterns to give a contrasting but cohesive catalog of songs in the EP. This highlights the fine technical ability possessed by the producer and the remarkable storytelling prowess of the artists throughout this production. The  switch up at 1:11 minutes into the song, coupled with the robotic/distortion effect on the vocals bring in the next artist perfectly. The drums and bass in this specific section compliment this effect really well too. The predominant use of the filtered and robotic effect on the background vocals with a touch of reverb serve as a key characteristic for each verse to really stand out (this is shared throughout the EP). The melodic vocals that are present have been carefully crafted and engineered to suit the levels of the instrumental. This song in its totality sets the tone for the Hip-Hop/R&B-infused section we experience in the latter half of the EP.

Track 3 - ‘TAKE FLIGHT’

https://soundcloud.com/memlamli/take-flight?in=memlamli/sets/white-noize

Floating into the third track, ‘TAKE FLIGHT’ opens up with atmospheric pads and hard hitting drums before the robust vocals and hook enter followed by a smooth verse with a melodic approach to his delivery. The song discusses a sense of belonging that can be achieved when accepting your circumstances. It appears the artists find belonging in elevation of all kinds, they are not afraid of aiming for unbelievable heights and take often take it “higher than a kite”, waking up and chasing the sun is the motto here, carpe diem, if you will. I also get the feeling that they do not follow the status quo and with this, they are able to dictate the pace of their dreams and chase it accordingly. The old adage of “what goes up, must come down” seems to be done away with in this song, the laws of gravity are bent here and I am reminded that what goes up does not necessarily have to come down if you have a skyrocket mentality.

When it comes to the production, a masterful transition occurs at 1:58 minutes into the song. The central deep/extraterrestrial sounding bass comes alive once again, especially during the transition, it sounds sonically pleasing and blended in the mix well. The outro makes the song even more memorable.

Track 4 - ‘CERULEAN’

https://soundcloud.com/memlamli/cerulean?in=memlamli/sets/white-noize

The title of each song carries much meaning and when it comes to a body of work, most times even more so. ‘CERULEAN’, that which is a shade of blue, a deep blue in color like the clear sky aligns and rounds up this body of work in a blissful way. 

The track transitions well from track 3. The song speaks to the struggles of addiction, the loss of a dear friend, love, self-discovery and finally, to prosperity. “Better days are coming” are the lyrics molding this song and I can hear the artists passion, as mentioned previously, I confidently am of the view they know that what they are doing is bigger than them, and they are still humble enough to realize that when those better days come and that they take their dreams to the heights that for now seem unimaginable, those deep blue skies the naked eye cannot comprehend, that they will still value and appreciate the help of those that got them to where they are.

The production, mixing, arrangement and mastering are incredibly hard to criticize here. The engineer brings a technique modern Hip-Hop has not seen much in the last decade and that is allowing the instrumental to run through without vocals accompanying it in sections this makes the experience much more memorable. This is prevalent throughout the project and in this song I hear it once again at 2:59. the vocal sample coupled with the bass, and reverse elements work well with the top drums, giving the song an oceanic feel. Another contrast is apparent in this song and I am left asking myself do I want to chase my dreams in the sky or fall victim to my addictions that are so easy to access in this ocean… either way, they took me on an introspective journey, questioning myself and reflecting, while vibing out to the instrumental, smooth vocal delivery and catchy hook. The bass seems to be a tad amplified at the end of the back end of the song at 4:54 and that takes me back to the feeling I experienced at 2:59.

My final comments on this body of work: ‘WHITE NOIZE’ inebriated me, ‘INTERLUDE 4 YOU’ calmed my spirit, ‘TAKE FLIGHT’ elevated me once again and ‘CERCULEAN’ reminded me to keep my head to the skies and my knees to the ground. I sum up this EP in two words - Gratitude and Hunger. Published and Edited by Midnight Ohmnia