How to Write a Club DJ Rider Promoters Will Actually Read

You get your first proper club booking, the promoter asks for your rider, and you either send nothing or copy a headliner's four page list of demands. Both go badly. A club DJ rider is a short document that tells the venue what you need to play well, and a good one gets read, followed and quietly remembered when the next booking comes round.

I booked DJs for clubs for nine years before moving to the other side of the booth. I have read hundreds of riders, laughed at a few, and pinned the useful ones on the office wall. Here is what belongs in a club DJ rider, what to leave out, and how to make sure it actually reaches the person who sets up the booth.

What a club DJ rider is for

A rider is an attachment to your booking agreement covering two things: technical requirements and hospitality. The technical side covers what gear must be in the booth and how it must be set up. Hospitality covers drinks, guest list, food on long nights, and anything else that affects your evening.

Its job is not to show how important you are. Its job is to remove surprises. The worst gigs I ever saw were not caused by bad DJs. They were caused by a DJ expecting a four-deck setup and finding two players with one broken jog wheel, at 1 am, with nobody from tech in the building.

The technical section of a club DJ rider

This is the part that matters most, and it should come first. Be specific about models and setup, not just "standard club setup," because standard means different things in different rooms.

Players. State the model and quantity, for example "2 or 3 Pioneer CDJ-3000, linked via Pro DJ Link, latest firmware." If you can play on older CDJ-2000NXS2 units, say so as an acceptable alternative.
Mixer. Name your preferred mixer, such as a DJM-900NXS2, DJM-A9 or a rotary mixer, and list one acceptable fallback.
Turntables if you play vinyl. Technics SL-1200 or 1210, with working tone arms, fresh needles and isolation so the booth does not feed back.
Monitoring. Two booth monitors at ear height, controlled from the mixer booth output, plus a working headphone socket on the mixer.
Space. A flat surface at least 60 cm wide beside the decks if you use a laptop or extra controller, with a mains power point.
Connections. USB ports on each player or a hub, and an extra input on the mixer if you bring an external unit.

Add one line on how you will play: "I play from USB drives exported from Rekordbox." That tells the tech team what to expect. If you are not sure your drives are ready, our guide on preparing a USB for CDJs before a club gig covers formatting and backups.

Hospitality that promoters will happily provide

This is where new DJs either ask for nothing or overreach. A reasonable hospitality section for a local or regional act looks something like this:

Item	Reasonable ask	Likely to annoy
Drinks	Still water in the booth, 4 drink tokens	A specific premium spirit bottle
Guest list	2 to 4 names, sent by 6 pm on the day	"Plus 10" with names at the door
Food	A meal or buyout for sets over 3 hours	Detailed catering menu
Travel	Taxi home after a late finish	Business class for a 2 hour trip
Green room	A safe place to leave a bag	Private room with sofa

Water in the booth sounds tiny, but it is the one item I most often saw missing, and the one DJs complained about most. Put it in writing.

Contacts, timings and the small details

A strong rider also carries the practical information that otherwise lives in a dozen messages.

Your phone number and a backup contact, such as your manager or a friend travelling with you.
Arrival time. State that you want to arrive 30 to 45 minutes before your set to check the booth and listen to the room.
Set length and times. Confirm them in writing, and note if you are expected to play past the advertised closing time.
Changeovers. Say whether you prefer to start on a free channel or a fresh player, and how long a handover you need.
Recording and streaming. State whether the venue may film or record your set, and how clips can be used.

The warm-up versus headliner relationship shapes your arrival plan too. If you are playing before a bigger name, our article on opening for someone bigger than you explains what headliners and promoters expect from the first set of the night.

A counter-take: a long rider does not make you look professional

Many new DJs think a detailed, multi-page rider signals that they are serious. From the promoter's side, the opposite is often true.

Promoters and production managers read riders on a phone, between other jobs, often the day before the show. A one page rider with clear headings gets read in full. A five page rider gets skimmed, and the important line about your mixer or monitor setup gets lost between demands for a fruit plate and scented candles.

Long riders also set up a negotiation. If half of what you ask for is optional, the venue starts treating all of it as optional, including the parts that actually affect your performance. Keep the technical needs firm and short, keep hospitality modest, and the venue will take the whole document seriously.

The exception is when you tour with unusual equipment, such as a live hybrid setup with synths and drum machines. Then a second page with an input list and stage plot is justified. Label it clearly so the production team can find it.

Getting the rider to the right person

A perfect rider is useless if it stays in the promoter's inbox. Send it with the signed agreement, and again to the venue's production or tech contact about a week before the show. Ask them to confirm the booth setup in writing. If anything is unavailable, you want to know on Tuesday, not when you walk in at midnight.

Keep a PDF version, named clearly with your artist name and the date it was updated, and a plain text version you can paste into an email. Update it whenever your setup changes.

The same professionalism carries into the rest of your paperwork. Many clubs and larger venues will also ask for proof of cover, which we explain in our guide to public liability insurance for DJs.

Frequently asked questions

What should a DJ put on their rider?

Start with technical needs: the players, mixer, monitors and space you require, with acceptable alternatives. Then add modest hospitality such as water, drink tokens, guest list places and transport after a late finish. Finish with contact details, arrival time and set times.

Do small DJs need a rider?

Yes, even a half page rider helps. It confirms the gear in the booth and avoids surprises on the night. Promoters generally appreciate a short, clear rider from local DJs because it saves them back and forth messages.

How long should a DJ rider be?

For most club DJs, one page is enough. Use clear headings for technical, hospitality and contacts so it can be read quickly on a phone. Add a second page only if you bring a complex live setup that needs an input list or stage plot.