Hey! I’m Mike, I go by DJ AXCESS, and I’m a DJ, public speaker, and business coach based in Columbus, Ohio.
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Sometimes the set you want to play is not the set the room needs.
That was the biggest lesson I took away from DJing a day rave at Rooh Columbus, powered by Esther Rum.
Going into this event, I was excited. Rooh is one of the best Indian restaurants in Columbus, and the concept was different from the events I usually play. It was a daytime party inside a restaurant, built around Indian music, dance energy, and a more cultural blend of sounds. The lineup included DJ Pastel, DJ Samir, and me, and the idea was to create something that felt fresh for Columbus.
I came in with a very specific plan. I wanted to play Indo House.
Not just sprinkle in one or two tracks. I wanted to build a set around that sound. I had been listening to that style for a while. I love the way the South Asian vocals sit over house and tech house production. While a lot of DJs have been talking about what sound might come next after the Afro House wave, I kept finding myself drawn to Indo House. The vocals, percussion, melodies, and energy all felt exciting to me.
So I prepared for that.
The problem was not that the music was bad.
The problem was that I made a conscious decision to stick to the set I wanted to play instead of fully responding to what the dance floor was asking for.
The Prep Was Intentional
This was not a show where I walked in unprepared.
I had DJed a wedding afterparty the night before and did not get home until around 3:00 a.m. Even with that, I spent time the next morning refining my playlist and thinking through the direction of the set.
I pulled together the Indo House tracks I had been collecting. I went through acapellas. I tested ideas in Ableton. I looked for recognizable vocals that could work over the production style I wanted to play.
My goal was to bring some American flavor into the South Asian sound in a way that felt musical and intentional.
That part matters.
As a DJ, preparation is important. You should have ideas. You should know your music. You should be excited about the sound you are bringing into a room. A prepared DJ has more control, more options, and more confidence.
But preparation can become a problem when it turns into attachment.
That is where I missed it.
I had a set I wanted to play, and because I believed in the sound so much, I stayed with it longer than I should have.
The Vibe Was Good, But the Dance Floor Was Different
I want to be clear about this.
The vibe during my set was good.
People were enjoying the music. The room felt cool. The atmosphere matched the restaurant, the event, and the daytime setting. It was not awkward. It was not a failure. It became more of a loungey, stylish house set, and honestly, I like playing that way.
There is a place for that kind of set.
A room does not always have to be hands-in-the-air chaos to be successful. Sometimes the right music creates a mood. Sometimes people are drinking, talking, eating, vibing, and enjoying the room without fully committing to the dance floor.
That was happening.
But there is a difference between a good vibe and a rocking dance floor.
DJ Samir had the rocking dance floor.
He understood the pulse of that crowd in a way that I did not fully lock into during my set. DJ Pastel also did an excellent job setting the tone before him. By the time Samir was in his lane, the room responded. The energy shifted. The dance floor was more active. The crowd was more connected to what he was playing.
That is the part I had to be honest about.
My set had a vibe, but his set had the floor.
And as a DJ, you have to know the difference.
The Mistake Was Choosing My Idea Over the Room
This is where the real lesson is.
I wanted to play Indo House.
I was excited about the sound. I had spent time building ideas. I wanted to showcase music I had been into for a while. I thought the event was a great opportunity to play that style in a real setting.
So when the crowd did not fully respond the way I hoped, I chose not to pivot. This was an event where I was booked as an artist not, a DJ and took advantage of that. I wouldn’t have done this with my normal clientele.
I kept trying to make the set work. That is the selfish part.
Not selfish in a dramatic way. Not selfish like I ignored the crowd completely or did not care about the room. But selfish in the sense that I prioritized the set I wanted to play over the set the crowd was telling me they wanted.
That is a mistake a lot of DJs make.
Sometimes we get attached to our preparation. Sometimes we want to prove a concept. Sometimes we want to show people a sound we believe in. Sometimes we think the crowd just needs more time to catch up.
And sometimes that is true.
But a great DJ has to be able to tell the difference between a crowd that needs time and a crowd that needs a different direction.
I realized it about halfway through the set, but by then it was harder to turn the room. I could still keep the vibe. I could still make it feel good. But I had missed the window to fully build the dance floor the way I wanted.
That is the lesson.
Reading the Room Beats Proving the Set
One of the biggest differences between an artist and a DJ is decision-making.
An artist can play a good sequence of songs.
A DJ has to decide what matters most in the moment.
That decision might be musical. It might be emotional. It might be cultural. It might be about timing, tempo, familiarity, or energy. It might be about realizing that the song you love is not the song the room needs right now.
At Rooh, I came prepared with music I cared about.
But the better move would have been to use that preparation more flexibly.
Instead of building the set around Indo House from start to finish, I probably should have treated it as one color in the palette. I could have had a few strong Indo House routines ready, tested them earlier, and then moved more quickly based on the crowd’s response.
That would have let me honor the sound without forcing the whole room into my idea.
There is a huge difference between having a direction and being locked into a direction.
The best DJs prepare enough to have options, but stay loose enough to follow the room.
That is especially true at an event like this. A day rave at an Indian restaurant is not the same as a nightclub. It is not the same as a wedding. It is not the same as a festival. People are there for the concept, the culture, the food, the drinks, the social environment, and the music. You have to read all of that, not just the genre on the flyer.
What I Would Do Differently Next Time
If I had to play this event again, I would approach it differently.
I would still prepare Indo House.
I still believe in the sound. I still think it works. I still think the blend of South Asian vocals and house production has a lot of potential, especially in a room like Rooh.
But I would not come in with such a fixed plan.
I would prepare a few standout routines, a few flexible transition points, and a stronger range of options that could move between lounge, dance, cultural familiarity, and higher-energy party moments.
Then I would pay closer attention to the first few reactions.
Are people nodding along?
Are they moving closer?
Are they staying seated?
Are they dancing for one song and leaving after the next?
Are they responding to the drums, the vocals, the familiarity, or the tempo?
Those answers should shape the set.
That is the job.
Not just playing cool music.
Not just playing what I like.
Not just showing people what I prepared.
The job is to shape the energy in the room with the people who are actually there.
That is what separates a strong DJ from someone who only knows how to play a good set at home.
The Takeaway for DJs
This event was a good reminder that preparation and flexibility have to work together.
If you only prepare, you can become rigid.
If you only react, you can become scattered.
The goal is to prepare well enough that you can respond intelligently.
I am still proud of the set. I played music I believed in. The vibe was good. The room felt stylish, musical, and connected to the concept. But I also know that I did not create the kind of dance floor energy DJ Samir created later in the event.
That is not something to hide from.
That is something to learn from.
Every DJ has moments where the room teaches them something. The key is being honest enough to recognize it.
For me, the lesson was simple.
Do not get so attached to the set you want to play that you miss the set the room is asking for.
If you are planning an event and want a DJ who thinks deeply about music, timing, and the energy in the room, reach out here: [Contact Link]