Reflecting upon the selection process and its periphery

[illusionofjoy]

As I posted last night, the selection process for new Night Shift DJs has concluded and I was not among the chosen. While I was disappointed that I would no longer be "torturing the masses" with my particular musical flare, overall I'm relieved that it's over. An answer, whether it is acceptance or rejection, is release, which is always better than the strain of waiting.

While I may not necessarily agree with who was picked or understand why they were chosen, I was not about to throw a hissy fit about the final decision. It would seen that some people do not share my appreciation for civility.

To those unfortunate, undereducated individuals, I would like to offer these words of advice: grow up already and quit whining!

One thing I did notice during the process of selecting new DJs was that the Night Shift members charged with making the decision as to whom would get in were bombarded with the worst behaviour that humanity had to offer. This behaviour came not from the people who were in the running, but from those who felt slighted because they weren't. For some reason, these small-minded and myopic individuals felt that the Night Shift owed them for some reason or another.

Newsflash kiddies: neither the Night Shift, nor anyone else owes you a god-damned thing! As a patron of Ceremony, you are just that: a patron, someone who pays currency in exchange for goods and services. Even if you work in some other area of the club while Ceremony is occurring, this does not give you carte blanche to act out towards those fortunate enough to be in the DJ booth. You are nothing more than an employee, not god's gift to the Ceremony play list shunned.

Still, those who do not realise this simple order would approach current DJs during the selection process and beg to be considered. If their requests were turned down, they would often lash out at the unfortunate messengers. At one point, not hearing the desired answer to his query from the DJ he'd asked, the snubbed suitor tartly announced that he would, "just go and ask [another DJ] about it," as if the Night Shift weren't a cohesive unit that communicated with each other (newsflash: they are and they do).

I find it particularly paradoxical that these individuals, so bent upon joining the Night Shift are so generous when it comes to abusing the Night Shift. It would seem to me like they are begging to be fed only to bite the hand that could be feeding them.

Of course, in the minds of the psychotics who perceive themselves slighted, the hand that could be feeding them is not only empty, but teasing them as well. To that, I once more intone: get over it!

The girl whose entry I've linked to above went on a lengthy diatribe about how unfairly she's been treated by the Night Shift. In fact, her rant easily runs afoul into the territory known as the temper-tantrum. She screams bloody murder about how cliquish the Night Shift is, how they are "a bunch of idiots," how they ignore her "talents" (I've seen this girl in action and I plead the 5^th, regarding her "talent") and she caps it all off by attacking those who are (were) actually being considered to be part of the Night Shift.

The post reads like a Greek tragedy stretched to comical proportions. Were I a member of the Night Shift trying to decide who to even consider, I would observe these actions and think something along the lines of, "holy shit I don't want to be within 100 feet of this psycho, much less work with her!" It's an example of the honey versus vinegar metaphor played out in the real world.

Still, the "slighted" feel like the world - or at least the Night Shift - owes them. They want that Holy Grail known as a regular spot in the DJ booth and have a conniption when they aren't allowed to drink from the chalice. They think that they deserve a prize for what they perceive as their hard work, their talent, or simply the length of time they have spent in the scene. At the risk of sounding like a broken record: get over it; the world owes you jack squat.

I was considered as a potential Night Shift member. I was damn lucky to be considered for the position. In the end, I made it through my live auditions, my interview and was not chosen as a member. Although disappointed, my reaction was not to whine and hurl insults in the faces of those who didn't pick me nor those they did choose. Instead, I wrote a thank you email to the Night Shift for even considering me and continued on with my life.

I would suggest to those out there who have been "slighted" that they follow in my example and continue on with their lives. However, I suspect that upon reading this they will only be content to flame me instead. I wouldn't be a bit surprised. Such is the way of the "slighted" psychopath.

Comments

wow. right on.

[invaderkim23.livejournal.com]

i'm so glad somebody else said something about this.
you said EXACTLY what i was thinking, and as you were considered for a dj position, your opinion seems to hold more weight than if i just went off on a tangent.
maybe she didn't get the position because this is the type of behavior she exhibits?
the people supporting her in her post (save alexx), are also myopic, in that they can't fathom that just because she plays music THEY like that it doesn't mean it is appealing to a broader audience at ceremony. people often fail to see that their group is not the only one that attends goth scene functions.
"Such is the way of the "slighted" psychopath."
exactly, and i have had the misfortune of dealing with such psychopathic behavior from the girl before.

Re: wow. right on.

[nukleardekay.livejournal.com]

God...


It's not about playing the music that we like, it's about showing talent as a DJ. Being a DJ myself, I tend to be a bit snobbish about this particular subject, but honestly, anyone can play one song after another. This require no thought, and no preperation. It is the DJ who mixes (whether it by beatmatching, by matching keys, by fading two songs together, etc.) that I will always have more respect for. Show me a DJ who spins 80's goth rock and the like who mixes it together, and an industrial DJ who just plays EBM track after EBM track, and I'll say that the first DJ is the one who is more talented, and the one who deserves a spot. Switch their positions, and have the industrial DJ mixing, and I say he deserves it.

Also consider the number of times that Tamara has been passed over, regardless of her hard work, the number of promises that have been made to her and consequently broken, and I'm relatively sure she has every right to complain, especially since this time around, she wasn't even in the selection process.

If it is any consolation, I will point out that all of the people persuing a night shift position, Seth included, are more desirable to listen to than the sets of a particular DJ who is currently in rotation.

Finally, I'd like to qualify all this by stating that nothing stated here is a personal attack. People get this attitude that you can't be critical of someone because it isn't "proper". Any DJ who plays sets that I dislike, I will point out immediately my dislike for these sets.

Re: wow. right on.

[invaderkim23.livejournal.com]

there are other people that have worked equally as hard if not harder than she has that were not chosen. one of the people is on my friends list, and she is just as qualified and talented as a dj. she did NOT throw a public fit.
and you obviously didn't read the responses of your peers very closely.

Re: wow. right on.

[nukleardekay.livejournal.com]

Now, entertain me if you would, but exactly who is "she"? I can only assume from giving your friends list a quick look, that you were referring to kaspellsgoddess, as she is the only female DJ I recognized from there. The problem here is that, again, she is yet another DJ who plays one song after another. I'm not quite sure why people hold these people up as great DJ's, because anyone can DJ like that!. You could pick up a bunch of CD's, play all the obvious hits off of them, and you would be a DJ of that quality. There is much more to being a DJ than song selection, and a whole hell of a lot more than "playing what is popular". If DJ's did that and that only, there would never be any new music or styles, and Ceremony would become quite boring indeed. If all there is to hear there is song after song, why would I want to bother coming out, instead of sitting at home and listening to a CD or two, and saving my money?

Of course, the fact that I criticized your friends DJ'ing ability will most likely be translated as a "personal attack". From my side of things, I actually encourage people to criticize my abilities, because it points out where I need to practice more. Either way, it's completely unnecessary to respond to a personal attack by making another one. That's just senseless, and immature.

-Don

Re: wow. right on.

[innocenti.livejournal.com]

whoa whoa whoa. i'm replying to you because i'm one of the people you made that blanket statement about:

regardless of what anyone thinks of the situation, why did you badmouth her FRIENDS for trying to be supportive of her?

man, i don't know about you, but if i had really really really really really really really really wanted something and not gotten it (regardless of whether not i deserved it)... i would be upset, and wanting comfort. and if it were that important to me, i would feel largely abandoned by my friends if just one person said something to me about it.

Re: wow. right on.

[invaderkim23.livejournal.com]

would you make a public temper tantrum and personal attack of other people?
her behavior does not deserve support.
it's fine to say "i'm sorry", but it is NOT okay to condone her behavior and put down others.
since when is being a poor sport a good thing?
and if you see my reply to nukleardekay, you will see there were other people that give A LOT to the nightshift, and have equal talent and djing experience that were passed up. these people handled it maturely.

Re: wow. right on.

[innocenti.livejournal.com]

it's fine to say "i'm sorry", but it is NOT okay to condone her behavior and put down others.

i count at least 11 other people who did not do this.