If you ask seniors and recent alumni of Hudson High School, they all collectively agree that DJ Smoov has been one of the best DJ’s Hudson has offered up for dances. Smoov has performed at high quality, private events with celebrities like LeBron James, Jimmy Fallon, 50 Cent and Nicki Minaj. He also performed at Bruno Mars’ 24K Magic World Tour at select dates, further proving his well sought expertise. Smoov has worked HHS’s dances just five times before, and, to the excitement of numerous students, plans on returning for this upcoming winter formal.
When it comes to creating a lively atmosphere, DJ Smoov knows his stuff. As a part of the costs, Smoov brings intense lighting systems, fog machines and blasters, high quality sound and an electrifying attitude that easily spreads to attendees. As an experienced DJ, Smoov effortlessly mixes well-known songs and beats in order to amplify the excitement. However, while his talent is high, so are his prices.
Smoov’s popularity makes him a hot topic when it comes to booking, allowing him to have justifiably higher prices. On average, for Smoov to perform at previous dances for three hours, the cumulative cost was 4000 dollars. This includes fees addressing time spent setting up and tearing down the event before and after. While Smoov continuously proves that he is worthy of his prices, HHS is the side of the equation that is lacking. As of late, dance planners have been finding it hard to justify spending such money on a five star DJ when there is little participation and hype surrounding school functions. Especially in the last couple of years, attendance at dances has dwindled, leading to insufficient funds for organizations that benefit. In our case, the journalism classes do not receive funding for the school newspaper if dances are not well patronized. Additionally, in order for the journalism class to receive any monetary gains from the dance, its fees must be fully paid off. In other words, the proceeds from the event must pay for the 4000+ dollars that were paid in order to have a DJ and decorate the gym before money can be given to the journalism department.
In order for HHS to combat the issue surrounding future occasions, school spirit must show improvement. Teachers and students alike have noticed the diminishing of school spirit and support, a main contributor for the dance. Many students may think that it’s not “cool” to attend the dances, therefore surrounding them with a stigma stating they are boring and lacking color. If students want to continue to host DJ Smoov for our dances, spirit must rise and awareness of the dances needs to spread. Similarly, students find dancing embarrassing and tend to linger outside the gym. In reality, engaging in the mosh and dancing with other students encourages others to join in. So, having a less self conscious crowd will enhance the enjoyment of everyone attending.
It is a privilege to be able to continuously host events like HHS does and, as students, we must hold up our side of the bargain. School dances are supposed to be exciting and a time for students to have fun together without the stress of classwork, at least for the night. With the beloved DJ Smoov making his return to this years’ winter formal, we have the perfect opportunity to bring back the hype. Increasing the excitement now will encourage underclassmen to do the same for current freshmen and students that will be incoming next year. So, HHS needs to up the school spirit and welcome DJ Smoov with open arms and enthusiasm.
