Story by SARAH GRAHAM
D.J. Hines was born to be a DJ.
Born in Atlanta, Georgia, D.J. enjoyed learning new dance moves.
“I was the kid growing up in middle school and high school that looked up all the dances on Youtube and on the internet and I would practice them in front of my computer so that way when I went to the dances I knew how to do them,” D.J. said.
When he went to a birthday party in 2012, they started playing some of the dances that he knew all the moves to. He started dancing and teaching the ones around him, the DJ at the party approached him and asked if he had ever considered being one.
D.J. has been working for six years now. His first gig was in November 2012 at a wedding in Rome, Georgia.
DJ2 Entertainment was launched in June 2015 recently celebrated their third-year anniversary.
D.J. is 28 years old and married to Ashley Hines with their first child Nora Hines on the way.
The business has been built up more with each year and continues to thrive. He has never received less than a five-star rating on Facebook for any event he has ever been a apart of.
DJ2 Entertainment has been a part of almost any kind of event imagined from elementary to middle to high school functions, prom, college events, weddings, bridal shows, socials, grand openings, Halloween and holiday parties, Trick or Treat in the Streets in Clanton, Cardo Swag once a month at the YMCA and was the MC for the 2018 Peach Jam.
He also does community and outreach events, such as the 5K Harper’s Heart run in Gardendale every year that they donate their services to.
There is really no limit to what music can be played at any event someone might want.
“When you book us for an event you can really structure your music and event however you want with us,” D.J. said.
He likes to be very flexible in what he does and is willing to accommodate in whichever way he can.
“I am here to serve you, you just tell me how I can do that and we will put all the pieces together,” D.J. said.
D.J. goes out of his way to find a clean version of a song or edit explicit content to make everything he plays family friendly.
Customizable mash-ups are also available if needed such as for a wedding for a bride and groom if they want more than one song played during their first dance. This is all included when he is booked for an event with no additional charges.
His biggest challenge is that he is the only DJ on their staff so it is hard for him to accommodate everyone all the time which is hard because he loves doing what he does by making people happy and being apart of their special event.
“When people call and want D.J.’s services they don’t want us to send someone else, they want D.J.,” said his wife Ashley. That is just part of the one man show and they are very particular about how it is operated.
When doing a wedding while the bride is walking down the aisle or the first dance he tries his best to make it as perfect as possible with seamless transitions because he knows he only gets one shot. One way he does this is by keeping a complete back-up library on his phone in case his computer crashes or something goes wrong where he can pick right back up until he gets the computer back up and running.
There is really no where he would not go. He has been to Rome, Georgia, Orlando, Florida, Nashville, Tennessee and Smokey Mountains and more. Within a four-hour driving distance or a 350 mile round-trip there is no additional charge, anything over that would be added.
He hopes that his audience will have a great time and enjoy themselves along with wanting them to leave with a lasting experience. Making sure everyone has a good time even if they are not a dancer is important to him.
One of his favorite memories was when he did a wedding in Tate, Georgia for a Disney-themed wedding for a bride who had actually been one of the Disney princesses. It was a ballroom themed wedding and is one he will always remember.
Also, D.J. claims to really enjoy community events, especially Trick or Treat in the Streets by watching the children and encouraging them to dance for giveaway prizes. It’s where children can come and have a good time without it just being candy and dressing up.
D.J. did not want to forget the backbone of DJ2 Entertainment and his partner in crime, his wife Ashley Hines. “DJ2 Entertainment would not have gotten off the ground as successfully as it did if it hadn’t been for her,” D.J. said.
When he met her and came to live in a place like Chilton County it was really a big part in his business taking off with the small town atmosphere.
For more information, can be found on DJ2 Entertainment Services Facebook Page.