24th November 2009 - Express and Echo
25th November 2009 - Southwest Business
Tiverton DJ is hit on the music scene
Ollie Tobey, 15, has started a business as a DJ
Tuesday, November 24, 2009,
HE’S a dynamo on the decks, and now fresh-faced DJ Ollie Tobey is raking in the bookings for his party entertainment business, which he set up at the age of just 13.
Two years on and he’s broadened out from specialising in children’s and teenagers’ parties to providing music for adult bashes too.
Ollie, 15, from Washfield, near Tiverton, said: “I’ve been doing informal discos for my sister Emma for years. I’ve always had a fascination with anything electronic. I eventually decided to do it on a more professional basis and invested in some proper kit.”
Ollie, who is a pupil at Blundell’s School in Tiverton, turned to his parents for some help getting the venture off the ground.
“They lent me some money to invest in equipment which, incidentally, I have long since paid off. I threw a launch party in the local village hall and invited most of my year and also my sister’s year.”
Ollie’s first ‘professional’ booking was from his old prep school, which invited him to DJ at its Valentine’s disco.
Ollie did not charge for his first engagement, preferring to ask for a donation to his chosen charity, which was Children’s Hospice South West. Since then his school shows have raised hundreds of pounds for the charity.
“I owe a lot to the prep school for having the courage and trust to book a 13-year-old schoolboy to entertain the whole school,” he said.
Since 2007, Ollie’s business has spread mainly by word of mouth and last summer he launched www.djzedline.co.uk to provide a web presence for his company.
Ollie believes there’s not a great difference between bookings for children’s and adults’ parties. First he finds out what music they like: “It is very important that, as it is their party. I play what they want to hear,” he said.
“Often the music is the same. For example, ABBA, because of the success of Mamma Mia, is very popular with all ages and guarantees a full dance floor.
“I get a real buzz from seeing people enjoying themselves because of the music and atmosphere that I have created,” he added.
Armed with an extensive play list of 20,000 songs, Ollie is never stuck for a tune, but says his parents are a useful sounding board for ‘older’ parties; he says that he and Emma are more in tune with what the younger generation and teenagers want to hear.
Last year, as well as playing at his dad’s 50th birthday party, Ollie also provided the disco for a 60th birthday and recently took charge of the disco at a wedding.
Ollie said that the most difficult aspect of his business was encouraging children under the age of 12 to dance.
“They are easily sidetracked, but the older generation seem to have no problem getting on the dance floor,” he said.
“Give them a good record, some fun lighting and the dance floor is never empty.”
The budding DJ added: “Clients have been amazingly supportive of what I do and recognise that I take my business very seriously. It is perhaps more difficult to persuade my peers that it is a real business and not just an iPod with a couple of speakers.”
Ollie said transport was also an issue, as he has to rely on his parents to carry his lighting and sound equipment to and from gigs.
“Obviously late nights can be a problem during term time, but most of my bookings tend to be at weekends or in the school holidays,” he said.