HOW I SET MY CUE POINTS (DJ TIPS)

Cue points are an incredible tool that we have as DJs to do so much with out mixing. In this video, I explain how I set mine and give tips for beginners and more advanced DJs on how to utilize cue points to freshen up your sets.
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I made this channel to help DJs all around the world. This is the most honest and funny DJ channel on KZbin. Learn every aspect on how to DJ right here! You'll find everything from Wedding DJ Tips, DJ Tips, Wedding and Event vLogs, product reviews and much more. I put it all out there and I never hold back.
Nick Spinelli is a full-time DJ for the SCE Event Group out of New Jersey (USA). He's a National Speaker and Educator, and one of the most sought after high-end Wedding DJs in the NJ, Philly, and NYC markets.
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[@NickSpinelli]

How do you set your cue points? Comment below!

[@andinbriwel1092]

I try to limit it to 4, or at least keep the "primary" important ones assigned to 1-4, in case I don't have a controller with 8 buttons. And the 4th one is almost always a loop point in the outro, if it's possible within the song, so that the outro will give me an automatic safety loop in case I missed it :)

[@richmodisco7279]

I appreciate you younger DJ’s in educating other DJ’s on Cue Points. Honestly, Dj”s today do not really work for the mix which I feel takes away from the art of the craft. It’s all so easy for you. People like Nicky Siano, Larry Levan. Timmy Regisford DJ Pioneers. The original DJ’s. Who mixed club classics which for the most part had real studio musicians-flawlessly, no digital tricks. This was done with vinyl, not software. I have Serato DJ Pro with the control vinyl and I’m still trying to figure it out. I play Nu-Disco and Classic Disco, Funk. I do very well. Just would love to find a video of someone really explaining it, not speeding through the information. So Nick, I’ve watch other videos in which you’ve explained different functions in Serato-it’s help me tremendously. This one is a little to fast for me. Wish I had a one on one with you to go over the cue point set up. The other videos on cue points likewise fly through the information.

[@gwhiggins89]

For me at least, the more cues the better. I have a colour code system for everything; different song sections, mix in/out points, aca, juggles, etc, and I fill up the 8 pads (if I can). I can therefore see the structure of the track the second it’s loaded. Added bonus to that is I am forced to go through every track thoroughly. Total neat freak...

[@BookDJMatthewToday]

I have VDJ 2021. How do I rename my cue points? When I right click on a CP button, it deletes it.

[@Creative0Mind]

​@richmodisco7279 Agreed. This video needed more real life examples & it was too fast to really pick it up.

[@louguzzo4977]

We had a cue point on a record, you put a white maker where the drop was! lol!

[@NickSpinelli]

Lou Guzzo yupppp

[@MACKMORRIS83]

And I could never get it right 😂 Ruined me in my one & only DJ battle. In high school. DJ QBert was one of the judges. Ouch.

[@DJ3pm]

1 - first bar [GREEN for go] 2 - build-up (if present) [LIGHT BLUE] 3 - first verse (or the "oh shit") [BLUE] 4 - outro (usually 8 bars before end) [YELLOW for warning] 5 - end [RED for caution] This was originally derived from Scratch Live's limitation of 5 cue points, so I've expanded some since then. Additional colors I've added are ORANGE for an acapella or MAGENTA for breakdown. I use colors consistently, so I can quickly glance to know which cue I'm looking for or is about to hit.

[@NickSpinelli]

DJ3pm yessss!!

[@DJMichaelKhoury]

Great idea 💡

[@rianna9677]

This is so helpful!!!

[@DevonJarrett-yy6il]

I use the beat jump method to quickly cue songs that i didn’t prepare previously to the gig

[@jpgion18]

Spot on Nick! Shocking that many industry DJs don't understand the structure of a song. I tell every beginning DJ to understand these 5 fundamentals of a song: beats, bars, phrases, chorus, verse. Keep it up, my man!

[@NickSpinelli]

Joey Gionfriddo yessir! Thanks Joey!

[@lepaul26]

Well, now they don't listen and feel the song anymore ... they look at a screen and count ...

[@mrkodimen9095]

Very useful tips! Thanks for sharing 🔥👏

[@mrRowdyinc]

I was so amped about making my cue points with every song loaded into serato when i first started DJing. then the passion kind of died as time went on and I would only do it for some songs. I need to get that motivation back and this video definitely helped so thanks nick!

[@patrickbouffartigue3885]

love the way you explain, thank you !

[@christopherarmas3847]

Great explanation! Thank you 👍🏼

[@Djtrinimanglen74]

Thank you for your help and hard work. Keep it going brother 👊🏿

[@djgsmallztv]

You just mentioned 2 things I never really thought of before that I will be trying in my performances from now on , thanks

[@KolyaGuilbault]

Thank you so much, this will help a lot !

[@bboymac84]

Yesss so on point!!

[@frankfinnie3833]

Good info. Keep it up. Thanks.

[@Roman-le7ri]

Nick thanks ur amazing

[@alemmingsdeath]

As one of the *AHEM* older gentlemen DJ's, I'm learning a lot of the deeper features today's controllers offer, and I appreciate your breaking them down. Big up!

[@jameskelley3644]

Nick i love your videos thanks for making them

[@NickSpinelli]

James Kelley thanks James!!

[@musiccentralentertainment6440]

Great info. Thanks Nick!

[@NickSpinelli]

You bet!

[@djlilone505]

Thank you bro for all your tips really help

[@djisizzle]

Solid explanation of cue points. I love the oh shhh cue point tip. thanks for making this video.

[@mqparty7461]

I set my cue points just as you do, the start, 4 bar and at 8 bar points for intros. I am also working on setting my mix out cue points. I use the mix out ones as a visual cue for places I have found work good for a mix. How fast I mix out will depend on how the vibe with the crowd is, sometimes letting the song play a little longer.

[@NickSpinelli]

MQ Party love it!

[@georgemapp2855]

When you say “4 Bar and a 8 Bar point for intros” are you saying intro for the next song you bringing in this answer would help me out immensely.

[@djstylez7392]

@@georgemapp2855 Yes it's an 8 bar or 4 bar intro for the song coming into the mix. You can also set a loop for the outro of the outgoing song of the mix, 8 or 4 bars.

[@djtroyd]

Great tips! Thanks!

[@NickSpinelli]

Glad it was helpful!

[@djivangee7821]

This video should be required viewing for beginner DJs.

[@NickSpinelli]

LET EM KNOW IVAN!

[@ThaFunkHouse]

Shyyte... There is a bunch of so-called pros who don't do this.

[@djatm397]

thanks Nick! You made me think of how I can make my cue structure better

[@NickSpinelli]

Glad to hear it!

[@cheribarkman1784]

Thank you.

[@louguzzo4977]

As always, awesome video!

[@NickSpinelli]

Lou Guzzo thanks Lou!

[@macostantini]

You're amazing, Nick.

[@abudhennawi5801]

I like how real and sincere this man is 😂 new to the channel but definitely subbing💯

[@NickSpinelli]

Thank you! New video every Thursday!

[@davidgullick6068]

Always dope content!

[@NickSpinelli]

David Gullick thanks bro!

[@teclairedikoume7266]

❤ the video 🎉

[@DJSteevott]

Good Information! I also have Cues for instrumental parts in one color and Cues for parts with lyrics in another color. I often jump to an instrumental section to mix when my new song does not have an instrumental intro.

[@DJMichaelKhoury]

Great video Nick!

[@NickSpinelli]

Thanks!

[@lieonkolenky7845]

Thank you bro 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

[@NickSpinelli]

Any time!!

[@Mojo7444]

Hey Nick thanks for your videos and that awesome live stream with Barr. You two are my favorite KZbin Djs video makers.... 😂 Thanks again bro

[@NickSpinelli]

Mojo7444 thank you man I appreciate that!

[@DennisBosseCCT]

Cool stuff - thanks! One trick I learned was color coding my cue points.. Green = 2 bars (8 beats), Yellow = 4 bars (16 beats), Orange = 8 bars (32 beats) ... etc.. Using colors and "markers" - not just cue points - adds the ability to mix in the middle of songs as well.. you know you have a 16 beat section if starts with yellow... Have a few other "tricks" with these as well.. Peace! -Alto Boy.

[@NickSpinelli]

Dennis Bosse color coding is a great idea!

[@DjDubUk]

Agree..one of my color coding tricks is to use light blue to dark blue to cut the song down..like a chorus at 2 min to the ending chorus then out with Pink...Just gotta be ready on the buttons for this...helps with quick mixing when you don't have quick edits

[@djstylez7392]

Yes I've been color coding my cue point for a few years now. I used an index card as a cheat sheet when I first started doing this.

[@dancing_frank_lee]

love that guy

[@djbrentsa]

I set my cue points similarly, but also use Colours to indicate the number of bars in the phrase. Very useful for missing on the fly.

[@partycity55]

Always the Best ! You Da Bomb ! Lol

[@NickSpinelli]

Thank you so much!

[@Rubenowski]

I remember my dad bought me a "American DJ" DCD pro 500 it was state of the art. That's where I learned how to set multiple cues. Other than a one shot from my Technics 1200.

[@djSKREET]

Like like...like like like....tht was hilarious 😂...had 2 LIKE button

[@jackmono]

Great video, I did create4 cue points with vinyl, let me explain. I would record a set (I had a few residencies I wanted to get my mixes right) I had at any one time 3 sets that I would have recorded and liked playing certain records together. I would open the mix in a DAW and add reverse claps on the point where I would mix the next record in. I would listen to this edited version of my sets with those reverse claps and remember where those cue points in. So much easier today.

[@johnnychipello919]

Love the oh shit cue!..i definitely have a lot of those moments!!

[@NickSpinelli]

Haha yes it's very necessary!

[@PressPlayFl]

We do the same thing.. We just take a step further. First Roll is just beats... so cue 1: 8bar: Cue 2: 4 bar cue 3 and 4: Breaks/drops of songs : great for breaks beats/edm/ hiphop.... The bottom roll is vocals: Cue 5: your Oh Shyt of beginning of song cue 6 Hook of Song cue 7/8 Scratch vocals.

[@NickSpinelli]

Nice!!

[@arseniolacson3383]

Solid mix … I’m really impressed. 👍👍👍

[@djjasong4986]

Very informative.Would like to see how you are using 2 duplicate songs and scratch them in. I'm just getting into the scratching.

[@NickSpinelli]

Thank you! I essential just use two of the same tracks and have a cue point at where id' like to scratch it in!

[@jackmono]

I play a lot of house I set cue points at intro, oh shit (16 bars in usually works cool to see others use the same idea), bass change (labeled green) then I do chorus, drop (purple), wind down (aqua), and outro (orange)

[@rileypearson1074]

YOU GIVING ME THE STINK EYE BRO

[@dreamdaycharleston]

Lol at the “like like like like like”

[@NickSpinelli]

lol

[@wolfgangjr74]

What's funny is that while I do keep track of bars but I time has actually stuck more inmy head for some reason. For example instead of 4, 8, 12, 16 bars and etc...., they are instead CUES at 15, 30, 46, and 60 seconds. Sometimes some tracks use 6 bars and ill have some early starts at 90s or even longer depending on the phrasing. I just donthave any idea other than knowledge of a song how to do it on the fly as some people can do. As always you got some awesome tips.

[@nevhemm1981]

Was searching your channel for a 'how to label your cue points?' Do you have one? If not can you do one...thanks

[@djdividends]

we use post-it notes as cue points using vinyl.

[@radiorick2003]

Yay, I was doing it right... lol

[@NickSpinelli]

Rick Schunk/Styles Entertainment haha 🙌🏼

[@Stewcrew8]

DJ Nick, can you do one on scratching, not anything crazy, but maybe baby scratches, the easy stuff 😉

[@dmurph6951]

Do you set up cue points for outro's? Like best places to get out of song. Appreciate the tips!

[@NickSpinelli]

I don't unless the outro is different from the intro

[@tonyjefford8449]

Do you have to add cur points to individual tracks or can you do it in bulk? Love the oh shit cue!!!

[@djstevenferreri9557]

Hey Nick do you a video on scratching?

[@NickSpinelli]

I did this one a few months back kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZpK4q3t8rsxgr7c

[@DJMikeNapoli]

I like to place a cue point at 64 beats before the end of the track. That way, if you're using intro and outro edits, you can start the 2nd track on the 1st beat of the intro at the 64 beat mark (of track 1's ending) so that 8 bar intro loop is the back beat for the last 8 bars of track 1's verse or chorus. Then track 2's lyrics start right at the exact time that track 1 enters it's 1st beat of it's 8 bar outro loop that can be used as a back beat for track 1 (and looped if needed). I hope that makes sense hahaha. I might make a video about that technique next week.

[@NickSpinelli]

Michael Napoli nice! You can also do this by hitting the cue from the beginning and the cue for the other song at the same time! Gonna include this trick in a future video!

[@DJMikeNapoli]

@@NickSpinelli Yes! I usually do that to test tracks mixing compatibilities when i'm prepping my sets. It's also SUPER important to make sure that the tracks are being mixed in key if you're using this technique.

[@williestyle2345]

Is it possible to analyze a song on my home computer and it will also be analyzed on my laptop computer when I travel??

[@Lowaza]

When you download music from record pools is there music with cue points already added to it? SO when you download it into your software its already embedded into the song?

[@tonizzle29]

Good info. Curious...Is Nick's hair a Pauly D Jersey blowout or a hairpiece?

[@NickSpinelli]

Totally real. No hair piece. Without being able to get a haircut, it's definitely turning into a Pauly D blow out though haha

[@djdiscoworm]

Cool Girl Friend !!!

[@djjesse1294]

Hey Nick. Question. Would you know why is it when I name my cue point it doesn't save? I double click and type Intro, but doesnt save. Thanks..

[@NonnyStrikes]

Every one of these apply except; when you work at a bar. LOL

[@Pauleazy420]

I'm trying to make my mix more effective so I'm trying to figure out this cue point thing. When I stared mixing there was no laptops.

[@williamorr6351]

HEY WHATS UP DJ NICK IM A BEGINNER DJ AS I ADD SONGS IS IT GOOD TO SET CUE POINTS FOR EVERY SONG IF A SONG STARTS OFF WITH THE VERSE AND NOT THE INSTRUMENT

[@terrancekayton007]

You said my add the cue points before the event and make notes and things…we only have to set the cues 1 then?

[@thomaskeaveny9820]

Hey, I use beatport link and rekordbox for all my music and can't find a software that will input cue points automatically (I've tried lexicon and Mixed in key neither of these work) does anyone know how I can do this? So I don't need to go through 100's of tracks and put memory cues in and hot cues.

[@darushawkins5922]

Hey man been following you for a long time. I have some questions to ask you understand if you can't get to all of them. All but here is the situation I'm in in my DJ business. I have finally reached a pretty decent platform where I'm the top 3 of my Google searches and my business is starting to pick up. So I don't have much money to invest at the moment but I've been looking at controllers and I don't know a lot about them I would love to learn how to mix. So my 1st question is what makes for a good controller? 2nd question where do I learn how to mix with a controller. 3rd Question is I bought some uplights I have eight uploads but I feel like I need more. Also I would like to buy some totems with TVs and spotlights on them. My conundrum is as I don't have a endless amount of money? So which one of these things should I invest in 1st. I have been in business for a while so I've been mixing the same way For a while but I know I need to step up my game. I've always done on the computer through virtual DJ. I would appreciate all the advice you could give me thanks man..

[@fabiod9965]

as you say older djs, well an older dj with just vinyl can literally out dj any digital dj today

[@mmedia2678]

Also proper cue points allow you to do away with headphone cueing 😏

[@djcharliex]

Great video... what I do is (on serato dj) Red is automatically the first cue point. For all my 8 bars I use blue For all my 4 bars I use yellow If I have 4 cue points in one song I will have 3 blues and 1 yellow. Or 2 yellow and 1 blue. I don’t label them because I want to see the time where that cue point is set. What I do label is loops that way I remember if is a word looping or beat. It works for me!!

[@paragua79za]

I still steuggle with this subjet

[@djcalvin681]

Oh shit like always

[@NickSpinelli]

yessssss

[@djdanomite8282]

Do you sort your cue points in chronological order?

[@prtbone78]

As soon as I load a track that has no cue points I drop cues on the fly right there quick helps so much but I can read the sound waves so I kinda know where I'm at and dont worry really. And that chris brown _oh shit short mix was so slow I dont go that low in bpm for tracks wasnt to slow but I try not to go lower than 4 i stay 2 or 3 5 or more you can hear especially with a good ear but who cares when your partying so fuhgetaboutit lol. Good shit tho. If i go low when i may do. I raise the pitch fader as I'm dropping so comes in close or at the correct or 2 or 3 over the bpm. Where your out at a party club w.e ha e you and your a dj we tend to hear these lil things Haha. Fol (fuck our lives) haha.

[@dj_sint]

молодец, спасибо!

[@keithchegwin1222]

We used to refer to it as "placed mixing" when a song started exactly when the other one ends. We didn't always do it, in fact most of the time we purposely didn't do it. The reason was to let the crowd breath, also when the next song's chorus/verse come in, it can create a renewed sense of energy, another reason is that we wanted to play most of the 5 minute track, after all it was made that length for a reason. This was all within the dance music/house scene many years ago. For mobile/wedding DJing I agree with you 100 percent.

[@EmanuelArquileu]

Hahahahaha Like.... Like.... Like......

[@fields1336]

Like Like Like 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@johnborja6409]

Can we please pay homage to DJ Roonie G? Without him, there would be no cue points.

[@mugzycuts706]

I used tapes lol

[@djdiscoworm]

Do You Have Tonsils ?

[@NickSpinelli]

Let me check...

[@NickSpinelli]

yes they're still there!

[@djdiscoworm]

@@NickSpinelli Thats good to know. Say Hello to your Honey Dew !!

[@djmaverick]

Does Virtual DJ have cue points? 😂

[@NickSpinelli]

djmaverick lmaoooo

[@P4boot]

Nope I wish they would add it tho! It's my main program, IDK why they can't implement a simple feature! 😂 😂 SMH

[@nicklegendmusic]

yes they do and it helps me tremendously to mix without headphones

[@Earthcitizen4609]

Teach how to dj

[@chromemusic4401]

You should seriously consider DJing for a living. I believe you could make money at this...

[@NickSpinelli]

Jamie Nygren fuck I never thought of that!

[@cperkins172]

are you saying you do this with every song in your crates? I like the way some songs start….I really do not like messing around with what the expert musicians did recording the songs. The way you explain it …..like you are in a rush. What’s the rush? Maybe the DJ’s you listen don’t like messing with the music either!

[@David-ib8ek]

Oh shit cue lol

[@Jonathan_Knight]

I'm so confused....

[@Knottykid]

Why are you so close to the camera

[@frankiefingerz8047]

8:20 of NOT showing us HOW TO SET CUE POINTS u just talked about them

[@TripAyes]

Boomer DJ's had it so rough.

[@Zle_blacklightning]

Real dis don’t need this

[@eternalpower123]

Great video but your eyes are scary. Bye

[@danathedj]

The distracting girl voice 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

[@Msantor1605]

Your eyes scare me.

[@koolhand12]

Terrible explanation