Beatmatching or pitch cue is a disc jockey technique of pitch shifting or time stretching an upcoming track to match its tempo to that of the currently playing track, and to adjust them such that the beats are synchronized—e.g. the kicks and snares in two house records hit at the same time when both records are played simultaneously. Beatmatching is a component of beatmixing which employs beatmatching combined with equalization, attention to phrasing and track selection in an attempt to make a single mix that flows together and has a good structure.
Pitch adjustment and beatmatching on a Technics SL-1210MK2 turntable; corresponds to steps 2–5 in the listed instructions.
A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs, club DJs, mobile DJs, and turntablists. Originally, the "disc" in "disc jockey" referred to shellac and later vinyl records, but nowadays DJ is used as an all-encompassing term to also describe persons who mix music from other recording media such as cassettes, CDs or digital audio files on a CDJ, controller, or even a laptop. DJs may adopt the title "DJ" in front of their real names, adopted pseudonyms, or stage names.
Club DJ Robert Hood
Club DJ Ellen Allien at MAGMA festival 2006, in Tenerife, Spain
DJ workplace in a nightclub, consisting of three CDJs (top), three turntables for vinyl records and a DJ mixer
DJ Pete Rock performing at Rahzel and Friends – Brooklyn Bowl, 2016