DJ Scott mixing it up.
Scott Shirley began playing as a DJ in 1975 for his own parties. When friends and party guests suggested that he “turn pro,” he started The Party Machine in 1976, with no intention of doing it for a living. He has been an active entertainer and MC and a sought-after public speaker ever since, performing at more than 2,500 events.
“In those days, we had to invent this business from scratch,” Scott says. “We had to make a lot of our own equipment. You couldn’t just walk into a store and buy what you needed back then.”
By 1980 Scott had grown The Party Machine into the first large multi-op DJ Service in Dallas-Fort Worth, and was booking 10 DJs on Saturday nights.
“I dropped out of college to run the entertainment business,” Scott says, “And my grandmother was terribly disappointed. She told me my cousin had just finished a degree in Communications, and got a ‘good job’ paying $30,000 a year, not bad for your first job back in 1980.”
“I told my grandmother that as soon as I could afford to cut my pay in half, I would go back and finish my degree! She was amazed that I could earn a living at this, and never nagged me about college again.”
Scott did complete his BA in Communications and Business Administration from UTA. He has studied radio and TV production, journalism, public speaking, business management, marketing and psychology, and has held an FCC license and worked as a DJ at 16 different area nightclubs. Always looking to take it to the next level, Scott loves to experiment with emerging technology to stay on the leading edge of the evolving mobile entertainment business.
In 1986 Scott decided to take The Party Machine in a different direction, and began to only book engagements he could personally perform. He actively pursued new services to provide clients who needed more than “just a DJ.”
New Year’s Eve 1986
He has trained DJs, written for trade publications, spoken to industry groups, and received numerous honors and awards. He is an active member of the Society of Wedding Professionals, the Professional Wedding Guild of Fort Worth, and the American Disc Jockey Association. Scott attends the annual Mobile Beat trade show and training courses such as the Marbecca MC Workshop to hone his skills.
In his DJ career, Scott has worked with celebrities and pirates, ridden an elephant, flown in a stunt plane, done weddings aboard boats and in swimming pools, removed a bride’s leg, and gotten the Speaker of the House to dance in a hula skirt. This business is never dull.
Scott performs for a number of charity, fund-raising, and community service events. “The business has been very good to me,” Scott says, “And I feel strongly that we all need to give back to the community that makes it possible to make a living being The Party Machine.” He has done 14 American Cancer Society 30-hour Dance-A-Thons, and served for 10 years on the Cancer Society Board in Arlington. He has also done charity events for the Muscular Dystrophy Association, American Heart Association, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, Camp El Tesoro De La Vida, ARC of Tarrant County, and numerous area civic and church groups. He also does volunteer work for Special Olympics, NICA, United Community Centers, and Habitat For Humanity.
Scott is an active member and past Lay Leader of Arborlawn United Methodist Church in Fort Worth. He taught the 6th Grade Confirmation Class for 11 years, and is active in youth ministry and the Walk To Emmaus movement.
The Shirley family in Taos, New Mexico
Scott lives in Fort Worth with his lovely wife Brenda, a Fort Worth paralegal who assists with booking and contracts. They have two daughters, Lauren, a graduate of Texas Christian University, and Katie who is a graduate of Texas A & M. Annie is the family’s large main dog, and Zoe just joined them in 2013 as their small auxiliary backup dog. In his spare time he enjoys sailing, skiing, music, movies, reading and travel.