06/18/2025
How It All Started — A Little History of The D Jay Company
This morning, while sitting in our office and warehouse, a bride asked me a question I get pretty often: “How did this all start?” It made me stop and reflect, and I figured it’s time I put it into words.
It all began back in 1982, when I had the chance to help out DJ John Brinkman. That experience lit a fire in me. By 1985, I scraped together some gear and officially launched The D Jay Company. We started with house parties and school dances—especially those legendary post-football game parties that were a big deal in Southern California back in the day.
Then came a major break: I started doing high school events for KROQ, the iconic L.A. radio station. We’d show up with their on-air personalities, toss out T-shirts, and play all the hits of the ’80s. School dances took off, and for years that was our bread and butter.
By the ’90s, the school scene started to fade, so I shifted into the club scene. I spun at places like the China Club in L.A., and held down regular Thursday-through-Sunday gigs at UCLA for the frat and sorority parties. Sundays were for the sororities—some of the best crowds I've ever played for.
At the same time, I was working an internship in the camera department at Paramount Studios, and had the honor of working for Henry Winkler. That opened doors to doing a few walk-on parts on shows like Cheers and Dear John. I even DJ’d Christmas and wrap parties, including one for The Arsenio Hall Show.
It was at one of those wrap parties that a movie producer asked me to DJ his daughter’s wedding—my first. It was a big Jewish wedding, and truthfully, I had no idea what I was doing. But I remember one thing clearly: I got a huge tip that night. I had never been paid so much—and I was hooked.
From that moment on, I dove headfirst into the wedding industry. It became my passion. It's tough work—many people think it's all fun and parties, but a true pro puts in 12 to 15 hours of prep, loading, performing, and teardown for a single 4- or 5-hour event. Not to mention sacrificing weekends and holidays with family.
In fact, last year was the first time in 40 years I spent New Year’s Eve with my family.
This job is a grind. But what keeps me going—what fuels the heart of The D Jay Company—is family. So when you hire us, know that you're hiring a team that gives their all, not just because it’s our business, but because it’s our legacy.
Thanks for letting me share a little bit of the journey.
— Jay Fitzgerald, Founder
The D Jay Company
🎧💍
