He started the night with house music, rap and hip-hop songs to get a feel for the crowd, and as the night went on he brought in more of his personal style — trance.

“It’s best not to plan it,” he said.

The all-digital performance, done with two CD players and a mixer, complete with some rented speakers and lights, was a success.

“I was shocked, I wasn’t really sure I was going to go. That party was awesome — just packed full of people, it was a great time for sure,” he said. “I was kind of surprised because no one left the dance floor all night.”

At 19 years old, Petraska has already performed at clubs like Clutch Cargo’s, 65 E. Huron St., Pontiac, Mich. and is the host of Mechanical Pulse, an electronic music show airing Fridays from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. on Impact 89FM.

His genre of choice is trance, a style of electronic music.

“It’s very danceable, very melodic, it’s kind of very broadly euphoric. Imagine rave but kind of slowed down and not as in your face all the time. It’s extremely popular over in Europe, in the U.S. in certain spots. I think it’s going become more mainstream as time goes on,” Petraska said.

Petraska first heard techno music in eighth grade, when his older sister played him “Sandstorm” by Darude. He is inspired by the careers of DJs like Tiesto and Paul Van Dyke.

He performed at events like fashion shows in high school, buying his first setup during his sophomore year. The following year was when he performed at Clutch Cargo’s at 17.

In the near future, he hopes to get into the Lansing club scene, make more appearances at house parties and throughout campus and branch out to cities like Chicago. He plans to only charge for the cost of renting a U-Haul for the equipment. The music is what he listens to anyway, he said, and he is not out to make money.

Petraska said one day he hopes to open clubs of his own.

“Trance is what I listen to all the time and just being able to play that for someone who’s never heard it before and having them be like ‘Oh it’s awesome,” he said.

While money is always a challenge, one can spend $500 on a mixer and $700 on each CD player, another obstacle is always putting on a good show that club owners, and goers, remember.

“The best way to set yourself apart, it’s not necessarily the music you play but it’s the parties that you throw and the energy that you create,” Petraska said. “You go into a big party like that and you make sure everyone has a great time and just blow away everyone’s expectations; that’s the best way to make an impact.”

During his college years at MSU, Jerry Jodloski built a following as one of the areas most popular DJs. After graduating in 1991, the advertising major said he decided to take it a step further by starting a mobile DJ service. He moved into his first office, across from Harrison Roadhouse, using his desktop computer, a Macintosh SE.

Now, 16 years later, his one-man show has become a national franchise — Jammin’ DJs — with locations in Berkley, Mich., Atlanta, Ga., Denver, Colo. and Minneapolis, Minn., along with the company headquarters in Lansing. While Jodloski used to be the sole DJ of the company, going by Jammin’ Jerry J Mobile DJ Service, he is now in charge of about 40 employees, with 10 DJs at the Lansing location. He still has the Macintosh SE, only now the computer monitor sits on a shelf in his office, commemorating the early years.

While he last worked an event six or seven years ago, his expanding business has kept him busy handling schedules and the administrative aspect of Jammin’ DJs.

“It’s just an absolute thrill that something that I started has grown into something bigger than I could ever have imagined. I never even thought of expanding across the country,” he said.

Jodloski, who grew up in Bloomfield Hills, enjoyed his college years so much he decided there was no place else he would rather be. While his work has taken him to places like Ohio and Canada, home is always in Lansing.

Growing up, Jodloski was always musically inclined, playing saxophone and drums. But it was in college, when he joined a touring band playing keyboards and performing vocals that the music stuck.

While working as a waiter at Tripper’s Sports Bar & Restaurant, 350 Frandor Ave., in Lansing, Jodloski watched the restaurant’s DJ and saw his opportunity at age 23.

“To me, DJing was like being a one-man band — being able to do your own thing,” he said. “It was great, everything I hoped it would be; and it was better than waiting tables.”

He played everything from dance to the growing sounds of hip-hop, using record players with vinyl, CDs and, once in a while tapes, to keep the dance floor packed and give his audience the hits they demanded.

What began as a part-time job, taking Jodloski to local fraternities and bars, word of his talent and business mentality turned his hobby into a career.

From splitting a $600-a-month rent payment to owning the building which houses his current office at 619 E. Michigan Ave., Jodloski has made a name for himself by setting standards for his DJs, following what made him so successful.

“Professionalism — the reliability and just an honest guy who would go the extra mile for you. Really work hard. That made it really easy to get that next show,” he said.

While they originally bought all the music from stores like Tower Records or Flat, Black & Circular, iTunes now supplies the latest hits to add to their library of tens of thousand of songs.

The Jammin’ DJs do everything from weddings to clubs, and Jodloski says the industry has gone through some major changes since he was starting out.

Now holding 15 regular shows each week, Jodloski is on track to expand the business one store per year. The Jammin’ DJs in Pittsburgh, will open in 2009.

All the experience has taught him much about what it takes to be a DJ, both as a solid performer and a smart businessman.

“Everyone and their brother is now a DJ. The advances in technology make it really easy compared to before,” he said. “Check your ego at the door, always be on time and stay out of trouble. Be smart with your money. I think what is important for today’s DJs is to come up with a niche, and promote, promote, promote.”

Adam Stender, known as DJ Storm, has been with Jammin’ DJs since 1996. He was attracted to the morals and ethics the business upheld.

During his years with the company, he has seen his share of horror stories, including a confrontation between Sparty and the best man, a Buckeyes fan, at a wedding which resulted in Sparty being pushed to the floor, cracking his helmet.

“The father of the bride gets pissed, kicks the best man out of the wedding, kicks him out of the building and the bride is in the bathroom crying for three hours,” he said. “When there is no wedding coordinator, I become the wedding coordinator.”

It is days like this that turn a DJ into a referee.

Stender can be found keeping the dance floor jumping every Tuesday night at Rick’s American Cafe, 224 Abbot Road and every Sunday at The Riviera Cafe Restaurant and Lounge, 231 M.A.C. Ave.

“I’m there to provide a really good show. If you’re not happy with your show, I have not done my job,” he said. “There’s no better feeling than knowing you did a good job.”

Musically inclined since childhood, Stender is enjoying the experiences his job provides.

“It’s a natural high. It could be 10 people or 1,000 people,” Stender said.

He is now planning to open a Jammin’ DJs in Chicago, Ill.