DJ John Michael Open Decks: Free DJ Class at NYC’s Sound Collective

Peloton’s DJ John Michael hosts a free session at Sound Collective on Thursday, November 12, covering CDJ basics and hands-on practice.

DJ John Michael Open Decks arrives Thursday, November 12, at Sound Collective in New York, and it is free. Peloton’s longtime DJ will cover the basics of getting music onto CDJs, then put attendees on the decks to practice. Click here to learn more and sign up.

DJ John Michael announced the session on Instagram in a collaboration post with @soundcollectivenyc . He wrote that 26 years ago, when he first started DJing, he wanted time on any equipment he could find, but he did not have much money and did not know many DJs. Teaming up with Sound Collective to provide that access to anyone who wants it, he said, makes him very happy.

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A post shared by John Michael Di Spirito (@djjohnmichael)

What to Expect at the DJ John Michael Open Decks Session

The session starts at 6 PM ET on Thursday, November 12. If you are attending, note that his Instagram caption lists the timeframe of 6 PM to 8:30 PM, while Sound Collective’s events page lists it running from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM.

DJ John Michael plans to start with the very basics of getting music loaded onto the CDJs, then go over their basic functionality. From there, the goal is to get attendees on the decks to practice, hang out and network.

Admission to the DJ John Michael Open Decks session is free, according to Sound Collective’s events page, and DJ John Michael says attendees can sign up through the link in his Instagram bio (which also takes you here). Sound Collective is at 28 Broadway in New York.

Sound Collective offers in-person NYC classes in DJing, music production, studio engineering, vocals and music business. Its facility includes a fully outfitted DJ studio, and its DJ catalog includes an Intro to CDJs and Rekordbox course for anyone who wants more after Thursday. Sound Collective describes the course as covering the same CDJ setup that clubs use.

Open Decks at Sound Collective

Open Decks is a recurring format at Sound Collective, and the DJ John Michael Open Decks session continues it. The events calendar also listed B2B Open Decks with Kristen London and DJ Sauci Soni on October 7, 2026, and a World Cup Watch Party and Open Decks hosted by DJ WooOo on June 18, 2026. Both were free. The DJ catalog also lists free monthly DJ Basics and Vinyl Basics workshops for beginners.

DJ John Michael and Peloton Music

Members know DJ John Michael, also called DJJM, from Peloton’s Live DJ classes. He is Peloton’s Producer of Music Programming, and he marked his tenth Peloversary in 2025. In addition to plenty of behind-the-scened work, John Michael is well known for curating music for Peloton’s Live DJ Runs and Rides and Lanebreak programming.

Are you going to let your inner DJ out at the November 12 DJ John Michael Open Decks session at Sound Collective? Let us know!

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