Song request apps
Tell the DJ, or tell the band: where GigTag comes in
If you sing or play, a request only helps when it is a song you know. GigTag starts there: fans scan the tag on your mic stand and choose from your own song list, then see your next gig and how to book you. If you were looking at Tell the DJ, made for DJs who play from Apple Music or Spotify, this is why GigTag suits performers.
- No app for your audience
- Free to start
- One code that never changes
Why GigTag
Tell the DJ is for decks. GigTag is for stages
Tell the DJ matches requests to streaming catalogues for a DJ. GigTag is built for the person performing: requests from your repertoire, a printed tag, your dates and links, and a booking form, all behind a code that never changes.
- 1
Requests from your repertoire
Your song list is what the audience sees, so every request is playable, and it arrives in a live queue. Open requests to anything when you are in the mood. Tell the DJ draws on Apple Music and Spotify, the right source for someone who can cue any track.
- 2
A tag people can see
GigTag gives you a physical tag in your own design for the mic stand, printed and delivered or printed at home for free. It is in view for the whole set, so nobody has to be sent a link. One look, one scan with the camera, and your page is open.
- 3
Gigs and links on the page
The scan also shows your next gig and weekly residencies, to add to a calendar, and links to your socials, website and music. For a singer-songwriter that means a request for a cover can end with someone listening to your own songs on the way home.
- 4
A booking form, commission free
People who enjoy a live set ask how to hire you. On GigTag they send a booking enquiry from the same page, on the free plan, and GigTag takes no commission. On Pro you can send an invoice in your own design, paid online.
- 5
Free to start for one act
The free plan includes the tag design and print file, your page, links, every gig and residency and the enquiry form. Pro adds requests, invoices and more acts, plus tips with 0% of them taken by GigTag. You can have the tag on stage before you pay anything.
In short
Tell the DJ and GigTag, in four lines
- Tell the DJ is a request app for DJs who play from Apple Music or Spotify.
- GigTag takes requests from your own repertoire, so every one is a song you can play.
- A printed tag on the mic stand also shows your gigs, links and a booking form.
- Choose GigTag if you perform live, while Tell the DJ fits DJs working from a streaming library.
Side by side
GigTag vs Tell the DJ, topic by topic
How guests ask
One scan, no app, no account
Guests scan the tag on your mic stand. Your page opens in the browser with no app or account, and they pick a song.
Tell the DJGuests scan a QR code or tap a link, and the request page opens on their phone for them to send the songs they want.
Finding the song
Songs from the list you play
The songs are the ones in your own list. You can also open requests and let fans ask for any song they like.
Tell the DJApple Music and Spotify are built in, so a guest's request can be matched to a track in one of those two catalogues.
Sharing it
A printed code that never changes
The code is printed on a custom tag. It never changes, and old links keep working if the act is renamed.
Tell the DJBecause requests work from a link as well as a code, the DJ can send the link to guests as well as display the code.
Who it is for
Made for acts that perform live
It is made for acts that perform live: solo, duo or band. It is not a streaming service or a music store.
Tell the DJIt is aimed at DJs, and particularly at those who play their sets from the Apple Music or Spotify catalogues.
After the gig
Next gig, links and booking enquiries
Fans can come back to the page for your next gig and residencies, follow your links or send a booking enquiry.
Tell the DJSee its site for how it handles this.
The quick view
| GigTag | Tell the DJ | |
|---|---|---|
| A QR code your audience scans | Yes, one that never changes | Yes |
| Song requests from the crowd | Yes, on Pro | Yes |
| Tips by card or Apple Pay | Yes, on Pro, into your own Ziina or Stripe. GigTag takes 0% | – |
| Booking enquiries | Yes, on the free plan | – |
| Your gigs and weekly residencies | Yes, on the free plan | – |
| Invoices for bookings | Yes, on Pro | – |
| A printed tag for your mic stand | Yes, in your own design | – |
| Works without an app for the audience | Yes, it opens in the browser | – |
A dash means we did not confirm it for Tell the DJ, not that it is missing: see what Tell the DJ offers above, or ask its makers.
A Tell the DJ alternative
Where GigTag is different from Tell the DJ
A streaming catalogue or your own songs
Tell the DJ ties requests to Apple Music and Spotify, which is right for someone who can play any track on those services. A live act plays what it has learned. GigTag starts from your song list: fans scan, choose a song you know, and it joins your live queue. If you enjoy a challenge you can open requests to anything, but the starting point protects you from a song you have never played.
A printed tag for the mic stand
GigTag is designed around a physical object. You make a small tag in your own colours, and it sits on the mic stand with one permanent QR code. GigTag can print and deliver it, free in Dubai and the UK, or you can print the file yourself at no charge. Rename the act and the old links still work. Tell the DJ shares its requests by QR code or by link.
The rest of the page
On GigTag a request is one option among several. The same page shows your next gig and your weekly residencies, links to your socials, website and music, and has a booking enquiry form. Those are on the free plan. With Pro you can send invoices that clients pay online. Tell the DJ keeps to its name: it is the line between a guest and the person choosing the music.
A night with GigTag
A singer-songwriter's evening in a café
A small room, a stool, a guitar, and the tag on your mic stand. You play your own songs and a handful of covers, and both are on the song list on your page. People scan between songs. The page opens in their browser and a few send requests, mostly for the covers and now and then for a song of yours they have heard online. They appear in the live queue on your phone, and you take them in your own time.
In a room this small, the scan is how people keep hold of you. They open your music links and follow your socials before the coffee machine starts up again. Your next gig is on the page, and some of them add it to their calendars. The café owner's friend sends a booking enquiry for a house concert through the form. You read it on the website the next morning. The tag itself cost you nothing: you printed it yourself from the file on the free plan.
About Tell the DJ
What is Tell the DJ?
Tell the DJ is a song request app for DJs. Guests scan a QR code or tap a link and request songs from their phone. Apple Music and Spotify are built in, so requests can be matched to tracks in those catalogues. For a DJ who plays from one of those services, the request and the music library speak the same language, which keeps a busy night simple.
At an event the DJ puts the code where guests can see it, or shares the link. Guests open it on their phone and send the songs they want to hear, and the DJ receives them. Because there is a link as well as a code, it can be passed around in a message as easily as it can be scanned. Check its app store listing for setup details.
How Tell the DJ works
- 1
Share the code or link. The DJ shows a QR code at the event or sends guests a link. Either one opens the request page on the guest's own phone.
- 2
Guests find a song. Guests request the songs they want to hear. Apple Music and Spotify are built in, so a request can be matched to a track in those catalogues.
- 3
The DJ plays from requests. The DJ receives the requests and decides what to play and when. See its app store listing for how the list is displayed and managed.
Who Tell the DJ is for
DJs who play from streaming. A DJ whose library is Apple Music or Spotify gets requests that line up with what they can play. The guest chooses a track from the same catalogue the DJ uses, which keeps the request and the music in step.
House parties and private events. A link can be sent round a group chat as easily as a code can be scanned. That suits a house party or a private event, where the host can pass the link to the guests they have invited.
Events with a code on show. At a bar night or a function, the QR code can sit where guests will see it. They scan it and send their songs from where they are, and the DJ sees what the room is asking for.
The verdict
GigTag or Tell the DJ: which should you choose?
The bottom line
For anyone who performs live, GigTag is the choice. The strongest reason is fit: requests come from the songs you play, not from a streaming catalogue, and the same code carries your gigs, your links and a booking form. Tell the DJ is still the better match for a DJ who plays from Apple Music or Spotify and wants requests tied to those services. If you do both, use each for its own kind of set.
If you DJ from Apple Music or Spotify and also play live, the two cover different halves of your work: Tell the DJ for the DJ set, GigTag for the live one. For a live act on its own, GigTag is the one built for the job. Running both at the same gig is only worth it when the night really has both a DJ and a band.
- Step 1
Tell the DJ for DJ sets
On nights when you are playing recorded music from Apple Music or Spotify, take requests through Tell the DJ, where they match up with those catalogues.
- Step 2
GigTag for live sets
When you are singing or playing, put the GigTag on the mic stand so requests come from your own song list and reach your live queue.
- Step 3
One page for bookings
Send anyone who asks about hiring you to your GigTag page. The enquiry form is there on the free plan, whichever kind of set they saw.
Choose GigTag if
You play the songs yourself and want requests from your own list, plus your gigs, links and a booking form, behind one tag on your mic stand.
Start freeTell the DJ may still suit you if
You DJ from Apple Music or Spotify and want requests matched to their catalogues.
GigTag FreeYour page, your tag design, every gig and residency, a booking form. One act.
GigTag ProSong requests, tips, invoices, more than one act. AED 30, £11.99 or $15.99 a month.
GigTag Printed tagFrom AED 100 in the UAE, £24.99 in the UK or €28.99 in the EU, delivered free, with a large size for more; $32.99 elsewhere, plus postage from the UK. Or print your own, anywhere, for free.
Questions
Tell the DJ and GigTag: what people ask
Something else? Ask us. A person reads every message.
Is GigTag better than Tell the DJ for a band?
For a band, yes: it is built for one. Fans scan the tag on the mic stand and request from the band's song list, and the request appears in a live queue. The page also shows gigs and residencies, links to the band's music and socials, and takes booking enquiries with no commission. Tell the DJ is built for DJs.
Why would a musician pick GigTag over a DJ request app?
Because a musician's requests have to match a repertoire, and a musician's gig has to lead to the next one. GigTag covers both: requests from your own list, plus your next date, links and a booking form on one permanent code. A DJ request app such as Tell the DJ is designed around a streaming library.
What is the Tell the DJ app?
Tell the DJ is a song request app. Guests scan a QR code or tap a link and request songs, and it has Apple Music and Spotify built in. It is aimed at DJs, particularly those who play from one of those two services. For current details of how it works, see its app store listing.
Can a band use GigTag where a DJ would use Tell the DJ?
Yes. GigTag does the request job for live acts. Fans scan the tag on your mic stand and pick from your song list, or request any song if you open requests. Each request shows in a live queue during the set. It works for a solo act, a duo or a band, and song requests are part of Pro.
Does GigTag link to my music as Tell the DJ links to Spotify?
They use music services for different purposes. Tell the DJ has Apple Music and Spotify built in for requests. GigTag takes requests from your own song list, and separately lets fans follow your music links, socials and website from your page. So a fan can request a cover tonight and find your own recordings afterwards.
Can I use GigTag in the UK or the UAE instead of Tell the DJ?
Yes. GigTag works in every country for requests, gigs, residencies, links, booking enquiries and invoices. Printed tags are delivered free in Dubai and in the UK. Pro is AED 30 a month in the UAE and £11.99 in the UK. Tips work in both, into your own Ziina account in the UAE or your own Stripe account in the UK, with 0% taken by GigTag.
Does Tell the DJ work with Spotify and Apple Music?
Yes. Both are built in, so guests' requests can be matched to tracks in those catalogues. That is useful to a DJ who plays from one of the two services. See its app store listing for how accounts are connected. GigTag works from your own song list, and links out to your music wherever you host it.
Can guests send requests by link with Tell the DJ?
Yes. Guests can tap a link as well as scan a QR code, so the DJ can share requests in a message or on a screen. GigTag is built around the printed code on your mic stand tag. The page behind that code has a lasting link too, and old links keep working if you rename the act.
Can I take requests for my own songs as well as covers?
Yes. On GigTag the song list is whatever you enter, so it can hold your originals and your covers together, and fans request from it. Your page also links to your music, so someone who asks for one of your songs can find the recording afterwards. GigTag itself does not stream or sell music.
Is there a free way to get a QR code for my gigs?
GigTag's free plan gives one act a custom tag design and print file, a page, links, every gig and residency, and a booking enquiry form. You can print the tag yourself at no cost. Song requests, tips, invoices and extra acts are on Pro.
Apps like Tell the DJ: more song request apps compared
- TouchTunesvs GigTag
- CrowdFuelvs GigTag
- DJ Intelligencevs GigTag
- djrequestsvs GigTag
- Emsivs GigTag
- Enjoy the Clubvs GigTag
Tell the DJ is the name of its owner's product; GigTag is not connected with it. What is said about Tell the DJ here comes from its own public store listing, checked on 7 October 2026. Products change: if something here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.
For musicians
One code on your stand. Requests, tips and the next gig behind it.
No app for your audience, nothing to download. Free to start.