Let’s get one thing clear from the outset here. Derrick May is categorically not going to be earning $10,000 from the gig at Club Shelter’s 30th birthday party that they’re pretending he isn’t doing. It simply isn’t happening.

Let’s go through some maths, shall we? Tickets are currently selling at between $30 and $50 each. The Brooklyn Monarch has a capacity of 500. That means ticket sales will bring in somewhere between $15,000 and $20,000. Out of that, the Brooklyn Monarch themselves will want paying. After all, they’re not going to offer the use of their venue and staff for free, are they?

Now, the Brooklyn Monarch lost its licence to sell alcohol last December. After a police raid of the premises found a 400 strong party going on inside, the licence was stripped off them – and a search of New York’s licensed premises for selling alcohol gives no results. So I’m going to have to use a bit of poetic licence here. Let’s say the bar brings in $2000, and let’s pretend that they get a licence in time and it rakes in $5000.

That’s a total of approximately $25,000 at most. There are twelve DJs currently scheduled to play. Let’s say that the Brooklyn Monarch are getting $3000 for the use of their venue. That leaves $22,000 to pay their DJs. If Derrick May receives $10,000 of that, the other eleven DJs will have to share $12,000 between them – making their pay for the night just over $1090 each.

Not exactly a money spinner, is it? No wonder rumours are abound that Timmy Regisford is thinking of taking Club Shelter in a techno direction…