Event DJ Cologne · Events since 2004
Your event DJ for the trade fair and media city of Cologne.
As an event DJ, I accompany your company party in Cologne musically, from the standing reception to the last track; my name is Michael Zimmermann. Over 1450 events in more than 25 years quickly show me what carries along a workforce spanning several generations. I have already shaped evenings musically for Audi, BMW, Microsoft and Amazon. beats per micha: Michael Zimmermann, event DJ for company parties, available for booking in Cologne and the surrounding area.
“We couldn't have wished for a better DJ.”
– Ben Kampen · Google reviewReferences
Names listed without guarantee of a current business relationship. References relate to past engagements.
You get exactly one attempt. I had 1,450 to practise.
The dance floor was full all night and the atmosphere great.
LA-Regio Kliniken
Corporate event · verified Google review
Company parties in Cologne
Trade fair hall, factory hall or a ballroom in the Altstadt: in a city of trade fairs and media, venues differ greatly, so I always ask about the program and the room first. Six addresses from the Altstadt to Deutz and Mülheim show how different your company evening can look: a dinner in a festive hall, a party in a factory hall or an evening beneath the railway tracks.
For your party in Cologne, a ballroom in the old town, the exhibition grounds in Deutz, a former factory hall in Mülheim or a hall under the railway tracks come into question. How much sound I need to provide follows from the room and guest count, and we clarify both with you first.
I approach a factory hall differently from an old ballroom: in one I work out where guests arrive and dance, in the other what equipment fits in. We arrange the programme items together in the briefing. I take care of all the equipment myself, from delivery to clearing away.
The Gürzenich lists receptions, congresses, concerts and carnival sessions and has five rooms with up to 1,338 seats. The operator is KölnKongress GmbH. In a late Gothic building from 1441 to 1447, I ask early on where equipment may be placed.
The trade fair grounds in Deutz cover around 400,000 square meters of hall and outdoor space, and the Congress Centrum hosts up to 2,000 conferences and events a year. In halls of this size, we talk early about sound and possible technology partners.
The E-Werk is a former power station built from 1904 to 1905 and, since 1991, a venue for concerts, festive events and company parties, with up to 2,000 visitors on up to 1,630 square meters. In an industrial hall, I plan speakers and walkways together with you.
The Wartesaal from 1915 beneath the railway tracks hosts company and evening events, product presentations and cabaret. Two halls of 560 and 210 square meters hold up to 1,000 guests. Which of the two spaces you use for dinner and dancing, we clarify in the briefing.
The festive house at the Flora offers space for around 900 people in the main hall and around 150 in the Orangerie, and the rooms are rented out for banquets and upscale events. Where the reception, speech and dancing take place one after another, we plan as part of the schedule.
After closing time, the Schokoladenmuseum in the Rheinauhafen can be rented for up to 400 people, and the Chocolat Grand Café has around 200 seats inside. For an evening in the museum, we clarify with the venue which equipment fits in.
Rooms, occasions and size figures come from Wikipedia and the operators named there (as of October 2026). Please discuss available dates directly with the respective venue.
Who I am
Welcome, speeches, dance floor: the schedule of your evening in Cologne determines how I build the music. I learned this in the nightclub, and it has grown into over 1450 events, both private and corporate. In the preliminary talk we settle with you when speeches take place and when the celebrating begins.
The transitions are created in my own edit, so no program item ends abruptly. I supply the system and wireless microphones myself, and setup and soundcheck are included. If the venue has technical staff, I coordinate with them directly, so that nobody has to search for anything on the day of the event.
How it works
One short message is enough, and I will reply within 24 hours. Then we clarify the briefing, schedule and setup, and agree on the transitions.
Request a dateMy services
For your company party in Cologne, I put together music that suits your company and still gets every generation of your workforce onto the dance floor.
01For company parties with up to around 500 guests, I tailor the music to your business and still keep the dance floor full. I read the room to see who reacts to which track and steer the mix accordingly, instead of playing through a list. I have been bridging company culture and party mood for years, including for corporations such as Audi, BMW, Microsoft or Amazon. Between dinner and party I plan in some breathing space, so that a long speech does not kill the momentum. I cover up to 150 guests with my standard system, and for larger events I bring in reliable technical partners.
Request a date →
02Safeguard If I am ill, an equally qualified colleague from my network steps in, and the agreed terms stay in place.
More occasionsWedding in Cologne →Birthday & party in Cologne →
Voices from real events
60 Google reviews. 100% recommendation. Here is a small selection.
5.0
Your service package
At company parties several generations dance together, which is why soul sits next to current charts in my sets. Once you hire me, I plan the music step by step through to the last track.
The set is built live from the mood in the room. I stay in the background and use the microphone only for speeches and programme items.
On request
Wireless LED uplights in your preferred colour transform any room.
Learn more →
On request
Instant prints, digital gallery, props. Runs fully automatically.
Learn more →
Recommendation
Live photo gallery for your phone – guests share pictures via QR code, no app needed.
Learn more →
My equipment: lighting, two wireless microphones, Pioneer or Denon controllers and a PA from RCF or Electro-Voice.
On request
Full song catalogue, wireless microphones, on-screen lyrics. Ideal for team building.
Learn more →You will hear from me within 24 hours, and I look after the planning myself, with no waiting queue.
Your music wish list comes first; I coordinate with the venue and the other vendors myself, and tracks that don't fit the occasion I leave out consistently at your request.
Open Format
We clarify beforehand what you would like to hear, from seventies soul to new charts, and I bring all the styles into one flow.
For setup I allow about 40 minutes and roughly 2.5 by 1.5 meters of space; after the last track I take everything away myself. About 2.5 m of width and 1.5 m of depth is enough, and under normal conditions (car close to the setup spot, no stairs or elevators) setup takes about 40 minutes.
Premium
I take a gala or a company anniversary just as seriously as any other party, from the first guest to the farewell.
If you would like live music, a photo station or uplights, I include that in the same coordination.
Request a date →The karaoke system comes with a large German and international song catalogue, two wireless microphones and an on-screen display, as a highlight of the DJ evening or as a standalone team-building evening.
Request a dateGood questions
These are the questions organisers ask me most often, and if yours isn't there, just get in touch with me directly.
+49 176 700 580 27For that I need the data sheet and photos of the system. If it is good, I use it; otherwise I set up my own; you will have clarity after the first conversation.
My standard system is built for about 150 guests. If significantly more people come, I will arrange a technical partner for you in good time so that the sound does not become a bottleneck.
Wherever there would otherwise be silence between arrival, dinner and speeches, I put music underneath. I only take the microphone once you give me a sign. When the speech is over, I fade in soft music and build it up until the party gets going by itself.
At the reception I play quietly enough that your conversations stay undisturbed. In the hall I raise the tempo and volume step by step until the first guests start dancing. We agree the moment of the switch with you and the venue.
I recommend four to eight weeks of lead time, and more before Christmas. Write to me, and you will have my answer by the next day. Billing takes place after the event; a payment term of 7 days applies to you.
Yes, from my network a live musician can be arranged, for example on saxophone, violin, vocals or percussion, to accompany my set. A live performance has the most impact in the waiting time between two courses; exactly when it goes into the programme, we decide together in the briefing.
Listen & Watch
What sets me apart
If you want singers, a violinist, a saxophonist or percussion at your celebration, I put you in touch with musicians from my network. We clarify in advance when in the evening the performance fits best.
01
Main-time peak · gala champagne reception
At the reception in the foyer or courtyard, a saxophone sounds relaxed and stylish, especially as the evening moves into the night.
02
Summer party peak · energy on the dance floor
Where a big hall offers lots of space, percussion adds punch to the mix, and you don't need a whole band with equipment for that.
03
Live-band feeling · party time & special moments
A voice that sings hits live gets the staff singing along and combines congress atmosphere with party mood.
04
Galas & awards · music from the first note
At the gala, a violin brings dignity to the reception, because its tone sounds festive from the very first greeting.
05
An evening without a break.
If you want live music already at the reception or dinner, I'll arrange a well-rehearsed band of two to four musicians for you. After that I keep playing without a break, and because the planning is in my hands, I remain your single point of contact.
Duo to quartet · Available on request
Tap ▶ once more: your browser needs a direct tap for the first sound.
Clicking here or on a mix loads the player; data is transferred to Mixcloud (UK) in the process. Details in the privacy policy. Mixes are streamed via Mixcloud · Mixcloud is GEMA- and GVL-licensed
More sets on MixcloudLive recordings — uncut
Real corporate events as live recordings, unedited, without a studio mix and without gloss, but not a template evening, because your set is shaped by your guests.
Setlists
Real lists from real parties – track by track, just as they actually played.
Real set list
An excerpt from a real evening, from the opening to the wind-down. The time jumps in between are intentional; you will find the complete setlist on the detail page.
@beats_per_michabeats per micha on Instagram
Service area
I also play at your corporate events in Leverkusen, Hürth and Bonn, and you will find more locations further down the page.
For your corporate event in Cologne, you tell me the occasion, the date and the expected number of guests, and in a video call we then talk about music, schedule and venue. Before the date, I go through the stations of the evening with you in the briefing. On the day of the event I set up for about 40 minutes and check the sound in the empty room. My sound system is enough for up to 150 guests, and for larger groups I bring in technical partners.
Map section around Cologne with Leverkusen, Bergisch Gladbach, Kerpen, Hürth, Pulheim, Frechen, Brühl, Wesseling, Lohmar, Rösrath, Kürten, Sindorf. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Transparency
A programme made up exclusively of party-anthem and Schlager hits doesn't suit me. Guests at any company party like a few sing-along classics, but building the whole evening on them isn't my style. I'm also the wrong contact for techno sets with no connection to your guests, for wish lists that run rigidly from top to bottom, or for multi-stage festivals. Colleagues who love exactly that take such jobs.
My craft is live mixing for guests who want an evening with a feel for the moment: clean transitions, the right track at the right time, instead of just pressing play. That's why I'd rather tell you beforehand what I don't do than have you disappointed on the night.
If that doesn't fit your event, I'm not the right person, and that's perfectly fine. If it does fit, we'll discuss the details.
Contact
Write to me, and together we will shape an evening your workforce will talk about for a long time. As a rule, four to eight weeks of lead time is enough to coordinate music, technology and schedule at a relaxed pace.
How would you like to enquire?
Both are non-binding – you can add more at any time.
From the blog
Honest answers about corporate events, planning and music – from over 1,450 events I have accompanied.
