Main room
The big dance room at street level: a custom DJ booth, a main stage and a dance floor ringed by VIP booths, all inside the LED installation, on a Void sound system. My photos on this page are from this booth, in 2018.
DJ and MC at Temple Nightclub
At Temple a custom LED installation wraps the whole main room, DJ booth included. I've played that booth. For a private event there I bring the music, the microphone and a timeline that turns a club into your night.
SoMa, San Francisco
A SoMa club with
A SoMa club with
a sci-fi streak
Temple sits at 540 Howard Street in San Francisco's SoMa district, a short walk from Moscone Center and the Salesforce Transit Center. It opened in 2007 in the building that used to be Club DV8, and it's officially Temple SF, or Temple Nightclub. Most people just call it Temple.
The look is the point. The room was drawn from 1980s science fiction, films like Tron and Blade Runner, and the main room's custom LED installation wraps around you, with the DJ booth as its focal point. There's a second club room below and a seasonal rooftop lounge above.
The room already knows how to dance. What a private night needs on top of that is the human part: a welcome, a toast people can actually hear, and a plan for when the dancing starts.
The spaces
Main room, lower level,
Main room, lower level,
and a rooftop
LVL 55
Downstairs, a smaller, tighter club room with VIP tables, its own DJ booth, LED-lit columns and its own sound system. It could work as a second room with a different sound, or as the whole event for a smaller group, if the venue reserves it that way.
Skyline Lounge
A rooftop bar and lounge with city views, open seasonally. Open air changes the job: sound doesn't bounce back the way it does indoors, and wind gets at a microphone. I confirm what's allowed up there before I plan a set for it.
How I set up here
How I work
How I work
a room built for DJs
A club gives a DJ a lot to work with. A private event asks for more than a club night does, and that's the part I plan.
The booth is the stage
The main room is built around its booth, so that's where I run the night from. Before the event I ask whether my own gear goes in the booth and what's already there, so I walk in knowing what plugs into what.
Loud later, not at the door
The main room runs a Void sound system, and a club system is there for dancing, not background. A private event still has arrivals, drinks and conversation. I keep the early music at a level people can talk over, then build it as the room is ready.
Speech in a dance room
A dance room is set up for music, and a toast is a different job. I bring a wireless microphone and check it before guests arrive, from the dance floor and from the VIP booths around it. Entrances, toasts, a product reveal, an award: I announce each one, so nobody has to shout over the room.
Three spaces, one timeline
If your event uses more than one space, people need to be told when to move. I plan the order with you and make the announcements on the night. If two rooms need music at once, an additional sound zone goes in the estimate. I settle load-in with the venue ahead of time, and I arrive early.
My photos from Temple
From the booth,
From the booth,
under the LED ceiling
No planner needed
You don't run the night
You don't run the night
from the dance floor
Renting a nightclub for a private event sounds simple until you're the one deciding when the speeches happen and who tells two rooms of people that it's time. That's my job. We go through a planning questionnaire and a music call, your must-plays and do-not-plays, and by the time I arrive I already know your event inside and out.
On the night I'm the MC as well as the DJ: the welcome, the toasts, and telling the room when it's time to move. I build the timeline back from the end time the venue gives us, so the dance floor gets its full stretch and the last song is the one you chose. And I don't guess at Temple's rules. I ask.
Lighting
The room is
The room is
already the light show
The LED ceiling and columns in my photos are Temple's own installation, not my lighting. In the main room I wouldn't add much. The better move is to ask the venue who runs the visuals and work with that person so the room changes when the music does.
My lighting belongs in a space the installation doesn't reach: uplighting or a custom monogram projection, if the venue allows it there. Those are add-ons you choose in the instant estimate.
What fits here
More than
More than
a Saturday club night
Temple is a nightclub first, and its own site says it takes private events. With Moscone Center a short walk away, that makes it a natural room for a company party after a conference day, a product launch, a holiday party, a fundraiser, or a milestone birthday that wants a real dance floor. The club's own nights are 21 and over, so I ask the venue what applies to yours.
Temple doesn't present itself as a wedding venue. It can make a strong after-party or welcome night, though. For those, a Selector Session fits: a set of my own programming, Afro and tribal house, soulful electronic, hip-hop and the classics, reworked for the room. When your crowd calls for open format, I play that instead.
Good to Know
Asked about
Asked about
a DJ at Temple
Can I bring my own DJ to a private event at Temple?
That's the venue's call, and it can change, so I ask them directly for your date instead of guessing. I've played the main room booth, so I know what to ask. Once the venue says yes, I sort out booth access, load-in and power with them so you don't have to relay messages.
Does Temple host weddings?
Not in the usual sense. It's a club, and it takes private events. If a club is where you want your after-party, welcome night or reception, the first question for the venue is whether your date and plan fit. If they do, I'm your DJ and your MC for it: the entrance, the toasts, and a dance floor that opens on time.
How late can the music go at Temple?
The club's own nights run late on Friday and Saturday, with Sundays depending on its calendar. A private event's end time is set between you and the venue, and I don't assume it matches a club night. I confirm the cutoff with the venue first, and everything else on the night is planned to land before it.
Do you use Temple's sound system or bring your own?
That depends on the venue. The main room has its own Void system, and whether an outside DJ plays through it, and what's in the booth, is something I confirm ahead of time. I bring my own wireless microphone and backup equipment either way, and I arrive early enough to test everything before guests do.
Can the LED visuals be matched to our event?
A listing for Temple's private events has mentioned programmable visuals. They belong to the house, so I ask who operates them and whether they can be set for your night. Then I share the timeline with that person: when you walk in, when the toast happens, when the dance floor opens. The room and the music should change together.
More rooms
Other rooms I've played
Other rooms I've played
in San Francisco
- Asian Art MuseumSan Francisco
- Golden Gate ClubSan Francisco
- Hotel NikkoSan Francisco
- Julia Morgan BallroomSan Francisco
- Marines' Memorial ClubSan Francisco
- The Rotunda at Neiman MarcusSan Francisco
- St. Francis Yacht ClubSan Francisco
Every room, from Napa Valley to the coast, is on the rooms list.
Your event
Tell me about your night at Temple
Your date, which spaces you're looking at, and the feeling you want in the room. The instant estimate takes a couple of minutes, or book a short call and we'll talk it through. I'll take it from there.