Some of the things that you will need to do before you say “I DO” will test your patience. Do not let wedding details break your brain.
Music is something I can help you with, because, I do music. 🙂
It’s easy to lay out music needs for your wedding day itinerary. It’s best to start with a list of activities for the event. A majority of events follow a standard wedding format. You will need music for guest seating, the ceremony, cocktail hour, a grand entrance, dinner, basic wedding activities “first dance, anniversary dance, father-daughter, mother-son, money dance, cake cutting, after-cake transition, general dancing and your big exit at the end of the night. A typical 6 hour wedding event, start to finish will need an average of 90 songs.
Easy right?
A great way to plan music, is to build your music needs around your wedding guests.
The guests you invite to your wedding will be a big part of the energy of the day. Music that involves your guests will help everyone have more fun. It’s important to note your guests may like music that is very different from your taste in music.
Let’s get started.
Wedding Party: The first guests to focus on are in your wedding party. Ask your wedding party to list one or two favorite dance songs and slow songs. Your event will have slow dancing and fast dancing. Your wedding party is close to you and may know your style of music. Getting each guest in your crew, to give you song suggestion’s is a great starting point. In a short time you will have a small pool of music choose from.
Next up…
Family: Ask close family the same questions. Something fast and slow. Plus add two more questions. 1st: If your family members are married, what song did they used for there first dance. 2nd: Do they have any traditional songs they would like played. The goal is to collect music ideas for your wedding. Close family will feel honored to share something personal with you. Lastly your family will have more fun being involved at the event.
But wait, your not done yet:
Guests: Ask all the guests to give you a fast song, a slow song and a dedication song for the bride and groom. A dedication song will normally express devotion or nostalgia and will be more heartfelt. A majority of guest will put some think time into the song they choose.
Getting ideas from everyone will open up a the variety of music. Your guests may suggest songs you have never listened to before. So, go and explore the songs they tell you about.
Nothing is set in stone. You are just getting a feel for what your guest like.
If your wedding has a theme. Let your guests know. You may be surprised by the feedback.
Music moves the soul. Weddings are just a formal party. With the right music on hand, the event will be awesome.
Let’s get down to brass tacks. The music you collect from guests and that you may want to use will go into a master play list. The top songs you like for each task during the event will be in it’s own activity list.
Everything is pre-programed, >>> but it’s not.
I will take requests from guests as long as they are clean. Weddings have a wide age group of guests. Not every guest will like explicit content. You are in control of content. If you want songs that have dirty or suggestive lyrics. I will play them. Dirty pg13 or nc17 tracks should be played later in the dancing portion of the event. No one will like explicit content during dinner.
The wedding is for the bride and groom. Guests are invited to celebrate the special day. Keeping your guests engaged and active is critical to fun memories. My job is to help you plan a fun event. It’s also my job to keep everything moving smoothly. Weddings have a time line to keep. A wedding DJ wears many hats. the most important hat is the party hat.
Weddings are a party with purpose…