Tuesday 13 May 2014

Playlists For A Wedding Are They Necessary ?

Just a little story to example that sometimes its good to take time out to consider compiling a playlist or if you are a guest making an on line request.

As a quick explanation all clients that book me get access to a music database whereby the bride and groom are able to compile a playlist of songs to be played at their Wedding and they also get information to pass onto their evening guests whereby each guest can choose one or two songs that can be played at the evening Wedding reception.

At a recent Wedding a guest asked me for music from the film Frozen a film I have never seen and therefore have no knowledge of the music I then asked the guest what the track was called and they went on to explain the scene it was from.

I had to accept defeat on that one to which the guest  said "I had the link to choose a song online but never got round to it".

The next request was from another guest who asked for Luther Vandross - 'Dance With My Father'
this was on the brides  Do Not Playlist the reason for this was a very personal one.

Can you imagine if I had played this song!

Food for thought.





Tuesday 6 May 2014

The Best Wedding DJ !

Who Is The Best Wedding DJ ?


Recently I met with a couple to discuss their wedding day which was in a new quirky venue. 
 They told me of the type of wedding they were looking for, the type of atmosphere they wanted to create if possible, music they definitely did want and music they definitely didn’t want. After listening to what they wanted I explained how I might be able to help, and the way I work and some of the services I offer. We went through the timeline they’d prepared and I was able to offer them a few suggestions on the timings and a few other things. At the end of the meeting I gave them a quote for how much it would cost and left it with them to discuss.

The following day they called me back to say they  wanted to book and thanked me for my time. We then chatted a little further, and the bride-to-be mentioned that they’d previously spoken with another DJ who had told them that he was “The Best Wedding DJ!” and therefore charged more !  he wasn’t interested in meeting with them or finding out more about their day and what they wanted etc. as he knew how to “fill the floor”, which was one of the reasons they decided not to book him.Later on I was thinking about the statement the DJ had made, that he was “The Best Wedding DJ”! It seems such an absurd statement to make for so many reasons.

If you’re a good DJ then you’ll have a busy diary and not so much time to view other DJs performing. If you do get invited to a Wedding 9 times out of 10 you are asked to DJ the night ! so therefore how would any DJ truly know if they were better than every other DJ?

Even if you did view a DJ working, if the age group at that particular wedding was quite young, you’d have no idea how good/bad the DJ might be with a much older crowd for example, which then means you’d need to view a DJ quite a few times to truly have a good measure of their ability.
If you asked 100 people to list 10 things that defined a good wedding DJ you’d probably get all sorts of different replies because it’s so subjective and there can be no agreed defining rules. No DJ can be an expert in every music genre, and the music is different at every wedding depending on the average age range, music tastes, cultural makeup of the crowd, amount of time available for the dancing section (some weddings it might only be 1 1/2 hours if things are running late, at others it might be 5 hours).
Some DJs will state they won so and so competition, which I find to be quite hollow, although I guess most clients wouldn’t know that. How on earth would a judging panel be able to visit each DJ that had entered, at their events, numerous times? And if it was a competition where DJs just perform in front of a judging panel and not an actual wedding crowd, that would just be farcical, how can a wedding DJ be truly judged on a performance of less than a few hours to an empty room/non-wedding crowd with completely different dynamics?!

Some people prefer a DJ that has a great personality and makes humorous comments on the microphone, others hate that, so should the DJ talk a lot, not much, not at all?
Some like a DJ that is an expert mixer and can give the wedding a real club vibe, others have no interest in whether the DJ can do that or not.
Many people can’t stand cheesy music and prefer not to hear too much at a wedding, yet there are just as many people with the opposite view and who love to hear cheesy music at weddings.
Is four slow songs for couples in one night, far too much, far too little, just right? Who’s right?
Similarly what is the right number of Motown songs, or R&B, or current chart hits, or rock & roll etc., who’s right, who’s wrong?
Should the DJ play every guest request?
Some DJs have a huge number of lights while others will have a much more minimalistic elegant setup.
And I haven’t even touched upon the volume levels, the sound quality, the customer service offered before the event, and whether the client felt they had peace of mind about the DJ they’d chosen in the lead up to the wedding and many other things.

To me it’s completely farcical to claim to be “The best DJ” 

I’d suggest that the best way to try to get an idea of whether a DJ is right for your wedding is to either meet with them or have a decent conversation with them on the phone , ask them questions, see if they understand the type of day that you would like, see whether you like their personality.