Wyndham Vacation Ownership Corporate Holiday Party Panoramic View of room

This is year #2 for PRO DJs being part of the Wyndham Vacation Ownership Corporate Holiday Party. Always a lot of fun with a large diverse group. This year the theme was Carnival so per their request we played a mixture of Mardi Gras, Cajun & Zydeco music in the background for dinner. Then during the prize giveaways we added extra excitement by playing drum roll effects & fun upbeat music for each winner as they walked up to the stage to claim their prize. Later in an adjacent room they had casino games, rock band, Xbox Kinects and a photographer while we kept them dancing to music from the 50s until now.

This ultimately depends on how much equipment the DJ is bringing. The more equipment you need the DJ to provide (ie: separate sound system, video projector, lighting effects, etc) the more time you should allow. On average it takes about 30 minutes for simple sound system setups or an average of about one hour for the average sound and lighting setup.

If you are not having the event at a private residence a very important item to look over is the contract with your venue. Some people will book a hall, hotel or other similar location for 5 hours thinking they also have time before and after those 5 hours to setup and teardown. That is not always the case; some venues will charge extra for that time. Make sure that you schedule enough time for the DJ to properly setup and teardown. If the DJ has to rush to setup his or her equipment there is an increased likelihood that he or she will make a mistake during setup. That could require troubleshooting a problem or problems during your event as opposed to working out all the bugs during setup.

If you were told by another DJ that he or she can setup in 5 or 10 minutes you have to ask yourself, what in the world are they using? A boom box? One of the longest processes of setting up is the wiring off all the different audio and lighting components. In addition to the wiring a professional DJ will also take extra time to neatly tuck away cords from the view of guests. It may look simple enough at a glance but there is a lot more work into setting up and tearing down than the average person realizes.

True professional Wedding DJ’s have invested a lot more money and will spend a lot more time on each event than just a grad party DJ. Here are the differences in bullet point form:

GRAD PARTY DJ: • Discuss music prior to event (15-30 minutes) • Arrives 30 minutes prior to event to set up • Plays for 2 to 3 hours • Packs up and leaves

WEDDING DJ: • Usually meets with potential clients prior to booking to make sure they have found the right DJ. This on average takes about 1 hour not including drive time to and from the meeting location. • Upon booking they will meet with the couple again to go over all the fine details of their ceremony and/or reception. This in most cases also includes the DJ to create a timeline of events meaning the DJ must have a good knowledge of all the typical wedding intricacies. The timing and flow of events is just as important as the actual music played at a wedding. On average this takes about 1 and a half to 2 hours. • The DJ will prep for the wedding such as get music needed that he or she may not already have, burn a back-up CD, print all details from beginning to end, double check name pronunciations, coordinate with other vendors such as the caterer, venue, officiant, photographer and other potential people such as a friend who wants to plug his video, guitar and/or piano into the sound system to ensure synchronicity (2 hour average). • Arrive much earlier than a grad party to setup a more elaborate sound system or multiple sound systems, do sound checks, check in with key people for key events to remind them of their role in the wedding, do audio patch-in/microphone checks and in most cases finally change into something formal (2 hour average). • The DJ will Emcee meaning coordinating with all the vendors and people in the wedding party who are directly involved with the timing and flow of the wedding. This ensures everyone is on the same page and present when they are needed. This also includes all the announcements such as introductions, excusing guests to the buffet line, conducting the bouquet/garter toss and much more. • Play music that appeals to a wide variety of guests in different age groups. This is also important as a grad party DJ or club DJ typically only play club music. Club music is great in a club setting but rarely works well at wedding receptions.

As you can see there is a lot more time required of the DJ prior to each wedding as well as lot more experience and coordination required of the DJ to pull everything together.  Wedding DJs are more than just a DJ, they also are an event coordinator, they are the Emcee and they are part of the wait staff when excusing guests for food. In addition to all the extra services they provide and knowledge they must posses they also provide more elaborate sound systems and equipment. Equipment not needed for simple grad parties such wireless microphones, mixing boards that are capable of handling multiple microphones and other inputs such as instruments & audio from videos. Plus most wedding DJs had to pay double for everything so they can provide back-up equipment. If a grad party doesn’t happen due to technical difficulties it sucks but not nearly as much as a wedding.

Beat matching is an art where DJ’s seamlessly blend two songs together by starting a new song before the old one finishes. For example you will be dancing to one song and without knowing it you are dancing to a new song in the same tempo as if the song never changed. This is a nice skill for DJs to have but ultimately is not crucial as it all boils down to the song selections. As long as people are enjoying the music played and that there is no “dead space” in between songs then seamlessly beat-matching from one song to the next is not a deal-breaker.

Another common song transition is called a segue. A segue is similar to what radio stations do. As one song is about to end they start another so there is no “dead space” in-between the music. These songs do not necessarily have the same tempo and most of the time is easily identifiable when a new song starts. As long as the music is good then the listener will stay tuned in. This is the same concept for mobile DJ’s, as long as the music relates well to guests they will stay on the floor.

All in all beat matching is a nice skill but should not be a prerequisite when choosing a DJ. Look at the DJs past references and talk to their past clients. If they were happy with that DJs service then they enjoyed the music. In fact most of the time they wouldn’t even know if the DJ beat-matched or just transitioned with traditional segue’s or did a combination of both at their event. Ultimately they just remember if they had a good time and if they enjoyed the music.

Every bride and groom wants to hear music they love at their wedding and every DJ should be sensitive to that.  However, newlyweds should also consider what their guests will enjoy or not enjoy.  We run across this from time to time where the bride or groom or sometimes both will come up with an elaborate list of selections that are not mass appeal.  The more focused and narrow the music list becomes the more alienated their guests will also become.  Once guests have become alienated, they are more likely to leave early or complain about the music.  If guests are not having a good time, the bride and groom may also begin to feel the same way.

The trick to a successful event is balance and not to lean too heavily in one direction.  Take for example a wedding we recently performed where the bride and groom came up with a large list of music that included a very long ‘Do Not Play’ list.  The songs the bride did not want to hear were the top 100 most popular weddings requests.  Immediately this alienated most of their guests as these were the songs we know from experience, most people want to hear.  In addition, the groom wanted unedited versions of songs.  Keep in mind, this was a young, hip couple, but there is a thing as being to cool for the room.  By playing unedited music the “high-class feel” of the reception was soon lost… especially to the older generation.  That may have seemed cool to about 20 percent of the entire wedding party similar in age to the newlyweds but that left a majority that did not appreciate it.

Of course, it’s OK to come up with a list of “must play” and “do not play” songs but also important to keep it within reason.  Think of a wedding reception as give and take.  Yes, it is your special day but it wouldn’t feel that way without your friends and family there to celebrate it with you. Yes, you are providing food for them but they also are giving you gifts in return.  Yes, you are providing entertainment for them but if you don’t also think of their needs, then your celebration will not be everything is should. The more fun they have, the more fun you will have in return.

Please remember, just because you like something doesn’t automatically mean that everyone else will.  As we all know music is important, it sets the mood and it’s what makes or breaks the overall feel of any party.  Just make sure you set the right mood for everyone you invite.  Otherwise you might as well save some money by reducing your guest list down to just those who only like the same music as you.

It can be difficult to choose which songs you would like played at your wedding, especially your first dances with your new spouse and mom or dad. Fear no more, go to http://prodjsound.com/most-requested to see the most popular songs in multiple categories such as Overall Top 200, Top 50′s, 60′s, 70′s, 80′s, 90′s, 00′s, 10′s, Top Bride & Groom selections, Top Bride & Father songs, Best Groom & Mother dances, Most Popular Bridal Party hits, Great Bouquet & Garter Toss songs, Perfect Cake Cutting music, Best Introduction songs and more!

We get this question a lot. Ultimately it depends on if you need the DJ for just your reception or for both your ceremony and reception. Typically for a reception it’s about 5 hours but some will only do 4 hours to shave costs. If adding a ceremony then an average amount of time is 6 hours for both your ceremony and reception however we also have seen 5 hours for both to help shave costs.

For a typical reception the DJ provides the following services… 1. Background music during cocktail hours 2. Introductions 3. Background music the greeting line (if any) 4. Provides microphone for blessing (if any) 5. Excuses guests to buffet or asks them to take their seats if a plated meal 6. Background music for dinner 7. Slide show (if you have one) 8. Toasts 9. Cake Cutting 10. Bride/Groom first dance 11. Father/Daughter Dance 12. Mother/Son dance 13. Wedding party dance (if any) 14. Open dancing for all guests for about 30 minutes 15. Money Dance (if needed) 16. Anniversary dance (if wanted) 17. Bouquet/Garter Toss 18. Reverse Garter (if requested) 19. More dancing for everyone 20. Last dance 21. Send-Off (if you have one)

If you include the ceremony then this is what’s typical of the DJ: 1. Prelude music 30 minutes to start of ceremony as guests are arriving and being seated waiting for the ceremony to start. 2. Processional song for the wedding party 3. Processional song for the bride 4. Possible music in middle of ceremony for unity sand or other similar event 5. Recessional music for bride, groom and wedding party after being introduced as husband and wife.

As you can see there are a lot of different things to consider. Wedding ceremonies usually only need one hour for everything from the prelude music all the way to the recessional song at the end. Receptions typically require 2 hours of background music for cocktails and dinner and then 3 hours of dancing and everything in between.

Music tastes are subjective so naturally not everyone will be dancing at the same time. Other factors also include the health of your guests and if it’s more important to catch up with old friends/family members than dance.

A good DJ is aware of all these factors and can continually read the crowd for signs of what is working and things that are not. A DJ should never try to force people to dance, this will only make your guests uncomfortable. A great performer is someone who gives a lot of opportunities for guests to enjoy themselves without putting them on the spot.

All parties are different, if you’re having a wedding playing a wide variety of mass appeal songs is key. Start with the older songs earlier in the evening and get newer as the night gets older. If you’re having a sweet 16 then most likely most of the music will be new and targeted for that age group so the DJ must have ALL the hits! If a public function then the DJ would need to be aware of the demographics and what songs may be inappropriate to play. If a Bar or Bat Mitzvah then have some Jewish songs on hand to mix in with music for the adults as well as popular hits for the kids.

The point is, not everyone will dance at the same time for one or more of the reasons listed above. A great DJ will know these things and will make sure that everyone hears something they like throughout the evening and not leave anyone out. It’s OK for people to take a break, grab a drink and socialize as long as that’s not all they are doing!

If you are having your event at a venue such as a hotel, then most likely YES! Liability insurance protects the venue in case of equipment falling and causing unforeseen harm as well as provides medical compensation to the patron or patrons in need. Thankfully this is a very rare circumstance and we’ve never had the need to use our liability insurance since we started over 20 years ago. However if a venue requests a DJ to have liability insurance then plan to pay more for the DJ.

Why? Simple, it all boils down to overhead costs. The more investment a DJ has to make in his or her services the more that DJ will need to charge. If you can’t afford a professional DJ that provides liability insurance you may be able to find a hobbyist DJ for less but you would also need to move the location of your event.