StevensDJservice.com Blog

Today I received a call from a lady that just wanted to tell me a story and let me know she was thankful for taking care of her best friends wedding. It started with her talking about a past wedding that I did not get to take care. I was already booked for the date and so were the two gentlemen that I recommend. So her friend had to find another person to try to take care of her event. I wish that I could clone myself to handle every wedding and reception but that wouldn’t be fair to my current clients, as they deserve exclusiveness.

This young sounding lady was a bridesmaid in the previous wedding and also in the upcoming wedding. The “DJ” that they hired, left early for a family emergency and left them with a replacement DJ. The replacement did not know the bride or groom and had never talked to them. This upset the bride as she worried that they replacement dj would knot fully understand how she wanted things done. Her concerns quickly became her nightmare as the dj did not have all the formal dance songs, mispronounced the grooms last name along with several names of the bridal party. This dj did not do things in the order that the bride had discussed with the original dj. It truly became a bad scene from a horror  movie in her eyes. The bridal party, family and friends could see and feel the tension in the brides face.  The dj did what he could but was ill prepared and ill equipped. When they plan for a wireless mic at 500 feet you better deliver one. Making the best man leave the head table to give his speech is inexcusable.  Playing the wrong song is horrible. The original dj left for a friends birthday party. Why did he even book this wedding knowing he would be able to be there! Why did he feel that this brides wedding was less important that a birthday party! Why did he not clal ahead of time and get the couple together with the other dj! Why?

This replacement dj did not have proper training or rehersal for this event. I blame the company owner and the original dj hired. Read your contract and if it doesn’t name the DJ for your event, there is no gaurantee who you will get. A simple question while interviewing will take care of this. Ask to see the contract before signing it. If they refuse then get up and walk out. If it doesn’t name the dj then leave. If it’s not in writting then you can’t do anything about it later when it goes bad.

Then came a calm over her voice and she told me that she looked at the first brides contract and my contract with her second friends wedding. She told me thanks for putting in writing that I will be the DJ and MC for her event. That I don’t bait and switch out the DJ for any excuse. She read my testimonials page on my website and ran across a bride that commented about “playing through the pain”. You see, I had fallen while unloading the equipment and fractured my arm. I could not just leave her and 300 guests with an hour until her reception started. So, I took my tie off and created a sling. With the arm on ice and in a sling, I had my assistant set things up and get us ready to perform. I admit, I needed help and wasn’t afraid to ask for it. I called in another assistant and we set up the portable basketball hoop that we used as a prop for the bride and groom to dunk on as they made their formal introductions. It was NBA all star night and they were the MVPs. How could I have ever left them and made this night go over so perfectly. At the end of the night I went to the hospital as my assistants took the gear back the office. It was a hair line crack in the elbow but it felt like San Andreas Fault line had broken open in my arm. Thank you for Vicodin and ice. lol.

This bridesmaid knows that there is no replacing a professional DJ. Thank you Alexis, Jessica, and Amy for sharing your stories with me and giving me the joy of making the next wedding spectacular. I’ll see you all there.

Matthew

Tip number 5: Control the lighting. If it’s too dark the photographer can’t capture the good time. If it’s too bright, no one will dance. Some guests have a unique style of dancing. We want to be able to see and laugh but they won’t come out to the dance floor if everyone can see them. Plus the lighting effects are best if it’s just dark enough. Camera and scary dancer friendly is the balance you’re looking for.Tip number 4: How much space do you need to dance? So make sure the dance floor can handle your size party. Some guests spread out a bit more than others. Line dancers need space. Average in this area is 18×20 for a party of 300. You don’t want it to be too busy and you don’t want it to look empty.Tip number 3: End on a good note. Don’t let the party drag out at the “end”. Don’t let anyone start cleaning up until you are ready to end it. Once people start putting stuff away, it sends a message to the guests that it’s time to leave. Or risk getting stuck helping cleaning up. A great time doesn’t pay attention to the clock, so you shouldn’t either. Walk away wanting more, not wondering when it will ever end.Tip number 2. Don’t cram the entertainment in the corner. Most great parties have great entertainment. So center stage it. Get it close to the dance floor so the light sound and energy will be better.The number one thing a bride can do to help have a better reception. When doing a seating chart, position the younger guests next to the speakers. The older guests will have trouble with the louder volume at close range. The younger guests will move around more and sit less. Plus thier ears can handle the slightly higher volume. Tune in every day to find the next thing a couple can do to have a better reception.