WEDDING GUIDE
We are excited to be working together to create the soundtrack for your special day. Based on our experience with hundreds of successful weddings, we hope you will find this exclusive content valuable, and help make the planning process less stressful and more fun!
1. HOW TO PULL OFF THE BEST WEDDING EVER
2. CLARIFYING THE MC ROLE
3. VALUABLE ADD-ONS
4. CREATING YOUR SOUNDTRACK
5. FURTHER LINKS AND RESOURCES
We strongly encourage you to read this through carefully, and ask any questions you may have. Happy planning!
HOW TO PULL OFF THE BEST WEDDING EVER
On any given night, you’d be hard-pressed to distinguish one of our wedding dance parties from a killer downtown club. According to several recent brides, (in their words, not ours) “Best. DJ. Ever.”
But every now and then, we get a wedding that the dance party just can’t take off. We play Beatles, no one twists or shouts. We mix in Michael Jackson, one guy poorly moonwalking. Then somebody requests Lady In Red because he wants to dance with his wife, and how can we say no if no one is dancing?
We can’t allow this sad situation to play out on your big day.
Click here for the blog post and accompanying video called Dance Party Mastery: 5 Proven Steps To Packing The Dance Floor.
Follow these 5 tips and everyone will be saying: “Best. Wedding. Ever!”
CLARIFYING THE MC ROLE
No topic seems to come up more frequently in wedding planning than the discussion over the MC role. In our esteemed experience, because of the importance of this role, the DJ and the MC cannot be the same person.
We encourage our clients to pick someone from their guest list who:
– is comfortable on the mic (teachers make great MCs as they are used to speaking to groups)
– is responsible (will not be drunk by the salad course)
– knows many people in the crowd (but is not necessarily in the bridal party)
For the purposes of clarification, here is a clear breakdown of the typical role differences between a DJ and an MC. Please do share this with both your chosen MC and your planner (if you have one).
The MC will:
– stand at the podium
– start with a welcome address
– cover housekeeping
– introduce speakers throughout the night
– thank speakers at the end of each speech
– explain and facilitate any kissing game (if there is one)
– explain and facilitate any centrepiece game (if there is one)
The DJ will:
– adjust mic volume and cue music
– intro bridal party (if MC is in it)
– ask guests to take their seats (if MC prefers to pass this off)
– announce cake cutting, first dance and/or bouquet toss (if MC signs off before final speech)
For those couples who feel they simply cannot pick someone, we do offer you the option of adding an MC to your package. We are fortunate to have some amazingly talented professional MCs at our disposal. Rates vary by the talent, and are subject to availability based on your date. Please inquire with us if this is an option for you given your date and location.
VALUABLE ADD-ONS
Lighting
Live Musicians
Live Streaming
We now have an in-house video division, created during the pandemic months, to offer live streaming solutions for clients who want to broadcast their special moments online for guests around the world. The virtual capabilities allow us to facilitate a hybrid event for you, sharing your ceremony through Zoom or Vimeo. The added bonus is a digital copy that is yours forever, so no need to hire an expensive wedding videography team to capture the most important moment of the day. Our base package starts at $950. For more details, package options and sample videos, visit our blog article Streaming Solutions.
Photo Booth
We are also partners with a really cool photography team to offer clients a fresh take on a photo booth, which features an on demand studio photographer to find the perfect pose and style, along with the option to have a custom backdrops with your monogram. We challenged ourselves to create a COVID friendly option, and we think we got it. The live photographer can enforce social distancing, only taking portraits of couples and families who are in the same bubble. Guests get to feel like celebrities, are digitally sent a keepsake which they can print or use on social media, and perhaps most exciting for the bride and groom is that you will receive digital copies of all the micro photo shoots. More details can be found in our Red Carpet Experience blog article, prices starting at $1000.
CREATING YOUR SOUNDTRACK
Every client is different, with unique musical tastes and backgrounds. We want the music at your wedding to reflect YOU! Please share with us in advance of the wedding the following:
A list of approximately 10 songs that you two love and will be excited about dancing to. Imagine if no one else was in the room, what would make you happy? These are the songs we will drop when we need to rally the troops and get you back on the dance floor in a moment when the energy might be dipping. Or was there a song on your recent Bachelor/Bachelorette party that got everybody jumping up and down together? Please note, a list with too many of these songs isn’t helpful, because then we don’t know which ones will truly have the power to change your mood and actions. Not sure where to even start? Check out this blog article about the Top 50 Dance Floor Bangers Of All Time and pick 10 from there!
A list of any artists or genres you either enjoy as music lovers, or want us to focus on throughout the entire night. To help us understand you better, think of the last concert you went to, the band you worshipped while growing up, or the radio station you currently listen to in the car. Couples often say they don’t think their tastes should matter. We beg to differ! The more we know about you, the more we can tailor the direction to your tastes, and the more it will feel like your wedding as opposed to someone else’s. And there’s always cocktails, dinner or in between speeches when something can be thrown in.
A list of ethnic music we should have. We’d be making a huge omission if you family heritage, culture or background was not represented in the nights’ soundtrack. If you know your family will want their ethnic diversity represented, let’s make sure we have some names of songs to include. This could be for during dinner, or maybe once the dance party is in full swing. We find it most helpful to ask you to track down the actual songs as mp3s (on iTunes or through a family friend, just not ripped from YouTube links). Once you have them, if you have a DropBox account this would be the easiest way to ensure we get it right. If you get stuck here, we recommend asking a family member to assist, usually the one who controls the family stereo at get-togethers (there’s one in every family!)
A brief DO NOT PLAY list. Generally speaking, this is not something we put too much emphasis on. We are more concerned with knowing what you do like. Once we know that we can often infer what you won’t like. But we recognize you might have some cringers that we might have in our repertoire, so please do share this. (Disclaimer: if your DO NOT PLAY list looks something like YMCA, Chicken Dance, Macarena, etc., we weren’t going to play those anyways so save yourself the time of working on this part of the list!)
Remember, the more you can tell us about your tastes, the better we can read your minds from across the room. When people make requests, we try to imagine if it would get a thumbs up or down from you. The more you share, the more fuel for the fire.
SPECIAL SONG SUGGESTIONS
Even the most particular music lover can have a hard time when it comes to selecting the right song for these special moments of the night. Here, we’ve compiled a cheat sheet for you based on successful selections we’ve used previously, along with Spotify Links for you to listen to.
CEREMONY
When looking for ceremony music, check out Vitamin Strings Quartet on iTunes for covers of anything from AC/DC to Lady Gaga. Their catalogue is so extensive, it’s like being able to hire a string quartet and asking them to learn all your favourite contemporary songs.
PROCESSIONAL
The moment you’ve dreamt about needs the right musical accompaniment. Something slow, sentimental and walkable are best.
“Here Comes The Sun” by The Beatles
“Fields Of Gold” by Eva Cassidy
“One and Only” by Adele
“Across The Universe” by Rufus Wainwright
“The World Ain’t Slowing Down” by Paul Ellis
“Story Book Love” from The Princess Bride
“The Sweetest Gift” by Sade
“River Flows In You” by Yiruma
“Just Breath” by Pearl Jam
“Midsummer Night” by Brian Crain
REGISTRY SIGNING
It’s nice to fill the few minute void while you slip away to sign the registry with something personal, or very light in the background.
“Open Window (Wedding song)” by Sarah Harmer
“Magic” by Colbie Caillat
“Fix You” by Coldplay
“Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)” by Marvin Gaye
“(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay” by Otis Redding
“Tupelo Honey” by Van Morrison
“Close To You” by Ron Isley
“Feels Like Home” by Chantal Kreviazuk
“Forever” by Ben Harper
RECESSIONAL
It’s time to put on a big smile and pump those fists. This song should be upbeat and fun, and put a smile on your face. Guests will stand and clap so if it has a strong beat even better.
“How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)” by Marvin Gaye or James Taylor
“Somewhere Only We Know” by Keane
“Sweet Disposition” by Temper Trap
“Howlin’ For You” by The Black Keys
“Just The Two of Us” by Grover Washington Jr.
“Wouldnʼt It Be Nice” by The Beach Boys
“If Not For You” by Bob Dylan
“Lovely Day” by Bill Withers
“You Are The Best Thing” by Ray LaMontagne
“I Do” by Colbie Caillat
“Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin
“Balmes” by Ian Poole
FIRST DANCE
For the first dance, we suggest you make it personal. Pick an artist you both love, or a song you have memories from early on in your relationship, or a song that you hear on the radio and you both start singing to. Just make sure you like it; it will show when you dance and when you look at the pictures later.
“Let’s Stay Together” by Al Green
“Into The Mystic” by Van Morrison
“Wild Horses” by The Rolling Stones or The Sundays
“Better Together” by Jack Johnson
“No One” by Alicia Keys
“You Are The Best Thing” Ray LaMontagne
“Girl I Wanna Lay You Down” Animal Liberation Front
“Such Great Heights” by Iron & Wine
“She Talks To Angels” by The Black Crowes
“Lost Together” by Blue Rodeo
“Bella” by Angus & Julia Stone
“All I Need” by Radiohead
“Fallen” by Lauren Wood
“The Luckiest” by Ben Folds
“The Way I Am” by Ingrid Michaelson
PARENT DANCES
Share this with your parents if they want to do a dance with you. If you leave it up to them, they will likely google parent dances, and the results can be horrendous.
“Somewhere Over The Rainbow/What a Wonderful World” by Isreal Kamamwiwo’ole
“Have I Told You Lately” by Van Morrison
“I’ll Stand By You” by The Pretenders
“Sweet Pea” by Amos Lee
“Unforgettable” by Nat King Cole & Nathalie Cole
“Stand By Me” by Ben E. King
“The Way You Look Tonight” by Michael Buble, Frank Sinatra or Tony Bennett
“Father and Daughter” by Paul Simon
“Just The Way You Are” by Billy Joel
“Close To You” by The Carpenters
“Youʼre The Best Thing” by Gladys Knight & The Pips
“Time In A Bottle” by Jim Croce
“What A Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong or Michael Buble
“Harvest Moon” by Neil Young
“Sunrise” by Norah Jones
“In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel
“God Only Knows” by The Beach Boys
“Forever Young” by Rod Stewart
“My Girl” by The Temptations
“You Are The Sunshine Of My Life” by Stevie Wonder
“In My Life” by The Beatles
FURTHER LINKS & RESOURCES
Still looking for the right officiant for your ceremony, someone who will work with us to also ensure everything is flawless? Click here for our popular blog post to help you find Toronto’s Top Wedding Officiants.
Searching for a day-of or full-planning wedding planner to help you pull everything off? Some of our favourite planners are featured in our blog article Top 10 Most Important Questions To Ask A DJ.
Start dreaming about your dance party by scrolling through some playlists from The Best Dance Party Weddings Of 2019.
