Careful selection of music for the wedding breakfast and early evening not only serves as background music while guests socialise, but it also helps to stimulate a feeling of nostalgia and creates wonderful memories of the big day. I’m often get approached by guests at weddings asking about the songs I play, which often creates a talking point amongst friends and family as they reminisce of happy days gone by and reminds them of how important and happy the celebration is on the day and evening. (Radio microphones can be supplied for speeches)

As the evening guests arrive and the day time guests continue to enjoy the moment, everyone will be busy socialising and meeting new friends and family members, therefore, it's important for the DJ to maintain an adequate volume and play easy listening music to suit all tastes. A quality sound system will play a vital role in producing a nice audible sound, as cheap systems will often produce a piercing sound that can easily override conversations even at a low volume. It can be difficult to know if the DJ you are booking has a great sound system; I can only answer for myself. I use a studio quality sound system with sub-bass speaker which sounds amazing. As regards to music, well, that often involves me people watching (not in a creepy way). For example, estimated age range, who’s tapping their feet or singing along, However, this method is not fool proof, and you can never judge a book by it's cover as I once discovered an elderly gentleman who loved house music!....therefore, I swap and change genres and decades every few songs in an attempt to play something for everyone alongside the method of people watching. If there are a lot of children present, the early evening music can often be dictated by the children as they love to dance under the disco lights and for the not so shy children, perhaps a chance to be the DJ and introduce a few songs!

I love weddings!...I get the chance to play all genres and decades of music and show off my versatility. I try to cover most genres and different decades of music so that I play something for everyone, typical examples of popular genres and decades include, Reggae, Motown, Rock and Roll, 70’s dance, Electric 80’s, old skool dance from the 80's/90’s, the naughties, soul, RnB, dance, current charts, Rock, Indie, Party/cheese and more!

I’m always very happy to play request , many of my clients email me a list of songs, but your guests can simply ask for songs on the night. I have a vast music selection to accommodate all musical taste!

If you have booked your DJ to play breakfast music in the afternoon, there’s a good chance that the DJ will be there for when the Bride and Groom make their grand entrance into the reception room, therefore, it makes sense for the DJ to use his introductory skills, PA system and perhaps some relevant music to accompany the grand entrance of the brand new Mr and Mrs. (Some venues will have a dedicated Toast Master, but the DJ’s radio microphone and use of PA system can be made available for the toast master to use if they wish to do so). Just before announcing the grand entrance, I usually take the opportunity to stress the importance of friends and family to take a moment to sign the guests’ book as this can be something easily overlooked when people are having a great time socialising.

Some venues already have a PA system and a dedicated co-coordinator or Toast Master who will introduce each person in order. Traditionally, there are three people that make speeches, but many couples choose to stray away from the traditional order and number of people making speeches for one reason or another. However, if your interested in the traditional order, it’s usually father of the Bride first, followed by the Groom and finally the best man. Your Toast master, wedding coordinator or DJ would normally formally introduce each person. The venues PA system may be adequate but the DJ’s PA system should be superior in terms of audio clarity.

Although many couples have a professional photographer to capture the cutting of the cake, friends and family also like to take pictures too and with most mobile phones acting as a functional digital camera, everyone will want to take advantage of the moment. In most wedding receptions, the cutting of the cake is followed by the first dance and this sequence of events helps create great photo opportunities and you can never have too many pictures of your big day! The DJ will play a very big role in this part of the evening by getting everyone’s attention and explaining the sequence of events and encouraging friend and family to take photographs and inviting guests onto the dance floor half way through the first dance will help create some magic moments in pictures that will be treasured for a long time.

Most professional DJ’s who work in the industry will already have PAT test and PLI (Public liability insurance), however, some DJ’s work part time and don’t operate as a serious business and not having PAT tested equipment or public liability insurance will often result in the venue refusing the DJ to operate on their premises. It’s always a good idea to check if your DJ has these certificates and ask the venue if they would like to see a copy of them too. I sometimes receive calls from clients asking if they can book me on the last minute as the DJ they had booked is not allowed on the venues premises due to not having the relevant certificates.

Understandably, clients often worry about the reliability of the DJ they have booked, will they turn up on time? or indeed turn up?. As a result, the Bride and Groom often find themselves keeping one eye on the door as the arrival time of the DJ approaches which slightly distracts from enjoying the day. Like most professional DJ’s, I have never let anyone down, but for extra peace of mind, there is the option to ask your DJ to setup and test the equipment in the morning at the venue. (Subject to the equipment not being in the way, for example, dining space, top table position or being visible in daytime photographs) Most DJ’s will be happy to do this for an extra small charge or FREE, subject to how far they have to travel. Early setup will go some way in helping the bride and groom to relax. However, there are some safety issues to consider if you’re asking your DJ to setup early and the DJ is not staying. Sound and light equipment acts as a magnet for children who are naturally inquisitive and speakers and lights are usually mounted on stands and are potential hazards due to the substantial weight of these items. Therefore, it’s very important that children are kept away from the equipment for their own safety and it might be a good idea to brief parents before the actual day about the dangers.

So why is the expensive DJ so expensive? The saying “you get what you pay for” is’ not always true, but a simple answer to the question would be to explain the trap of the catch 22 situation that the cheaper DJ finds themselves in, and more importantly, the situation that the client is placed into for unwittingly getting a cheap deal. He’s cheap!, happy days for the client, but what about replacing equipment as it naturally wears out?, it becomes a simple case of economics and the best examples of how this may affect your event are as follows. Scenario one: correct and valid vehicle insurance is expensive, Low priced DJ’s often don’t have valid vehicle insurance, This may not seem like an issue for the client, but if the DJ gets pulled over by the police on their way to the venue, the police will seize vehicle for not having valid insurance resulting in a now show for your event. Scenario two: cheap speakers are NOT capable of efficiently dealing with larger crowd capacities and do not produce high definition sound resulting in ear piercing sound or speaker failure. The bottom line is no money to buy backup equipment or indeed any high quality professional sound and light equipment. The above may seem extreme and scare mongering, but things do go wrong.

Correct vehicle insurance may not seem like an issue to be too concerned about for the client, but if the DJ gets pulled over by the police on their way to a function, and the vehicle does not have relevant insurance, the police will seize the vehicle resulting in a now show for your event. Insurance for DJ’s and entertainers carrying sound and light equipment is only available on commercial vehicles, i.e. Vans. It might be a good idea to ask your DJ what vehicle they will arrive in.

I hope this above column of information has forearmed you with the knowledge to find a reliable and professional DJ