Becoming a Wedding DJ: 4. How to get work.

It may seem like a very easy thing to do - advertise in the local paper, turn up at a Wedding Fayre or two but in actual fact it is probably the most difficult aspect of becoming a Wedding DJ.

WHERE TO START LOOKING FOR GIGS

Here are a few things you can do to help you get started and gain some experience as a Wedding DJ:

Contact local Hotels and enquire if they need a resident DJ: If you have just started you will need to offer yourself out cheaper than most, sometimes for free! I know this sounds bad but would you want an inexperienced Wedding DJ supplying music at your Wedding? Certainly not. Also if the hotels have their own resident DJ why not offer your services as a stand in or emergency measure? That way you can show your reliability and gain their trust.

Attend Wedding Fayres: A Wedding Fayre is a great place to start showcasing your talent and it acts as a wedding couple central. Choose wisely though as they can be expensive and you could be advertising next to an established Wedding DJ. You may want to offer your services as a Compere for the event. This will help with your business advertising and help get you noticed but may mean that you could get a discounted stall rate - Always a bonus!

Advertising: There are a number of ways you can advertise and it really doesn’t have to be expensive. Get a basic website built and register with online directories such as Welsh Brides. Register your business details with the good old Yellow Pages too. If all else fails you can always place an ad in the local paper.

Join an Entertainments/ DJ Agency: This is probably the cheapest way to get started and a good way to gain experience. Again exercise caution! Some entertainment agencies are very good and will keep you working 7 nights a week if you want it, but some (As with most industries) can be rogue. Just be sure of their terms and conditions as agency fees can sometime be very high.

I Hope these starting points prove as a useful tool when looking for DJ work. There are a lot of us Professional Wedding DJ’s out there so be patient and persevere.

Becoming a Wedding DJ: 2. In the Beginning

MEDDLING MOTHERS IN THE MAKING OF A WEDDING DJ

One random afternoon back in 1995 a wedding couple knocked on my mum’s front door to ask if they could book my sister (who was a professional DJ at the time) to DJ at their forthcoming wedding. My dear mother explained that my sister was now living and working in a different area therefore could not but that I could do it for them! I was 15!!

I had always had a keen interest in music and I had accompanied my sister to her gigs on several occasions. As a result of this I kind of knew what to do. Still I was terrified! I sat down with the couple to discuss their wedding theme and music preferences. I needed all the help I could get. They were happy with our discussion and booked me there and then. Perhaps my sister’s good reputation helped their decision a little I thought.

Thanks to my sisters Wedding DJ business I was given her old equipment - Turntables, CD players and lights. I had my own music collection of Vinyl and CD’s, so all that was left was to play at their wedding. I remember the date very well, it will always stick in my mind – 1st June 1995!

The day of my first gig I felt physically sick and for two whole hours before going I cried my heart out. I was so nervous I felt that I might chicken out but I knew that it would ruin their special day so I sorted myself out and my dad took me and the equipment to their Wedding Venue.

HOW DID IT GO?

Naturally it could have gone a lot better, but after all, this was my first time. The Bride and Groom were very happy and off the back of their wedding I received my second wedding booking. So that’s where it began for me. You could say it’s thanks to my pushy mother. Even so now I love my job and although I have years of experience behind me I am constantly learning and always will be… well until I retire of course!

ADVICE FOR BUDDING WEDDING DJS

If you know a Wedding DJ or Party DJ go along with them to gigs. Offer to carry their equipment or something, no one will ever say no to that! It’s best to get some hands on experience before your go it alone. It will be like going to school or university for the first time – totally nerve racking, but if your serious about working as a Wedding DJ and doing a good job then bite the bullet! Trust me it gets a whole lot better after the first one!

Keep checking back with the Vocal Show Wedding Blog for further posts on Becoming a Wedding DJ.

The Cheesy Wedding DJ: Mild Cheese

CHEESY MUSIC (OF THE EDAM VARIETY)

If you have read the previous blog post you will know what I’m on about, if not take a look at the Strong Cheesy Music post.

To recap, there are two types of cheesy wedding music – Mild and Strong (or Edam and Stilton). Another way of putting it, it’s similar to how we all think about Marmite – we either love it or we hate it! Some of us hear Wham! and still scream, some of us hear Wham! and want to run away or block our ears. Put quite simply, we are all very different.

Some cheesy music tracks spark great memories of dancing with your mates in dance halls or school discos and they can be essential to any party, wedding or otherwise. Don’t be too scared of putting these requests to your Wedding DJ or Wedding Singer..

Here is some mildly cheesy music that should be considered as Edam:

CHEESY DJ PLAYLIST: THE EDAM

1. Freedom - Wham!
2. Uptown Girl - Billy Joel
3. I'm gonna be (500 Miles) - The Proclaimers
4. I’m in the mood - The Nolans
5. Mickey - Toni Basil
6. December ‘63 - Four Seasons
7. Don’t stop till you get enough - Jackson 5
8. One and Only - Chesney Hawks
9. I think we’re alone now - Tiffany
10. Various including the Megamix - Grease
11. Footloose - Kenny Loggins
12. Flashdance - Irene Cara
13. Relight my Fire - Take That
14. It’s raining men - The Weather Girls
15. Love Shack - The B52’s
16. Stop! - The Spice Girls
17. Can’t touch this - M C Hammer
18. Sweet Dreams - Eurythmics
19. 9 to 5 - Dolly Parton
20. I wanna dance with somebody - Whitney Houston

There are many more cheesy songs like these. There’s nothing better than having a boogie with your friends and family and reminiscing) about the good old days, you never know you may still even remember the moves!! .

Another good way of finding out about long lost songs is by going through films (some great songs come from film soundtracks) or simply go through your CD collection and pick out your ultimate cheesy favourites.

Sally
Wedding DJ
www.VocalShow.co.uk

The Cheesy Wedding DJ: Strong Cheese

CHEESY MUSIC (OF THE STILTON VARIETY)

I have worked with wedding music now for over 14 years. Having been married and thrown a party or two I can understand how some Wedding DJs get a bad reputation for being cheese monsters! I find there are two very different varieties of cheesy music – Edam (mild cheesy, but enjoyable) and Stilton (strong and unbearably cheesy to some).

As a Wedding DJ some cheesy music is necessary at an evening wedding reception as there are generally a wide variety of wedding guests with various musical tastes (cheesy or otherwise). After all you do want everyone to enjoy themselves, but there is a limit when it comes to cheesy music.

Here is some very cheesy music that should be considered as Stilton:

CHEESY DJ PLAYLIST: THE STILTON

1. Agadoo - Black Lace
2. In the Navy - The Village People
3. The Birdie Song - The Tweets
4. Come on Eileen - Dexy’s Midnight Runners
5. The Conga - Black Lace
6. Reach - S Club 7
7. Tragedy - Steps
8. Oops! I did it again - Britney Spears
9. D.I.S.C.O - Ottawan
10. No Limit - 2 Unlimited
11. Hey Baby- DJ Otzi
12. Land of Make Believe - Bucks Fizz
13. Obla di obla da - The Beatles
14. U.G.L.Y - Daphne and Celeste
15. Mambo No.5 - Lou Bega
16. Do you really want to hurt me - Culture Club
17. Out of my Dreams - Billy Ocean
18. Just a little bit - Gina G
19. Anything by Jive Bunny
20. Anything by Chas and Dave

You have to remember though, what is a cheesy song to you may be someone else’s best party tune, so try to be open minded. However, as it’s your wedding day, if you really don’t want something playing tell your Wedding DJ or Wedding Singer beforehand to make sure that they know your likes and dislikes.

See my Mild Cheesy Music post for information on wedding music considered as Edam. This is where you’ll find your Wham!, The Nolans, Barry White etc.

Sally
Wedding DJ
www.VocalShow.co.uk

Saving on Wedding Entertainment During the Credit Crunch

The wedding industry like most others at this time will likely be suffering as a result of the credit crunch. The demand for certain wedding services I’m sure will decline where as others naturally will grow and flourish where there is a need for the cheaper alternative during recession time. Although the savvy wedding planner should always look for new ways to save money, now is the time to really dig deep for those credit crunch wedding offers and make the savings wherever possible.

The cost of quality wedding entertainment can often take up a significant portion of the average wedding budget and so it is in this area that it’s most important to make the right sorts of savings through the right methods.

Here are 5 simple ways in which you can save money on wedding entertainment during the credit crunch without compromising on quality:

HIRE A WEDDING SINGER

After just a few short visits to the top UK wedding forums it was quite obvious to me that when it comes to planning their wedding music couples simply aren’t aware of Wedding Singers and what a good Wedding Singer can bring to their big day. The sorts of forum post titles that I regularly come across when it comes to live wedding entertainment are things like “Can anyone recommend a good Band in …?”, “Does anyone know of a good Wedding Band?”, “Any recommendations for a good Wedding DJ in …?” etc. What people don’t realise Is that there is a much cheaper alternative to hiring a 4 or 5 piece Wedding Function Band!

Most Professional Wedding Singers work as Solo Vocalists providing a self contained entertainment service. Self contained means No Live Wedding Band. The backing music/ instrumentals are played from a laptop or other media device, so your wedding guests hear the same Big Band sound, just without the Big Wedding Band. A Wedding Singer is quite simply a One Man Band, therefore it is often cheaper paying for one talent, as opposed to paying four or five. The difference in credit crunch savings here, between a top Wedding Singer and a top Wedding Band can be, in some cases, thousands of pounds!

There are also a few other non-monetary benefits to hiring a Wedding Singer as opposed to a Wedding Band such as:

• A smaller amount of space taken up with music equipment.
• More control over music volume, which keeps the wedding venues happy.
• The possibility of appropriate audience interaction from your Wedding Singer.

BOOK YOUR WEDDING ENTERTAINMENT DIRECT

This one can also often make quite a significant difference to cost, quite often of a few hundred pounds. With live wedding entertainment you can either book through an entertainment agency or book direct with the Wedding Singer, Band or DJ. A wedding entertainment agency will either charge the artist a percentage fee or they will charge you what they call a booking fee for their entertainment booking services. Either way you’ll generally end up paying more for your live entertainment package. If you DO decide to book direct however It is very important to make sure that the Wedding Singer, Band or DJ is used to working as Self Managed and will provide you with invoices, receipts, contracts and anything else that you would expect in order to make your wedding entertainment booking secure.

OPT FOR A 12.00 AM FINISH

Finishing your evening wedding reception at 12.00 am instead of 1.00 am is a great way to save money during credit crunch time. Not only can you save money on your wedding entertainment venue, but this can also reduce the cost of your live wedding entertainment. DJs, Bands and Wedding Singers will often charge an extra fee for this additional hour of entertainment. The other added benefit of this is that your wedding tends to finish on more of a high note, as more of your wedding guests are still present and still relatively sturdy on their feet and so can join you for your last dance.

NEGOTIATE ENTERTAINMENT FEES AND TIMES

Again during the credit crunch many wedding entertainment businesses, large and small, will be feeling the pinch and so may be willing to negotiate their cost and/ or wedding music services in some way. As it tends to go with other very good quality products, a popular Wedding Singer, Band or DJ won’t feel the need to negotiate their prices, however what they may be able to do is tailor a more specific entertainment package, for example – Performing for less time, for a lesser fee. Some wedding entertainment providers, (though not all) may also provide their services for less during off peak months. At the end of the day it doesn’t harm to ask.

A FAVOUR FROM A FRIEND

If you have a family member or a close friend who is a Wedding Singer, Wedding DJ or who performs in a Wedding function Band then now may be a good time to call in that Credit Crunch Favour! Obviously this isn’t something that I’d recommend you consider lightly. You should always book someone who is a professional and well experienced in performing for Weddings, but if you’re fortunate enough to know someone who fits the bill and who you know will do a top job then you may want to propose your cheeky wedding gift idea. A full time wedding musician couldn’t really be expected to give up a booking date (and therefore a portion of their full time income) for free, but you may save a little money on their existing wedding entertainment fees.

So there you have it – Five great way to save on wedding entertainment during the recession. Watch this space for more useful wedding entertainment and music tips.

Luca
Wedding Singer
www.VocalShow.co.uk

90's Music Hits

90'S PARTY MUSIC

The 90’s saw a few different music types; Dance and Trance, Reggae came back, Take That were the best pop band since sliced bread and then there was Girl Power!

Does anyone remember the Super Mario and Tetris songs? I do and I can assure you they are not on my top 20 list.

I have come up with this list of 90's party music to help you put together a varied playlist for your Wedding DJ or Wedding Singer. If you need inspiration for the other decades you can take a look at the following posts:

• 60's Music Hits
• 70's Music Hits
• 80's Music Hits

But for now, glow sticks at the ready and here we go …

THE WEDDING DJ'S TOP 20 90'S HITS

1. The One and Only - Chesney Hawks
2. Rhythm is a Dancer - Snap!
3. Groove is in the Heart - Deee-Lite
4. Justified and Ancient - The KLF
5. Smells like teen spirit - Nirvana
6. Baby got back - Sir Mix-a-Lot
7. Let’s Talk about Sex - Salt-n-Pepa
   
8. Higher State of Consciousness - Josh Wink
9. Insomnia - Faithless
10. Vogue - Madonna
11. Jump Around - House of Pain
12. Set you Free - N-Trance
13. Let me be your Fantasy - Baby D
14. Love Shack - The B-52’s
15. Sweat - Inner Circle
16. Oh Carolina - Shaggy
17. Boom Shakalaka - Apache Indian
18. Mysterious Girl - Peter André
    
19. Boom! Shake the room - DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince
20. What’s Up - 4 Non Blondes
    

There are plenty more excellent 90's songs where these come from but giving your DJ or Singer a sample of the wedding music you like should be enough for them to come up with a personalised playlist in order to keep you and your wedding guests dancing until the early hours.

Sally
Wedding DJ
www.VocalShow.co.uk

80's Music Hits

80'S PARTY MUSIC

The 80’s saw the dawn of the cheesy music, leg warmers, big hair, Ra Ra skirts and not forgetting shoulder pads!

The 80’s gave us Madonna, Bon Jovi and Michael Jackson, just to name a few.

I have come up with this list of 80's party music to help you put together a varied playlist for your Wedding DJ or Wedding Singer. If you need inspiration for the other decades you can take a look at the following posts:

• 60's Music Hits
• 70's Music Hits
• 90's Music Hits

But for now, hair brushes at the ready and here we go ...

THE WEDDING DJ'S TOP 20 80'S HITS

1. Faith - George Michael
2. Billie Jean - Michael Jackson
3. Like a Prayer - Madonna
4. Living on a Prayer - Bon Jovi
5. Sweet Child O' Mine - Gun’s N Roses
6. I’m you man - Wham!
7. Poison - Alice Cooper
8. Ride on Time - Black Box
9. I think were alone now - Tiffany
10. Can’t touch this - MC Hammer
11. Uptown Girl - Billy Joel
12. One Step Beyond - Madness
13. Take on Me – A-Ha
14. Hungry like the Wolf - Duran Duran
15. Don’t you Want me - Human League
16. Together in Electric Dreams - Phil Oakley
17. Blue Monday - New Order
18. Down Under - Men at Work
19. Town Called Malice - The Jam
20. Don't You (Forget about me) - Simple Minds

There are plenty more excellent 80's songs where these come from but giving your DJ or Singer a sample of the wedding music you like should be enough for them to come up with a personalised playlist in order to keep you and your wedding guests dancing until the early hours.

Sally
Wedding DJ
www.VocalShow.co.uk

60's Music Hits

60'S PARTY MUSIC

The swinging 60’s would have been my ideal decade to live in. Man went to the moon, JFK was president and Martin Luther King had his very important dream which has now become reality.

The 60’s also gave us the Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Kinks. It really was the decade for putting the UK on the world’s music menu.

I have come up with this list of 60's party music to help you put together a varied playlist for your Wedding DJ or Wedding Singer. If you need inspiration for the other decades you can take a look at the following posts:

• 70's Music Hits
• 80's Music Hits
• 90's Music Hits

But for now, hair brushes at the ready and here we go ...

THE WEDDING DJ'S TOP 20 60'S HITS

1. Satisfaction - Rolling Stones
2. Hound Dog - Elvis Presley
3. I Heard it through the Grapevine - Marvin Gaye
4. Think - Aretha Franklin
5. Surfing USA - Beach Boys
6. Shout - Lulu
7. Brown Eye Girl - Van Morrison
8. Hippy Hippy Shake - Swinging Blue Jeans
9. I got you (I Feel Good) - James Brown
10. Pretty Woman - Roy Orbison
11. Do Wah Diddy Diddy - Manfred Man
12. Happy Together - Turtles
13. It’s not unusual - Tom Jones
14. I’m a Believer – The Monkees
15. Sweet Caroline - Neil Diamond
16. Soul Man - Sam and Dave
17. Twist and Shout – The Beatles
18. Hi Ho Silver Lining - Jeff Beck
19. Wild Thing – The Troggs
20. Higher and Higher - Jackie Wilson

There are plenty more excellent 60's songs where these come from but giving your DJ or Singer a sample of the wedding music you like should be enough for them to come up with a personalised playlist in order to keep you and your wedding guests dancing until the early hours.

Sally
Wedding DJ
www.VocalShow.co.uk