Sweet Talkin' Guy

I received a lovely compliment after a party recently – lovely but slightly confusing for me.  The party was a surprise 70^th, and I did my usual show with introductions, making an event out of the birthday cake, generally trying to entertain the guests.  At the end of the party the couple who booked me came across and said, with the usual thank yous

It was so nice to have a DJ that interacts

Now there was the confusing part. I kind of assumed that all DJs “interact” - I mean, to me that is an essential part of DJing. Without interaction you might as well just put on a playlist.  So obviously this got me curious – so I asked them why that stood out for them.  It turns out that they got married last year and “the DJ for the wedding may as well have been mute”

One of the difficulties of DJing is that you can’t always benchmark your service against others, because I tend to be working rather than attending parties.  More recently I have been working on the other side of events, as a catering manager or butler (all of my work is in events and hospitality, this is not a part-time job for me!) and so I have been taking the opportunity to observe the entertainment.

What I have seen has shocked me, and disappointed me.

DJing is, and should be, both interactive and reactive, especially for a wedding.  Whilst your wedding day (or any party) is in itself a major event, every element of it should also be an event in its own right – and for that you need interaction.

Now, I’m not saying that I become a cheesy Tony Blackburn tribute act, but I talk, and I do more than simply “announce”.  I was at a wedding this weekend, where the DJ made no announcement at all about the cake cutting or even the first dance.

I will organise the cake cutting – gather your guests into position, get everything ready to hand over to the photographer to get that magical photo, and then turn to the crowd, get them involved with a countdown to you actually cutting the cake – imagine the difference with the shouted numbers, the cheering, the excitement as opposed to essentially silence and nobody being sure when you have physically cut the cake! (its very helpful to the venue staff as well so that they can quickly come and remove the cake!)

The first dance is the last formal part of a wedding – and again needs to be properly introduced, with a build-up, once more ensuring that all of your family and friends feel they are part of it.  Once you are dancing, if you are feeling shy and want people to join you there is nothing worse (in my eyes) than seeing a bride and groom frantically waving to people to join them on the dance floor – that’s my job!  After receiving the prearranged signal (normally just a panicked look!) I will re-announce you as husband and wife, and then invite people to join you - usually the wedding party, followed by family, married couples, couples and then all the single people “grab a partner”.  Done in stages (although fairly quickly) you will easily have a full dance floor.

Throughout the party the DJ should be reacting to what people like, what music works, requests and your playlists. If a DJ isn’t doing this, then perhaps they shouldn’t be a wedding DJ – or a party DJ at all!

Perhaps this sounds a little critical, but the DJ is there to bring the party and ensure that everything not only runs smoothly but is presented in the best way possible - even announcing the buffet can be done with humour and professionalism.

Look for videos on my website and facebook for examples – and let’s have a fun, smooth and interactive celebration!

Wait until you see how I end a wedding….