Should you Choose the Playlist for Your Wedding Band or DJ?

‘Should we choose the playlist for our wedding band or DJ?’ is a question I get asked a lot. It’s a tricky one because it’s your wedding day and of course you want everything to be perfect!  There’s always that worry of wanting to be in control of every single detail, especially when couples are really into their music.

However, I tend to advise couples that although it seems like a good idea at the time, it really is best to leave the song choice and design of the band or DJ’s playlist to the experts. I myself (with a ‘slight’ tendency to feel I have to please everyone!) used to let clients take free reign of the playlist whenever they wished to be involved, and sadly it rarely worked as well as if the band could be left to their own devices to put something together themselves.

There are a few reasons for this....

1. Don’t forget that your band or DJ is experienced and talented at what they do, and part of their talent is their ability to judge what songs will work well. Even just this one small statement has a lot of factors involved. For example, there are plenty of songs that a DJ could play that just wouldn’t work with a live band – tunes that would be ‘dance-floor fillers’ when the DJ plays them, but ‘dance-floor killers’ when the band plays them!  Certain songs may really suit your singer’s voice (or not!)... Some songs work best at different points of the evening...Bear in mind that if you’ve booked an experienced act, their playlist will be ‘tried and tested’ at hundreds of events, and they’ll know exactly what works and what doesn’t.
2. In order to keep a crowd up and dancing all night, the playlist needs to be constructed in a specific way. Any great and experienced band or DJ will know how to structure their set-list so they can work your audience in the most dynamic way possible. This consists of analysing tempos and styles of songs so that the playlist can ‘peak’ in the right places, or perhaps for a band, thinking about the ‘key’ of the songs so they can seg-way songs together (or similarly a DJ would need to analyse tempos so he can mix between one song and another). Certain songs are natural ‘openers’ (i.e. for the start of a set) and ‘closers’ (a big high impact finish!) and other songs are those classic ‘winners’. It’s all a bit scientific and there’s a lot to think about!
3. With Live Bands, and to some extent DJs, keep in mind that their usual set-list will be rehearsed and gigged every week. Most professional bands that work regularly will have spent months rehearsing their playlist, and then years performing it! If you’re booking a band that are busy and popular, their set-list will undoubtedly flow together. I know with the bands I run, we always make an effort to either seg-way each song (go from one to the other without stopping, like a DJ would), or start the next song as soon as the other is finished, so you don’t have any ‘awkward’ silences between songs. However, if the band had a playlist that you have specified, it’s never going to be as flowing and smooth as the songs that the band always play week in and week out. Of course, a good band will always make an effort to perform this as well as they can, but what I’m trying to advise is how to get the best performance from them.

Bearing all this in mind, I tend to now recommend couples to try to relax about song choices and playlists.

‘But I’d really like to have some sort of input....what would you suggest?’

I totally understand you want some kind of input...the last thing you want is a band to start playing your most hated song and ruin your evening! Or a DJ who pulls out something awful like ‘Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny’ and clears the dance floor.

My advice is:

• Ask your band for their standard ‘playlist’ and then a list of their entire repertoire. I would definitely not recommend putting together your own list from the repertoire, however what would work better is to look through and pick out any songs in their playlist that you absolutely hate, or anything from the rest of the repertoire that you love. Then chat with the band representative and see how they’d feel about replacing them. Bear in mind that there are some songs which would need a lot of thought to replace, so let them get involved too. For example, if you want to change the opening number, you’ll want to work alongside the band to decide on an opener that you’re happy with and the band feel will have just as good an impact.
• You could always give your band or DJ an idea of ‘theme’... for example, perhaps you’d like your DJ to start off with music from the 50’s and 60’s, and then play mostly 70s with a little bit of modern music at the end. A suggestion like this is not too restrictive, and means your DJ or band can still ‘work their magic’ to ensure everything is well constructed and do the best job possible.

The most important factor to think about is that everyone you hire will want to do the best job possible. Remember that they are the experts, and you are paying them for their expertise. If you let them perform in the way they know works well, or compromise with one of my tips above, you can guarantee your wedding reception will go swimmingly and you have a full dance-floor all evening.

Happy Wedding Planning!

Love & Hugs

Sera

Article by Wedding Entertainment Specialist Sera Golding

Images Courtesy of Music Management and Production Company MIB Music Ltd

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