New Years Eve is a popular night and djs are being called left and right. I already had a few inquiries for two different locations. There are different factors to consider. Is the dj bringing their gear or tapping in the house system. Djs what will have to bring their own gear will have to charge more since they have to set up and take down the gear as opposed to a dj who uses the house system would only need to bring usb sticks or a laptop to the show.

Our business has two locations in California. In the Bay Area, we can easily do a mobile event for 300 dollars an hour for New Years Eve while in the Los Angeles area last year we booked a last minute private 4-hour event for 150 dollars an hour. Wait!  Its California and why the big price difference? Supply and demand. There are so many djs in the SoCal area that people can pay less to get a dj. That is the way it is. I mean there are different tiers of djs. There are the local djs who can charge more then there are the established djs who have a big social media following and there are the high end djs who maybe turntablist or producers will be in a whole other level. Different price points may include more lighting and sound quality such as how many speakers are needed. There is a vast diversity of djs in California and they are available based on your budget.

 If you’re planning an event and looking to hire a DJ, reviews can be incredibly helpful in your search. From reading reviews, you can learn about the different DJs’ personalities, level of professionalism, price points and more. That’s why reviews are such an important factor to consider when looking for a DJ. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why you should read reviews before making your decision.

They Help You Find The Right Fit

One of the most important things about hiring a DJ is finding one that works best with your style and needs. Reading reviews from people who have used them before can give you insight into how they operate and how well they meet expectations. Reviews can also help you determine whether or not certain DJs are well-suited for specific types of events. For instance, if you’re looking for someone to provide music for your wedding reception, look for reviews that mention weddings specifically so that you can get feedback on their ability to handle those kinds of events.

They Give You an Idea Of Pricing

Reading reviews is also a great way to get an idea of what kind of pricing different DJs offer. Many reviewers are happy to provide details on the cost associated with hiring each particular DJ, as well as any discounts they may have received or special offers they took advantage of while using their services. This information can be extremely valuable if you’re working within a tight budget and need to make sure that all costs are covered before booking anyone. 

Overall, reading reviews when you’re looking for a DJ is essential because it gives you the opportunity to learn about their past experiences and find the right fit for your event or budget. By doing your research ahead of time, you can ensure that everything goes smoothly and that your event is as successful as possible. So take some time to read through customer reviews before committing to anyone—it could save you from making a costly mistake!  Please  check out Bwadj.com to see our reviews serving Socal and the Bay area.

What is a budget Wedding? These times I have seen weddings are not as big as they once were in California. I have been to a few events and there were less than 30 folks in the attendance. So, in essence weddings can be more budget friendly since less guests are actually attending these events. 

I recently got an inquiry asking for a quote and they really stressed having a budget dj. I liked how they were direct and to the point. But the word budget can throw off folks. Everyone’s budget is different. When I think of a budget dj, I think of someone who does not have the best equipment and does not have regular events. Do you want someone to be the host of your wedding with out experience? That is when a budget dj comes in. You do get what you pay for. If someone wants a wedding to remember make sure you hire a professional.

What is a professional dj? A professional dj has a music planner guide to help organize the music for the wedding. They make the music selection easy to choose from. They have a script to use to help guide them with announcements. You want someone who commands attention of the audience and want them to lead the audience in whatever needs to be done.  They have vast amount of good quality music at 320 kbps quality and did not rip music from YouTube at a low quality which is tacky and also illegal. You want them to be able to beat match so the songs do not end suddenly and want it to sound seamless. 

Professional djs have a backup system with the best equipment and have the experience to solve gear issues. I have learned to always carry multiple microphones so voices can be amplified. My wire microphones have always worked but once in Sacramento it was cutting out although it did sound fine in the sound check. With experience, I know to always have a wired microphone close by to handle any wireless issues. 

A good dj for a wedding will easily be over 1000 for just a reception. If you are requiring the ceremony and a reception a good dj will be 1500 to 2000. They can also bring up lights or have photo booths if you want more for the wedding. 

Hire a budget dj if you want some background music at a backyard BBQ. But hire a professional dj to do the soundtrack for one of the most important days of your life. Please look at the reviews of all the djs you and selecting and also keep tabs on how quickly they respond. It is important to have good communication with your dj. 

For your professional dj please call Black and White Affair Dj Services to help you plan your music and events for your big day. We serve the Bay Area and would love the opportunity to make your day memorable and stress free as possible. 

 How much for a wedding dj? It all depends on where you are planning to get married. I hear some djs different parts of the country charging 600 for a wedding. The djs in California hear that and that is unheard of in these necks of the woods. I believe some folks get confused since when they google what price wedding djs are then they get these numbers from a national average. One site says the average cost is 780 to 1495 for a wedding dj. But if you google wedding djs in California costs then you get more of an accurate number and its higher than the national average. Prices may go up in case there needs to be multiple music set ups. People get confused on that what means. Let me break it down. Most weddings just require a reception set up and it has the dj set up which includes two speakers. Say the cocktail area is in a different area then the dj has to connect more speakers or set up another set up to play the cocktail music. Or perhaps there has to be sound for the ceremony. A dj can set up the sound for the ceremony and set up multiple microphones and play the music during the ceremony. This would require another set up. 

For a wedding, djs are going to charge more. There is more to a wedding that a dj just playing music. Doing a birthday party, a dj can just play music during dinner and the dance portion thus the rate would be lower. But a wedding Bay area Djs can charge 200 to 300 an hour. Some may see that as too much but they do not know what goes into a wedding. Djs have to meet with the bride and groom in person or virtually. They have to prep the order of events. They have to make sure they have the correct songs to play at certain times. They have to direct the guests multiple times during the night. There is about 15 to 25 hours of prep work before the wedding that people don’t see. 

Are tips mandatory? Tips are not mandatory but definitely appreciated especially if the vendor made sure everything ran smoothly. If vendor was hard to reach and did a subpar job, then they should not be tipped. But if vendor was easy to get a hold of and responded quickly and did a great job at the event then a tip would be nice. But for some reason if the budget does not allow a tip then a review on a few sites would be appreciated. 

Tips for your Bay Area Quinceanera (San Jose, Gilroy, Morgan Hill, Milpitas, Sunnyvale, Oakland)

Plan the event close to the birthday and be warned that Saturdays may be busy especially now since weddings have been held back the past year and a half. Sundays and Fridays may be options and be open to that. Lots of venues are getting booked so get this done asap to secure the location. 

Figure out the budget and decide what is most important for your event. You would want to splurge more on what you find important. Is it the venue or the food or the entertainment?

Search for the venue to hold your event and base it on the amount of guests you plan to invite.

Spend the time to find the right Quinceanera dress. 

Look for the right entertainment. Do you want a Banda or a Mariachi plus a Dj? At the very least, always hire a dj since they can play multiple genres of music and make announcements and they know what happens at Quinceanera

Consider getting a videographer and a photographer to film the event. Lots of memories that need to be captured. Plus images can be shared with the Quinceanera so they can share with their social media. Quinceanera can be just as monumental like a wedding so it does require just as much planning such as a wedding. 

Black and White affair has been in the event business since 2004. We specialize in Spanish music and have do many English Events across the Bay Area. We help planning the right music at the right time. Let us make the event an easy and stressfree event. 

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These days everyone and their mom are a dj. With technology advances, many folks can play music and make legit transitions.

Do you truly like the dj you hired based on his or her skill level or just the price that the dj gave you.  For the sake of your wedding reception, please make sure the dj has experience to play at a wedding. The Dj makes or breaks the wedding with his music and microphone presence.

If a dj is charging 200 or 300 dollars then they are a beginner dj and its best to get a family friend to play music off their ipod since it will be the exact same experience.

You get what you pay for.

Djs that charge 400 to 600 are part time djs who have full time jobs.  They do have some experience and can have a good experience with these djs.

Djs that charge over 1000 to 2500 dollars are the real deal. They can really talk up the wedding and 9 times out of 10 a full time dj. Since djing is their full time gig, they can spend more time preparing for the wedding.

On average the wedding couple spends 700 to 1400 dollars on a dj. Especially now couples are spending more money now than in the past to ensure a good wedding experience.

Take the time to interview djs to get a feel of what kind of wedding you want.  Also take a glimpse of their reviews to get a sense of the quality work of the dj. A common question would be can we see you perform a wedding. That makes it difficult since weddings are usually made for private events.

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Not having a dj versus having a dj

Throwing an event can be an expensive endeavor. Some people have never thrown a big event before and do not know where to start. Often times they reach out to others who have thrown some type of event before or they go search online to see what tidbits of information that they can gather.

They find having the best food can be one of the most important decisions of the event. Little that they know that music also plays an imperative component of the event. Music sets the vibe of the event. It can be the subtle background during dinnertime or it can be the party motivator during the dance portion of the night.

Money can be a factor. Some folks do not know what djs charge for events. For wedding events, djs can charge 800 to 2500 depending on what the bride or groom wants. Upgrades can be multiple dj set ups such as reception music system (speakers, microphones, and dj controller) and the ceremony PA system (speakers with mixer) with multiple microphones, specific up-lighting and or any other lighting, photo booth, and television screens or projectors with screens.

For other events such as birthday parties, school dances, anniversaries, or reunions can run from 100 dollars an hour to 200 dollars an hour. There is a difference in price between weddings and other events because weddings take more planning thus more preparation.  In either case, all events need a playlist. There have been events where the clients want every song played in a certain order or as open as clients just wanted rock music. Every event is different.

So the question is, Does the party event thrower wants to save a little money and play music off an iPod or hire a dj?

The positives of an iPod /iphone or digital device that contains music: Its economic if you already have one. Set up the playlist and press play.

Negatives of ipod/iphone or digital device that plays music: What happens if device breaks?  (Power cords no longer work or batteries run out) How can one make announcements? Who will make announcements? Who will do the bouquet toss count? Limited music and silence in between songs

Positives of a dj: A Dj can make announcements when needed.  A Dj can adjust the microphone levels when different people give speeches or toasts. People hold microphones differently and have different volumes in their voices.  A Dj can pllay certain music at certain times and can read the crowd and continue with the energy of the room. A dj can suddenly change the music if no one is feeling the song.  Good djs have backup equipment incase of equipment malfunction (extra hard drive, extra laptop, extra speaker, or cabling). Also A Dj can Provide more energy for the room.

Negatives of a dj: It would be more expensive than ipod/iphone or musical device

Remember the times in high school or college when one went to a get together. There were the times they were playing an iPod or stereo. It was pretty mellow and calm. Think of the times where a dj was involved, there was so much energy and gleefulness.

Basically if one wants to up the level of the event then a dj must be hired. But then again any ole dj will not suffice. Make sure one checks their reviews or if any of your friends have recommendations.  Again the event should be memorable, so with the right ingredients will make it one your guests will always talk about.