When you think of Silicon Valley Big tech powerhouse Applied Materials would be in that conversation. They know how to take care of their employees. They seemed so happy to spend lunch together. They had different campuses come to the Sunnyvale location. They did show love to the new employees by giving them an opportunity to talk about themselves and have a shot of a gift card. It was actually a shot to win. They had the option to shoot a basket or go for a soccer goal. But before that even happen they had Boba for everyone and all kinds of catered lunches.

 The host was joyous and kept the event flowing with his dad jokes and his energy. They had several teams compete for the best time. They had five per group and they had to do some activities and they kept track of their time. They had to walk together in unison and knock off an item off a poie. The teams were divided by department so it built more team chemistry. After the obstacle course they went to the basketball court. The team had to do a layup. Free-throw and a three pointer. Once they made the three pointer then they beeped a horn and the time was recorded.

It was a very festive event that I coordinated with the energy with 70s, 80s and 90s music. I put in some K-Pop in there but also threw in some fun Bollywood. It was a very fun time during lunch and a very good way to put some fun in the workplace.

I was talking to a group about prom. Someone suggested a place that was like known but not really on the radar. I told them that prom should bring excitement. When students mention the name of the place that they want to brag about it to other students who go to other schools. Capital Club is a prom venue student will brag about. It is located in the heart of downtown San Jose. There is plenty of underground parking under the venue. The venue is located in a hotel on the 17th floor so prom folks can admire the wonderful sights of downtown.

  I did a birthday party recently and it was a huge success. The venue can be separated by walls so it can be a bigger place or smaller based on the event. At the beginning of the event everybody was on the balcony enjoying the view. It was a good place for guests to talk while overlooking the city. Capital Club has an excellent friendly staff. They helped me by getting a cart for me and made sure I had some appetizers. They even validated my parking. They really know customer service. I felt really taken care of.

I feel a successful prom can happen at Capital Club. It has all the ingredients of what a prom venue should have. Its location cannot be beat. The views has to be one of the best prom views I have seen. It has a classy look to it. And staff really know how to treat their customers. You cannot go wrong with Silicon Valley Capital Club. Please see my update review of Capital Club.

I am always in the Gilroy area but if you go down a little more south for about 11 miles there is a nice little town called San Juan Bautista. It is a pretty town with a nice vibe tied to it.

Black and White Affair teamed up with South Valley Internet for a family fun event. South Valley Internet is spreading its wings and hitting more areas outside of Gilroy and Morgan Hill. It was an easy set up at Vertigo Coffee Roasters. This is not your typical coffee shop. You can get some beer in the shop and have it outside. The outside area did have a fun party vibe to it.

  I loved this event since I was in charge of the music vibe. We went straight old school and kept it like that the whole time. We did some classic 90s hits and sprinkled some 70s rock then had to do some disco. At events like this I don’t want to play the typical songs that all djs play. I know it’s a good night when people come up to me and tell me they haven’t heard these songs in years.

  SVI raffled out a new ipad and Vertigo gift cards. The folks who came enjoyed the home made ice cream and pizzas that they were giving out and people loved the artist who was drawing guests.

If you are having any event and want to make it memorable please call Black and White Affair

Sometimes you may think why not have a grand event in your back yard. I have to say most backyards may not be as fancy but if you live in the south county area some folks have more real estate to have a grand event. A few months ago I did a fun quincenera in San Martin. The house had plenty of acres and a nice paver area for the dance floor. Last week, I returned to the house and they now had overhangs to provide needed shade and lights. It gave it a really nice look. The place could consider maybe having more events since its so spacious and there is plenty of parking but that is besides the point.

We had the ceremony as the groom’s dad was the officiant. Five minutes before the ceremony we played the military wake up call to get everyone in their seats. Ceremony was a nice one then it went straight to the cocktail time. There was no grand entrance since bride and groom didn’t leave the area to take pictures and were able to partake in the cocktail hour.

We did the first dance to pantera and there were many parent dances. Then the rest of the night we had open dancing. There were some guest performances with folklorico dancing and grandma and niece had a duet. Then we had a surprise jam session with the groom on his electrical guitar. Truly a very talented family. No two weddings are ever the same.

Party was very nice and they had a party planner that set up chairs and the coolest thing I saw there were was hot taki stand.

Every party is never the same. And of course I had one that was way different when it came to music programing. The night started off with 90s alternative. It’s a rarity that we go that route but there is a lot of good music back then by Alanis Morrisette and Green Day and Sheryl Crow. Then when it was dance time we went Spanish music.

The classic Spanish music I went for the last hour. The crazy thing was the whole night no one requested any songs till the last 10minutes. They did give me an awesome list to work off.  Again no party is ever the same. I see their list and use their list and try to add songs that would feed that vibe.

Timbiriche was the group of the night. Also Intocable was well appreciated. It seemed like these songs were sung by the guests. We did sneak in some modern English dance songs but the songs of the night had to be Spanish.

When it hit 11, we had to stop the music but the guests went back in the house to continue the party. Songs that were getting down to after were Ven Bailalo by Angel Y Khriz, Meneaito by Gaby, La Botella by Mach and Daddy and Atrevete Te Te by Calle 13. These are definitely party songs that can get the party rocking.

Think Black and White Affair for your latin party events.

I remember seeing the cost to do the audio for the graduation ranging from 3k to 7k. Some schools have big classes so therefore there are more guests that come to the grand event. Some local school were posting their costs and I was blown away. For me, it was a lot since schools pay thousands of dollars (schools do a lot to raise the money) and do not get to keep the equipment.

There has to be a more economic way to have these services. One thought is since there are so many schools, the district can contract with 2 or 3 big av services to ensure a loyalty discount. 

Another consideration is maybe looking for a local amphitheater.  They are built to carry sound. You could rent audio gear for 300 to 700 dollar to take care of the sound. (Probably need 4 speakers depending how big the school is. I do a local high school and it only requires 2 speakers. 

Another thought is to do it in-house. At this local high school they installed (2) 15 inch speakers and put them on 30 foot poles. Also they installed wireless Shure microphone with a fin to cover more ground. Of course there is cost to install the system and  pay for the system but the past 3 graduations at that school here was 0 cost for audio services. Yes, it’s a smaller school but the idea still works. 

People are having parties now. There has been a lot of inquires to have events. There are homes in the Gilroy, Morgan Hill, and San Martin area that have huge lots which make it easier to have a successful outdoor function. But there may be a place to throw an event that may not be as big. The houses maybe close together and some cities are strict with noise ordinances. Usually if the city is small then those officers would tend to tell the party to keep it down and give a few warnings. 

How do you have a successful Spanish Latin Party in the Backyard?

Depending on the backyard, you would only need 2 12 inch or 15 inch speakers. They only need to be at least 50 percent in volume. If you are playing Spanish music you will need a level area as a dance floor. Grass or dirt is not a good area to dance but rather cement or a dance floor can be rented. For California, when it comes to Spanish music, I tend to stick with the majority of cumbia music. I usually go with cumbia and throw in some salsa music. It all depends what part of Latin America they are from. I tend to play more banda if they are from Mexico. 

For your Spanish party please be sure to contact Black and White Affair for a party with Latin flavor. 

My typical event is I show up set up my gear and play music. Every once in a while there can be others involved in the entertainment. I have played with a mariachi, or a banda, or just other musicians and or singers. If anything else is involved other than me playing I have to prepare for it. I knew the wife of the birthday boy was getting a samba group to perform at the party. I reached out to the group to make sure I had the music they needed. I had to play them in a certain order right after one another. 

 At the party they were giving toasts and I had to cue the samba team to get ready. 3 dancers came out with a drummer. They brought the energy with them. They danced to about 8 songs then they were interactive with the group the whole time. They brought in guests to do a routine and everyone loved what they saw. They had a contest on who danced the best from the guests. The lead Samaba Dancer took the wireless mic and was leading the new dancers.

It was an awesome show and entertaining. It is one way to spice up a party is to have an interactive dance group lead the entertainment. I can tell the guests enjoyed themselves. They were easy to work with since they were able to share their playlist with me and I was able to cue their dance song for the guests to learn  at the right time. If you look up the group it is called Sambaconmigo. I was very impressed.