Cardi B Bad Bunny  I Like It

Maroon 5  Girls Like You

Ariana Grande  No tears Left to Cry

Post Malone  Better Now

Drake  Don’t Matter to Me

Calvin Harris and Dua Lipa  One Kiss

Imagine Dragons  Whatever It Takes

Marshmellow and Anne Marie  Friends

Clean Bandit and Demi Lovato  Solo

Nicki Minaj and Ariana Grande  Bed

Juice WRLD  Luicd Dreams

Lil Baby and Drake  Yes Indeed

The Carters  Apeshi#

Vic Mensa and G- Eazy  Reverse

YG 2 Chainz Big Sean Nicki Minaj  Big Bank

Dan and Shay  Tequila

Diplo French Montana  Lil Pump  Welcome to the Party

Taylor Swift  Delicate

J Balvin  Ambiente

To have a successful reception, the bride and groom have to set up a good team for the wedding.  I have heard from different couples that sometimes setting up the perfect wedding is like working a part time job. Wedding parties are interviewing different vendors and talking to their friends about venues and trying to figure out what would be the best for them.  But once a good team is formed then it can take off the stress of a wedding. A wedding is an event that should be joyful and memorable that should be shared with loved ones.

A bride or groom should not be worried about the caterer or the dj making mistakes. Once they hired their team then they should be able to handle the wedding event. The bride should have a wedding planner or a trusted bridesmaid handle any issue.

The wedding day goes by fast. It will be done in a blink of an eye. After taking photos after the ceremony, the bride and groom would head to the grand entrance of the reception then usually jump into their first dance, then  the father daughter dance followed by mom and son dance. The food is now served and it's time to talk to the guests at their tables.

Make sure you make time to eat. You spent a lot of time selecting the food  make sure you enjoy it. Sit down and and eat. It is going to be a long night of socializing and dancing so make sure you are nourished.

In a nutshell, set up your team of professionals to handle your wedding and eat your food. These tips will make your reception magical. 

Photos are nice to have and put in a wedding album and even decorate the house.  A photographer can take many shots and they secure the memories of the important event of the couple’s life.  The ceremony itself can be filmed and also the reception.  Budget maybe an issue but there are different services rendered for filming a wedding and there can be some sort of video made of the wedding.

The wedding is one of the most monumental events in a person’s life. If worst comes to worst vows can be recorded on a mobile phone but ideally it would be great if it is done professionally.

There is some magic of the first dance and mother/son dance or father/ daughter dance.

Video can capture the beauty of older relatives sharing a joke at a table or baby cousins giving each other a hug. Video can capture the moments a picture may miss.

Toasts can live forever in video.

The couple can relive their magical day through video so the can reminisce the wedding during anniversaries.

It may take many months to plan a wedding but the wedding itself goes quickly and it best captured on video. The couple will not catch everything that happens but can see what the camera sees when the day is long over.

Photography should be done by a professional no and ifs or buts. Video should be included in the wedding. If the budget allows, but if the budget does not allow then a guest with a video camera would be option B. Given an option of no video or a video done by a non professional the non-professional wins hands down. 

I like to set up multiple microphones during a live P.A. event. I have one microphone on the stand plus one for the dj booth.  I spread out the speakers as far as I could to cover more ground.  I do not put the speaker at full volume. I typically put it at 50 percent and max out at 75 percent.

More often than not there are different people who speak at different volume levels. Every time someone speaks, you may have to adjust the volume based on how loud they talk into the microphone and how close they have it to their mouth.

Also it is a good idea to tape down the cabling and wires. I always do a sound check before I tape anything down in case I have to use different cables or a different microphone.  It is good to have more than one extension cord in case one needs more cord to reach the power.

I use microphones that are always on, but I am able to turn them on or off from the mixer I use. It is good to turn them off when people are talking to each other before the ceremony not knowing it is on, because the audience can be able to hear them talk other business.

Also it is good to be aware of how hot it is. Certain speakers may have issues since it is really hot. It is good to keep speakers in a shaded area and if not some speakers have weather proof covers. It is good to take an extra speaker, since the elements may cause the speaker to overheat or get wet.  Heat can be an enemy, but also rain can be a party pooper. 

Marshmellow and Anne Marie Friends 

Ariana Grande No Tears Left to Cry 

Drake  Nice for What

Calvin Harris  Dua Lipa  One Kiss

Taylor Swift  Delicate

BTS  Fake Love

Selena Gomez  Back to You

Clean Bandit ft Demi Lovato  Solo

Madison Beer  Home with you

Cardi B  Bad Bunny J Balvin  I like

Kanye West  Yikes

Childish Gambino  This is America

Shawn Mendez  In my Blood

Rich the Kid  Plug Walk

Cardi B  Be Careful

Ella Mai  Boo’d Up

Lil Baby and Drake  Yes Indeed

Nicki Minaj  Chun-Li

Before I get into my new toy, let me explain the beauty of a controller. Back in the day, the dj had to use a mixer and hook it up to two turntables that were connected with multiple rca cables. Then the mixer would connect with the speakers and then the gig had music. Usually it would take about 45 minutes to set up solo.  A controller contains a mixer and turntables as one. So the use of rca cables is unnecessary and set up takes half the time.  Gotta love technology!

My controller of choice is the DDJ SX2, which is the industry standard for mobile and nightclub djs. This is a four-channel controller. I take this guy everywhere. As his backup I would take the original Pioneer controller DDJ-s1. Since I never needed a back up, I would never use my original controller. I decided to get a newer back up in the DDJ-sr2, which is a two-channel controller. This looks like the little brother of what I use now.

The ddj-sr2 is smaller and lighter than his bigger brother. With this controller, it can be powered by usb or with a powered plug, which could be a lifesaver incase one runs out of outlets. If a venue has a professional sound system, this controller can be connected to it with ease.

It can also be used for a wedding in case multiple set ups have to be ready at the same time for the ceremony and the reception. If both events happen in the same venue, the guests can leave the reception immediately and be greeted by music when they enter the next room right away.

There is a saying that “Nice guys finish last.” I do not believe in that. I believe we should be nice and considerate in life. I read an article              ( http://promobiledj.com/4-actions-to-keep-a-customer-for-life/ ) 4 Actions to Keep a Customer for Life by Doug Sandler, the nice guy. He talks about 4 skills that are important to maintain good customer relationships.

Exceed Expectations:  Always do what you are supposed to. If you promise to bring 4 speakers and a wireless microphone then bring it. Everything is always stated in a contract and the dj has to follow through.  Once I speak with a client and always assure them I will send them a contract within a day and in a day a contract is in their inbox. My job is to make the client happy.

Be Consistent: I like being at an event about an hour before the event, so I can do sound check and make sure everything looks nice and tidy.  During events, clients do not want to keep on guessing but feel at ease knowing that you are consistent.

Inspire to Wow them:  I probably spend a lot of time on playlists. Typically the client gives me a few songs and I have to work off that to deliver the vibe that they want.  Or the client may give me a lot of songs and I will put as many as I can to keep the crowd moving.

Get Personal: Its good to know the folks that you serve. It helps with the playlist and when you use your MC skills and to see what type of humor would appease them.  It is not just business but what the dj is providing is an experience that guests will talk about.

Bad DJ Habits

I read an article titled The Bad Habits That DJs Grow Out of and would like to share my thoughts on the topic.

1)   Overusing FX

How many backspins can a dj do till it becomes too much? FX can be fun here and there but can easily be overused. They can be used for transitions of different music genres and/or different music speeds. But if someone gets FX happy then it just sounds overwhelming.

2)   Playing All the Best Tracks First

This can be tempting. Play all the jams right off the bat but after that what comes next? The energy in the room would be off the charts in the beginning then it would deflate after the hits are gone. One has to build up their set and keep the heaters till the end.

3)   Planning Every Track and Mix

There was one wedding that I had to play every song in a particular order. I am pretty sure the groom did not take notice if I put a song out of order since he was truly enjoying his wedding but I did follow the order. But at other events I do create a playlist and from that list I play music at the event. Everything depends on the crowd and what they are feeling.

4)   Drinking To Excess

There is a time and a place for everything. As a guest, it is fun to partake in the dancing and the activities. As a dj, you have to be responsible. There is a timeline to follow and one has to be alert incase there is a situation such as equipment malfunction or there is a change of events.