One of the best outside venues in the Gilroy area is Fortino Winery.  I do like the fact that the space is so open and it was outside. I also liked I could bring my 12 inch speakers and it can be heard at the other end with ease. One does not need tons of speakers to be efficient at Fortino Winery. Its also a cool place since they have a big open space and another space to hold events in case one needs a plan b. They can easily hold two events at the same time and even wanted to can hold another outside event at the tables by the front parking.  I had the pleasure to play there this past weekend. It was a school staff event and it was a good time. The music theme was simple and it was just old school. 70s 80s and 90s. Again the food was top notch. They also had a photo booth which was fun for the folks.

The following day was my birthday. Pre covid I would opt to not work my birthday. But this party had the makings of something special. I heard the playlist that consisted of Spanish classics and 80s music. I am a sucker for the classics and I felt I needed to be at this party. The hostess gave me a lot of artists such as Thalia, Alejandro Fernandez, Paulina Rubio to set a good vibe. I have to vote for South County as one of the best places to have a residence event. We had the volume at a good amount and we didn’t have to worry about neighbors complain about the sound. 

I had a big school event after the lockdown. My last event before the lockdown was a school event and this event was a big school event in Palo Alto. 

I had posters made and students were sending their requests. I had three lists to work from and it was a good starting point. Student still wanted to make verbal requests so I just pointed to the posters which had the directions for requests. 

The school was awesome is having food trucks and they had a variety of different kinds of food. I was amazed that we were outside and everyone had a mask on when I started. I brought 4 speakers and it was loud enough for all the folks that showed up. It was plenty of volume for the outside venue. 

What I noticed was the request for older music. Typically at schools I play the newest latest music  but this time around a few new songs were played and songs from the 00s were very popular. I believe it has to be the popularity of tic tock which is bringing back the old school. The biggest songs of the night were by Calvin Harris which is considered edm or house music. The question of the night is house coming back? I remember playing it during proms in 2014 then it went away. I think playing a little of everything is fun so maybe it is coming back.

Overall, the chaperones made a huge difference. We had to make reminders of keeping the social distance. Students were very respectful and very ready to party since they have been lockdown for a while.

Once the first steps are done then the fun begins. A lot of folks do not know the names of songs but only have a few must haves. At BWADJ we send out playlists that are popular and it makes the song selection easier. Client can also include songs that are not on the list. I like having the list a week in advance so I can secure the music especially if its not on my list.  If it’s a wedding then BWADJ send a wedding coordination sheet with song suggestions and helps organize the events if no wedding planner is involved. A wedding is a custom event so there is no set way to do a wedding. Its based on what the bride and groom wants. If it’s a birthday party and the client wants party music the whole time then we do party music the whole time. Who needs to sit to eat dinner! Most of the time they do eat dinner sitting but it can always be an option! 

We keep in contact with the client to see how their list is going and to see if anything has changed. Then before the event we finally touch base to go over the game plan. 

We show up 1 to 2 hours before the event depending on how many set ups are needed. To set up one simple set up it takes 30 minutes. 

Then we have a fun event with dancing and memories being made.

The Gilroy Garlic Festival has been around for 41 years. It has been a pretty famous food event in the Bay Area for many years. It was the place to stock up on your Garlic flavored Ice Cream or Garlic dishes. Last year due to Covid, the festival and the rest of the world was shut down. But this year it has manifested to a new event. Years past it has operated at Christmas Hill Park. It is a huge park that could maintain the thousands of visitors. This year it is divided into three locations.

It included a drive by alley at Gilroy Presbyterian Church and a Farm to table dinner at Fortino Winery. And finally the Garlic Festival Golf Classic will be held July 30th. The festival has taken a new look and feel.

I was able to provide music at Fortino Winery. They had a little stage next to the vineyard where the folks were able to eat and listen to old school music. We decided the classics you can not go wrong. I went with 80’s new wave,  then jumped into the 90s. It was a fun atmosphere. My intention was just to play background music but the Gilroy folks wanted to dance and they did. The awesome Fortino staff were so accommodating to their patrons that the folks were happy. It was a good feel good vibe. Grandparents were with their grandchildren and couples were all there. It was a perfect mix.

It was a nice touch to have live music with great food. I was happy to be a part of it. When in doubt in choosing the music you cannot go wrong with going old school.

Being able to enjoy different music in different languages has been a blessing while going to events. When it comes to Spanish music, there is so much to choose from. Playlists can have some cumbias, salsas, bandas, bachata, reggaeton, norteno, corridos, and ranchera to name a few. Then you have the English music to think about. How can you get all that music in one event. Some people consider maybe getting a Spanish band then getting an English Dj. Bands can be expensive so if they want to get all that music then they should consider a Bilingual Spanish Dj that can cover all that music.

I find the music that the older generation likes you play early since sometimes the older folks ten to leave early. Like I would play some rancheras during the dinner part of the night. I would save the dance Spanish music when it is time to get down. 

How much of Spanish then English do you play? Each event is different. You can base it on what the clients want and use that to gauge. A dj can have a must playlist and makes sure those songs are played. But I noticed in Spanish Bilingual events folks really get into the Spanish Music. For me if its time for English music I go for the hitters that won’t fail. I like to go to the classics for funk and old school. There maybe some new trending tracks but with old school its been tried and succeeded. 

Consider Black and White Affair Dj for your Spanish English Event. Bay Area and now in Southern California.

Omar@bwadj.com

Mid March 2020 something happened that never happened in my lifetime. It seemed like the whole world closed. All hospitality events stopped in California. I just did an event on March 6th and my corporate event on the 8th was cancelled. I had a big race event in April and that was cancelled. My weddings in the summer were tentative since everything was in the air. No one knew when this was going to end. 

 The answer was the vaccine and while that was being created all the weddings were one by one being cancelled. Its July 2021 and in California we are slowly opening up.

What has changed since early 2020?

Venues are now open to have events. Currently we are in our summer so its warm so many folks are opting to have events outside. A lot of folks in California I notice are still wearing masks even though they are vaccinated. There are few that neglect to partake in the maskwearing.

Dj will take requests but rather by getting a text of what to play. I have seen djs with nice posters stating how to request a song.

Djs are having microphone covers that they have to change after every speaker.

So you maybe wondering is it time to have a wedding in the Bay Area? There are many outside venues and the weather is unbeatable. 

Just select a dj that will do whatever he can to ensure the safety of all the folks that you care about in your wedding. Black and White Affair can be the dj for your grand event!

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How to select a Bay Area Dj for your wedding. (San Jose, Milpitas, Sunnyvale, Gilroy, San Martin, Mountain View, Redwood Ciity and Morgan Hill)

 People have been putting their wedding on ice for the past year and some change. We had so many folks cancel their date and wait for it to be clear. In California, we have been super conservative but it has proven to be safe by its extreme tactics. People are now trying to figure out what dj they should use for their wedding.

First step is to figure out your wedding dj budget.

A dj is what makes or breaks the wedding. You do not want to skimp on this. A dj creates the vibe for the night with the music that they play. 

Time is of the essence.

Weddings are going to be taking up dates really fast. I have been getting inquiries for the next two months. Ideally you want to select a dj from 8 to 12 months ahead. For us, we can do a wedding at least a month in advance if needed to be.

Talk with the Dj

Some folks are still resistant to meet one on one in person still. That is ok. There is zoom or facetime or the old school phone call. Pay attention how the dj talks about weddings. Are they excited about it and do they give advice about your special event.

Pay attention how quickly they respond to you.

Setting up a wedding may seem like a second job and folks need answers asap. It helps if dj is on it with the response time. Its nice if they respond the same way you contact them. 

Learn2Dj Part of Black and White Affair Dj Services

In California, we are not allowed to have any dj events more than 10 people currently. Some djs are doing zoom parties for households in the comfort of their own home. So during this down time, I have been organizing my music library and my dj education service. I always had dj lessons but it was on a different site and running multiple sites at one time can be a handful. So I decided to combine my dj lessons with my dj business website so I can get all inquiries in one area. People are stuck at home looking to learn a new craft. This is the time to do it since it is recommended to stay home. Different parts of the country are slowly opening up but coronavirus cases are still picking up. 

  As a dj, I am always doing research on the latest equipment and dj software. It is important to know all the tricks of the trade. Through many years of learning I want to share what I know. I know when I was learning I had to learn through the hard way through trial and error. I want to eliminate that experience and help find success sooner rather than later. 

 Maybe someone does not want to be a full on dj but rather learn how to set up gear for any event since events right now in California can not be too big this service can be for you also. We go over how to set everything up and what you would need. We can also break down the music playlist. It would be better to have a professional dj there but at these times there has be be different options. 

Feel free to check out Learn2Dj on this website and check out the blog area where we go over tidbits to make dj easier. We can do instruction virtually. It does not matter that I am based in the Bay Area in San Jose. We go over everything to beat matching to setting up your dj business. 

Check out Learn2Dj.org which leads you to my site for dj instruction.