The Philadelphia DJ: What You Should Expect

You’re planning one of the most important days of your life and you want everything to be perfect. Should you go with a run-of-the-mill bargain basement DJ – you know the guy who just bought the equipment last week has two iPods and decided that he is going to be a wedding DJ – or the seasoned professional with a proven track record of reliability, consistency and experience, who with you can achieve the event that you envisioned.

I was planning on writing this blog for a long while, but every time I got started I would find something new to talk about and it seemed like a never ending loop. Finally, about a week ago, Craig e-mailed me a fantastic blog written by a DJ company by the name of Elegant Event Entertainment (EEE) in the Los Angeles area.  It’s no surprise that the same applies to a Philadelphia DJ.

Here is a link to that article:
http://www.elegantevententertainment.com/2010/wedding-planning/los-angeles-wedding-dj-prices-what-exactly-are-you-paying-for-anyway

This article really breaks down everything that a great DJ should be and outlines the different features that control DJ pricing. But, one thing that really jumped off the page at me was something that I have said for over a decade now – hiring a great DJ is paramount to the overall success of your event – In my opinion, truer words have never been spoken.

EEE started the body of the blog by giving its readers a list of the “’5 Most Important Questions’ a Professional DJ should ask you to help determine your needs.” What I would like to do is spin this in a different direction – and ask simply, “What are the basic questions you should ask your DJ to qualify if they are right for you”.

1 – Do you [the DJ] have Liability Insurance? – This may seem like a silly question, but you would be surprised how many “DJs” out there are not insured (see above reference a run-of-the-mill bargain basement DJ). While some facilities may just ask you if the DJ is insured, the majority now require that they be.

2 – Can you provide music and audio for both my Cocktail Hour and Ceremony, as they are in separate rooms? – An experienced and all inclusive DJ company should be able to provide multiple sound systems for your ceremony, your cocktail hour and the reception sites, should they be in different areas of your venue. And as far as audio for the ceremony, they should be able to provide either a wireless hand-held microphone or a lavaliere (lapel) for the efficient at your ceremony.

3 – What kind of music will you play at my wedding? – If the answer isn’t “What ever type of music you would like us to play”, then this should be a red flag. A conscientious DJ should be able to work with you prior to the event and build a song repertoire that you and your guests will enjoy. A skilled DJ should also take note to the songs that you would not like to hear on your wedding day.

4 – Do you have “back up plans”? – While most reputable DJ companies will allow you to select and lock in specific personal for your wedding, in the event that something were to go terribly wrong (act of God or war) an established well respected company will still be able to staff your party with talented entertainers in the case of an emergency. Also, if any of the sound equipment were to fail, your DJ should be able to furnish a back-up sound system without trouble.

5 – Can I meet with my MC/DJ prior to my wedding? – Again, seems like a silly question, but this is very important. Generally, about 2-3 weeks prior to your event you should go over all the details of your wedding with the MC that is going to be at your reception. Details include everything from what songs to play, to what songs not to play, to phonetic spellings of the names in your bridal party to deciding a song to cut the cake to, etc, etc. These meetings are what’s important to the overall success of the party and allows the MC to make sure that all the information needed for your special day is gathered and come the day of the reception, you can just sit back and relax while your MC orchestrates the formalities of the evening making sure that you can be a guest at your own party.

So, after all is said and done, the last song of the night is played, all the guests filter out of the venue and you and your fiancé get to take a deep breath and look back on the party – a truly great DJ would have the only thought on your mind be, “Wow, that was the BEST party I’ve ever been a part of.” We here at Cutting Edge Entertainment want you, and all your guests to have that feeling of just “Wow.” We want to make sure that when everyone at the party looks back at the event, they can’t remember what they ate, the name of the facility or even what they wore – but they remember that they had a phenomenal time and their feet hurt for that entire weekend. For this vision to become a reality a DJ absolutely needs your input from A to Z.

Overall, an experienced and reputable DJ company will be capable to deliver the perfect wedding and make certain that all your guests have a great time. Just because a DJ is a great Bar/Club DJ doesn’t mean they know the intricacies and formalities that are involved in a wedding reception. As it was said before “hiring a great DJ is paramount to the overall success of your event” – and that is something that we here at Cutting Edge want to make sure we provide for every party we are a part of.

Tony Donato
Networking Director and former DJ
Cutting Edge Entertainment

To learn more about Tony, click here

Image courtesy of Kevin York Photography

www.cuttingedges.wpengine.com