Tonight’s gonna be a good night
Make your reception memorable for all the right reasons by choosing your music with care
LILIAN Ruiz, manager and vocalist of Kinky Spigot and the Welders (KinkySpigot. com), recalls a particularly memorable wedding reception that they played.
“Everyone was dancing and jumping so hard that the floor actually broke,” she says. “The staff put out some traffic cones and we just plowed on through.”
You may not want your wedding to be quite this intense, but it should be as fun, so here’s how to make sure your reception gets the reception it deserves.
First: NYC’s top musical acts are in constant demand, which means book in advance. It might be possible to get away with six or nine months out, but the consensus we’ve found after talking to wedding bands, DJs, and planners is to get in contact at least a year ahead.
Second: Wedding music isn’t cheap. While it’s possible to save big bucks by setting up your own Spotify playlist, unless you’re having a small, intimate reception where the music is more of a background element, it’s hard to keep things flowing on your own.
For a four-hour reception, you can spend anywhere from $1,000 to $5,000 for a DJ, while bands can cost from $6,000 up to $20,000. What’s included in the rate can vary too, so make sure you know exactly what you’re paying for ahead of time. For example, some musicians expect you to pay for food, travel or lodging. The big question: Band or DJ? “A band is an all-inclusive experience,” says Ruiz, whose 10-piece group specializes in the mix of funk, soul, indie and top 40 hits that most weddings fall under. “If you want to break it down on the dance floor, you can,” while less dance-inclined guests “can take it in like a performance.”
DJs, on the other hand, have strengths beyond their lower cost. Tara Angelopoulos, a wedding planner at Dream Makers NY (DreamMakersnNY.com) advises couples who want “multiple genres of music, need ethnic music for different nationalities, or certain songs a band wouldn’t be familiar with or know” to look into the versatility DJs provide.
Simon Tai, “Chief Remixologist” and DJ at Remixologists (RMXTS. com), adds that a good wedding DJ will be “the backbone of the reception,” MCing the proceedings by keeping transitions smooth and avoiding awkward silences.
If you’re really torn, a hybrid performance, where a DJ is accompanied by a live instru- mentalist such as a drummer, is another growing trend.
Tai recommends that “if you don’t have the time to do all the research… get a wedding planner.”
In addition to the help and coordination they offer, “they’ll have relationships with vendors and may be able to negotiate on your behalf,” says Stacey Levy, a 20-year veteran event planner at Planned to Perfection (PlannedToPerfection.com).
If you want to take a more hands-on approach to finding your musician, try The Knot (theknot.com), a popular online site where you can browse bands by genre and price and read hundreds of reviews. Try going analog too, via wedding fairs like Wedding Crashers (BrooklynWeddingFair.com) that showcase live bands.
Make sure to listen to and watch whatever audio and video the act has available, and ask if they’ll offer a free live demo. Ruiz tells us its not just sound that’s important, but also “a working relationship like any other.”
Be sure that you “Get someone who’s actually done a lot of weddings, cares about the timeline, and cares about you,” adds Tai.
Oh, and buyer beware. Sherry Schweitzer, who’s been in the biz since 1993 and owns A Touch Of Class (ATouchOfClassDJ.com), warns that some vendors with multiple musicians won’t always send the specific band you’re expecting, so confirm that you’re guaranteed to get the musicians you hired.
Once your act is confirmed, it’s time to talk tunes. Tai asks for a spreadsheet of 100 songs, ranked as “must play,” “great if heard,” and “do not play under any circumstances, even if parents come and request it,” but don’t worry if you’re not ultra-sure of what you’re looking for.
“Wedding bands have seen literally hundreds of weddings,” Ruiz reminds us, “so use them as a resource.” Just be sure to balance your tastes with those of your guests.
At this point, Levy cautions those with bands to make sure they’ll roll out, meaning they’ll only send one or two members at a time to eat rather than stopping the music completely.
Finally, when the band or DJ is up there working hard, there are a few things you can do for them.
“Always have water,” Levy says, and “real food — while performing is a joy, it’s physically taxing.”
You don’t have to tip, but it’s appreciated. Schweitzer recommends $50 in separate envelopes for each band member.
And come on, they deserve it — that dance floor wouldn’t be broken without them.
“Get someone who’s actually done a lot of weddings, cares about the timeline and cares about you” — Simon Tai, DJ at Remixologists