Steel yourselves for a little bit of a departure from the norm here, friends! My husband surprisingly volunteered to write his very own guest blog post on his idea of the best wedding playlist. For our own wedding, my hubby and I divied up the wedding tasks and I left all DJ matters up to him. He passed his test with flying colors!
The following is a post from him regarding the musical selection at your wedding. He'll talk a little about efficient ways to communicate with DJ's, but more importantly, he'll provide you with a fantastic playlist for your reception! Check the Spotify link here, below, or see the hard copy listed at the end of the post. The Best Wedding Playlist
The Best Wedding Playlist | JoAnna Dee Weddings
"As a male attendee of your wedding, I am chiefly concerned with three specific aspects of the day. Unsurprisingly, two of these three factors revolve around the consumption of calories. Food and beverage quality are of grave consequence; from my perspective, the importance of tastiness can only be trumped by food and beverage availability (by volume, of course). I want to be able to eat good food, drink yummy drinks, and I want to secure my nourishment efficiently. Drinks don’t have to be free, they just have to be available with minimal effort. The same goes for second helpings.
The Best Wedding Playlist | JoAnna Dee Weddings
But I digress. Post-dinner, my concerns will shift from the food to the tunes. A poorly constructed wedding playlist can have catastrophic effects on your reception's vibe. I have the standing to lecture you on this matter because, for our wedding, I put together a progression of songs that kept everyone happy and boogieing throughout the evening. Yes, that’s how you spell “boogieing.” The day after the reception, I received numerous compliments on my selection of DJ from adults and juveniles alike. What they did not know was that I had given my hired gun an exact list of the songs that I wanted played.
Keep in mind that you should tweak it slightly to add your own personal flavor. I happen to be obsessed with the Red Hot Chili Peppers; feel free to substitute a song or two from your favorite artist here or there. Here are some simple guidelines for ensuring that you and your DJ are on the same page. Many DJ's already understand these concepts, but I’ve also stumbled upon a few that do not.
1. Communicate extensively with your DJ. Lay down the ground rules. Tell him (or her) not to act like Michael Buffer (“Let’s get ready to rumble!” guy). Unless you're into that.
2. Let the DJ know that you would prefer if he starts with a nice mix of songs from the oldies/classics list to give the elderly crowd their moment of glory. However, be sure to convey your desire for the real party to begin earlier rather than later.
3. Tell him to use his head when it comes to requests. If it’s not on your list, it probably doesn’t need to be played. The party period of a reception is always disappointingly short, and you won’t hear as many songs as you might think.
4. Make sure that the DJ knows not to get cute. If the dance floor is raucous, he should not change genres. If the party is getting down to “Ignition,” it should be clear that the crowd is not clamoring to hear “Unchained Melody.” What’s worse than when a slow-dance song forces 50% of the crowd to retreat to their tables?
5. If any songs are particularly important, highlight them.
The Best Wedding Playlist | JoAnna Dee Weddings
Final disclaimers - The musical selection is particularly aimed at those born since 1980. The opinions written are my own and do not represent those of JoAnna Dee Weddings. This post is not meant to offend DJs in any way. It is a set of guidelines based on first person observations of a large number of weddings.
Without further ado… the (annotated) ultimate wedding playlist."
Spotify Link - The Best Wedding Playlist
PARTY SONGS
- Sexy and I Know It - LMFAO
- Wild Ones - Flo Rida
- Crazy In Love - Beyonce (GIRLS LOSE THEIR MINDS TO THIS SONG)
- Hey Ya - Outkast
- Break Your Heart - Taio Cruz
- Party Rock Anthem - LMFAO
- Low - Flo Rida (SHE GOT THEM APPLE BOTTOM JEANS)
- Timber - Pitbull
- Ignition - R Kelly (THE REMIX, OF COURSE)
- Yeah - Usher ft. Lil Jon
- Wake Me Up - Avicii
- Right Round - Flo Rida
- Call Me Maybe - Carly Rae Jepsen
- Mirrors - Justin Timberlake
- Stronger - Kanye West
- Good Feeling - Flo Rida
- Get Lucky – Daft Punk (WE'RE UP ALL... ACTUALLY THE RECEPTION'S OVER AT 11:00)
- Moneymaker - Ludacris
- Hot in Herre - Nelly
- The Way You Move - Outkast
- The Anthem - Pitbull
- Angel - Shaggy (DEFINITELY A BETTER OPTION THAN "IT WASN'T ME")
- Dynamite - Taio Cruz
- Can’t Hold Us - Macklemore (TILL THE CITY... CEILING? WAIT, WHAT CAN'T HOLD US?)
- Starships - Nicki Minaj
- The Way I Are - Timbaland
- Glad You Came - The Wanted
- Shake Ya Tailfeathers - Nelly
SLOW SONGS
- You've Lost that Lovin’ Feeling – The Righteous Brothers (POSSIBILITY OF TOP GUN IMPERSONATIONS)
- Hero - Enrique Iglesias
- Free Willy Theme - Michael Jackson (It's called "Will You Be There") (BECAUSE IT'S AWESOME)
- Make You Feel My Love - Adele
DANCE SONGS
- Cupid Shuffle - Cupid
- Wobble Baby - V.I.C.
- Shout - Otis Day (BEST OPPORTUNITY FOR AGE-WIDE SHENANIGANS)
The Best Wedding Playlist | JoAnna Dee Weddings
OLDIES/CLASSICS/COUNTRY
- Respect - Aretha Franklin
- You May Be Right - Billy Joel
- You Give Love A Bad Name - Bon Jovi
- Billie Jean - Michael Jackson (FIGURE OUT IF YOU HAVE ANY AMAZING DANCERS LURKING IN THE CROWD)
- Build Me Up Buttercup - The Foundations
- Small Town - John Mellencamp
- Mary Jane's Last Dance - Tom Petty
- Snow - Red Hot Chili Peppers (BECAUSE IT'S THE BEST SONG OF ALL TIME)
- Man! I Feel Like a Woman - Shania Twain (ONLY SONG GIRLS LIKE MORE THAN A BEYONCE SONG)
- Ain't too Proud to Beg - Temptations
- American Girl - Tom Petty
- Chicken Fried - Zac Brown Band (SING-ALONG CITY, ESPECIALLY FOR THE RARE FRIDAY WEDDING)
The Best Wedding Playlist | JoAnna Dee Weddings
