How to manage your Wedding Playlist, and Music Requests

Bhangra Dance Party!

If you are a music minded person, the idea of selecting the soundtrack to your wedding can be really exciting and sometimes a bit daunting. Most Brides and Grooms want their night to end with every one having fun on the dance floor. They want the music to be great, and they want to hear the songs they love. You and your guests may want to hear some wedding classics but most likely you want the music to be a customized reflection of you and your guests tastes.

Listed below is a great way to help manage all the different songs you might want played at your wedding.

Must Plays (MP’s):

These should be the tracks you truly have to hear, and will make the party! These are you and your families anthems. Also, “MP’s” are great for the specific ballads you would like for the reception, whether they just have significant meaning to you, your fiancé, and/or your family (Remember though, that more than 4 Must Play ballads can really knock the wind out of any uptempo or relatively short dance sets i.e. under 2hours. Think about putting some of the non essential ballads in background music).

Play if Possibles (PiP’s):

What “PiP’s” do is give your DJ a list of songs that he/she can go into your wedding with the knowledge of what songs you want to hear and also room to do what they think will best fit.

Deciding between play if possible and must play can be tough for some. If you are hesitant at what is a must play put that in play if possible.

Example: I love 90’s hip hop. In college all my friends had a tradition of playing “Return of the Mack” by Mark Morrison as the last song we’d play before going out to a party. We also really like “This is How We Do It” by Montell Jordan. For me, in this circumstance: “Return of the Mack” is a MP and “This is How We Do It” is a PiP.

Don’t Play (DNP’s):

These are the list of songs, or artists you hate. The reason to compile this list is:

a.) So your DJ doesn’t play it on their own

b.) DJ won’t play it even if it’s requested by a guest

If you don’t want to hear a song but are okay with it being played if a guest requests it. Make a note “Play Only If Requested”, that way if your soon to be Grandmother-In-Law wants to dance We are Family but you don’t want to hear it for any other reason, the DJ can facilitate that request.

Play for Background: This is where to put some of the tracks you really enjoy that are not danceable or your guests would not dance to.

Remember, that if you are hiring an experienced wedding DJ from Sound In Motion who has good reviews and has been doing this for a long time, he/she will have a better grasp on which songs translate on a dance floor at a wedding. By overloading the playlist with must play’s you lose the spontaneity of going with the flow and being able to have your DJ play to the crowd. Remember to have fun, this is your night, make it special and unique!

Andrew Rivas - Operations Manager & a DJ/MC