Brendan’s Blog - The DJ’s Notes, Real Weddings, and more!

Most of this area’s bridal shows take place during the winter months, and I’m planning to take part in a few of them. First on the calendar for 2008 is the Hawthorne Country Club’s annual show, on January 6th from Noon to 3. This is a great show, featuring some of Southeastern Massachusetts’ best service wedding providers (not all vendors can participate - Hawthorne picks the top vendors in each category and invites them to take part). This will be my fourth consecutive year at this show, so I’m really excited about it. Hawthorne Country Club is located at 970 Tucker Road in North Dartmouth - I hope to see you there!

I had last weekend off - it was much deserved after a very busy summer season. Julie & I went into Boston on Friday night to see Blue Man Group, and it was a lot of fun, then we spent Saturday and Sunday working on our house and (still) getting everything in its’ place. We bought the house at the end of May, but with our busy schedules, the move-in process has been a slow one. I’m finally getting my office organized, and we’ve got new dining room furniture being delivered tomorrow.

There’s a misconception that DJs have plenty of time to relax during the week, because they usually work only on weekends. I wish that were true, but it’s not. My week so far has included a DJ networking night, doing some routine maintenance on my gear, designing a new brochure, placing new music and equipment orders, attending a DJ networking event and updating my music library. Between now and Sunday, I’ve got two meetings with prospective clients, plus two events. The work never really stops, but that’s how I like it. I’d be more worried if the phone stopped ringing and I ran out of things to keep track of.

Because more couples are opting to have their wedding ceremonies right at their reception venues these days, I’ve been providing music for lots of wedding ceremonies more frequently than ever.  So often, in fact, that I recently redesigned the sound system that I use for such occasions.  I’ll talk more about that in a moment.  First, let’s talk about something that’s really important at your ceremony:

 Making sure your guests can hear it.   

 It amazes me how many officiants feel that they can get by without the benefit of a microphone.  I’m not sure exactly why this is, but I have a couple of guesses:

First, some officiants feel very confident in their ability to project their voice.  This might be true when they’re in a church and their voice is likely to carry throughout the room, but when you’re outdoors, it’s an entirely different story.   No matter how much they project, they’ll always have a hard time competing with ambient noise and other audible distractions.  Whether it’s birds chirping, ocean waves or a motorcycle in the venue’s parking lot, there’s always something nearby that can make the officiant’s words difficult to understand.

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When I meet with prospective clients, many of them want to know what makes my services different compared to what they’ve seen from other DJs.  And until now, I’ve always said that I’m fanatical about having a backup plan for everything, I genuinely care about the success of every event, and that I always make sure that my clients’ wishes come first.  However, I received a thank-you email over the weekend from the father of a recent bride, and one sentence in it really got my attention:

You did so much more than play music,  you created memories.

Honestly, I never really considered how my work affects others and I rarely get the chance to compare what I do to what other DJs are doing, but when the father of a recent bride takes the time to write to me, I must be doing something right.  I’ve known for a long time that the music plays just a small part in what I do, but the rest isn’t always easy to explain to others.

 That one sentence said it quite nicely.     

Consider taking a lesson to make sure you look your best.  I recommend the Wedding Crash Course, offered by Best Foot Forward Dance Studio in Newton MA.  Julie and I took the three-hour class just before our wedding last year, and it was one of the best decisions we could have made.  We spent a late Sunday afternoon with our instructor Kevin and two other soon-to-be-married couples, learning the basic dance positions and how to move across the dance floor without stepping on each other’s toes.  We also learned a few moves that we never would have figured out on our own (a couple of twirls, and a nice finish).    Here’s the best part: it’s fun, and they use your music throughout the lesson - just bring your CD!

 Best Foot Forward’s class sizes are extremely limited and prepaid reservations are required; many of their classes sell out.  To find out more, call 617-916-5757, and be sure to tell them you got their info here!

When I first started my career as a professional mobile DJ, many of my clients would ask me for help with finding a song for their first dance.  It wasn’t always easy, as we didn’t have the benefits of the internet in the early 1990s and unique songs weren’t as easy to track down.  As a result, many couples ended up choosing the same handful of familiar songs.  Fortunately, times have changed.

The good news is that fewer clients ask for help with finding a first dance song, because they already have a song that’s meaningful to them.  However, when couples have more than one song and need help narrowing down their possibilities, I’m happy to assist.  This is what I suggest:

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Today is my 34th birthday.  At first, I wasn’t too thrilled about it - I mean, who really looks forward to getting older?  Then I realized that there are lots of 50 year-olds who don’t act like old people, and I’ve still got 16 years to go before I hit 50.  16 years ago I had no idea that I’d be this successful or happy.  So, I’m not going to let it bother me.  If the next 12 months of my life are as good as the last 12 months have been, it should be an easy ride.

Welcome to my blog, and my first post.  I have no idea who’s reading this, but I hope you find my future entries to be somewhat interesting and (maybe) entertaining.  Many of them will be about the previous weekend’s events and my experiences as a mobile DJ - no two parties are ever the same!

First up, check out the September issue of DJ Times -  I’m featured in their “Mobile Profile” section!  It’s a pretty cool article (based on a phone interview I did with them a couple weeks ago) and I’m honored that they asked me to do it.