MY final word on iPod weddings. Okay? Okay.

Photo: Liz Coopersmith, Silver Charm Events

So, earlier this week, my friend Mindy over at This Fairy Tale Life, reposted an article about an incident that happened to Jessica, who blogs as The Budget-Savvy Bride.  One of her tips was, “Be Your Own DJ! Or appoint a friend to the job.”  Several DJs descended on her like the wrath of God. It was a stupid idea, it will ruin your wedding, all everyone will remember is what a crappy wedding you had, you’re undervaluing their work, and etc., etc. One person even suggested that she kill herself. I’m not kidding.

No. Nopity, nope, no.

Bottom line – this is about YOU and what you want your wedding to look and feel like,and how you want to feel about your wedding.  It’s  your wedding, you can do whatever you want, don’t let anyone tell you how you should spend thousands of dollars of your own money. If you want to DIY your music,  you still need to figure out how to do it so you’re happy with the result without driving yourself nuts in the meantime.  That’s what  a pro DJ – a GOOD pro DJ –  gives you. That’s what you have to recreate. But, do not kid yourself that it’s a simple as pressing “Play” and then “Stop.” I am neither condoning nor condemning it, but I will tell you how to pull it off.

#endrant

I’ve coordinated iPod weddings, I’ve officiated iPod weddings, and I’ve written about iPod weddings. Here are my Tips:

1. Start with your venue. Do not reinvent the wheel if you don’t have to. What kind of sound equipment do they have? Speakers? Sound system? Microphones? Any of the above, what do you need to hook into it? None of the above, what do you need to get?
2. Keep in mind that figuring out what you need equipment-wise is going to take more than one phone call or email. Devote some time, at least a week, to nailing down these details. And  then double-check all of it a couple of weeks before your wedding.
3. Someone needs to monitor the music, and make the announcements. Someone to turn it on, someone to turn it off, someone who knows which playlists to pick,someone to tell everyone that dinner is ready and toasts will be made and the cake will be cut. It can be the same person. You and your new spouse will not be able to do any of that, so don’t even think about it (See: “Don’t drive yourself crazy”)
4. The ceremony – Keep it simple and have the entire wedding party, including you two, walk down the aisle to the one song. Less scramble to switch the music, and you can practice the timing at your rehearsal. Which means you need to have a rehearsal. The timing will not be perfect, no matter what, so your monitor needs to turn the music all the way down and then off once everyone is down the aisle. No abrupt stops. Trust me.
5. Make a separate playlist for each segment of your wedding — ceremony (even if it’s only one song), cocktail hour, dinner, reception events (first dance, cake cutting, bouquet throw, etc.), and open dance floor music, in order. FYI, an hour of music is about 20 songs.
6. Reception music – this is where you play your favorite music, the stuff you hum and jam in your head to. Aim for a good mix good of fast/mid-tempo/ slow songs — a  happy medium between getting the heart pumping and putting everyone to sleep! And, decide if you’re going to shuffle the songs in that playlist, or play them straight through?
7. Open Dance Floor – go crazy. Play your favorite dance music and the songs that you know are going to get your guests out on the floor. That being said, You are NOT obligated to play anything you don’t want to, like the chicken dance or Neil Diamond, or whatever.  And remember, open up the dance floor yourself. Once that music starts grab your spouse, grab your friends and go for it. The party begins with YOU.
8. The Unknown unknowns. Watch out for the stuff you don’t know that you don’t know. Like, do you have to move the music system, whatever it is, from room to room? What’s the easiest way to do that, with the least amount of scrambling? Do you need two systems, maybe a smaller one for the ceremony area and a larger one for the reception and dance floor?
9. Practice. If you can’t bring in the equipment  the day before, schedule a time during your wedding set-up for a sound check and run through. I’m serious. Run through the entirety of your ceremony music before the ceremony. Play your wedding transition songs like Grand entrance>first dance or toasts>cake cutting. Talk into the microphone and check its distance from the speakers, so you can avoid that horrible feedback screech. Take the time to do this.
10. Back-up. If you’re planning to play the music off of your iPod or phone, put your playlists on your computer and bring your computer. Buy bluetooth speakers to supplement whatever else you have. Back it all up.

And that is how you swing it.

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See you at the end of the aisle,
Liz Coopersmith
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