Speechless....

Where to begin?

I titled this blog post as 'Speechless', but really, I'm not... I have a lot to say about this last weekend, so I hope that you have some time to spare. =)

This past weekend, Bonham and I had to 2 DJ gigs - one on Saturday and one on Sunday. Before I get into the details of the events, let me tell you how we run this business. My dad and I started the DJ business about 10 years ago and we have a lot of experience with weddings and how things should go. We do let the brides tell us how they want things, but we throw in some advice and suggestions when needed. When they call us to book our services, we send them a contract and a questionnaire. They send back the contract with a $100 deposit to hold the day and then they mail back the questionnaire and remaining balance 2 weeks before their event. This gives us time to go over everything and get the music. The questions that we ask are about the songs that they want played for certain events, the order of events, and other details about the ceremony and reception. And then I call the bride the week of their reception and go over everything in detail and ask more questions and I let them ask me questions, etc.

So, the wedding for June 26th.... she booked us back in mid-May. She sent in her questionnaire and she had chosen some very random music for her ceremony. We try not to judge.... we never know exactly what kind of crowd someone will have and it is their day. And not every wedding will be the same, and that's fine. But we always want people to know that no matter what they choose to do, it will reflect on us and our service, so please don't make us look bad!!! =)
This is what she wanted for the ceremony:
Seating of guests:
My Best Friend - by Tim McGraw
Unchained Melody - by The Righteous Brothers
Don't go Breaking My Heart - by Elton John
Me and You - by Kenny Chesney
Seating of the Grandparents:
Always on My Mind - by Willie Nelson
Seating of the Mothers:
Endless Love - Lionel Richie
Groom & Groomsmen:
Let's Hear it for the Boys - by Deniece Williams
Bridesmaids:
Whatever it is - Zac Brown Band
Flower Girl / Ring Bearer:
Today I Met the Boy I'm Gonna Marry - by Darlene Love
Bride:
Truly, Madly, Deeply - by Savage Garden
Unity Candle:
I Tried - by Bones Thugs & Harmony
Exit Song:
Good Morning - by Chamillionaire

Okay, so I called her and we went over everything in detail. I told her that normally people do 1 song for grandparents and parents and then the flower girl and ring bearer will just follow after the bridesmaids. She told me that they had to use all of the songs because they were printed on the program. And more recently I have been trying not to tell brides how they should do something unless they ask me. But it's hard!!!! Most guests at wedding don't put a lot of thought into, 'Hey, did the bride pick these songs?' People honestly think that we, as the DJ choose the songs for everything and we don't!!!
Anyway, so I told her that we would make it work. We get there, get set up, I meet with the bride and confirm what she told me.... because the programs said something different than what she said. I was informed that her friend who printed them messed up, so they weren't correct, but she wanted to do it the way that we discussed.... so now she wants to make us look like we aren't following the program!

(Ok, Cristina... move on already!)

We are given the signal to start the music for the ceremony. I see that there are 2 grandmothers lined up to be walked down the aisle and then the bride's mother... and another lady behind them. Whoa, Whoa, Whoa! The bride told me that there would be 3 grandparents... someone is out of order. (If you've never controlled the music for a wedding ceremony, it is probably one of the most nerve-racking, most stressful things ever!!! I mean seriously, who wants to be responsible for ruining someone's wedding ceremony?
One grandma, another grandma.... and then the 2 moms.... they make their way up to the unity candle (all during the grandma's song). They spend over a minute trying to light the candle (outdoor wedding ceremony) and this song is running out!!! I am debating on whether or not to play 'their song' or just go into the Groom's song.... hard decision because you don't know how much longer they will be up there. They give up on the candle just as 'Always on My Mind' is ending. So we go into the Groom's song. And we wait... and wait. We keeping thinking that the guys are going to walk out any minute now.... wait for it.... The guests are starting to look around. Finally, over a minute and a half into the song, the guys appear!!! Hallelujah!

We fade that song and start the bridesmaids' song.... and again we wait. By this point, we have had 2 mini-heart attacks and we're going on a 3rd! Hurry it up ladies!
There was a family friend who was going to 'help' and give us signals for when people are ready to walk out. The thing that people don't realize isn't that we aren't going to let the music stop because someone isn't ready... think about being a guest at a wedding. If there is silence and then the music starts and people walk out, you think, 'Oh, they were waiting on the DJ', not the other way around. Because the crowd can't see what we see. So we flow from one song to another and we wait... and wait. Really people? Why in the world were you not in place? You knew the order of everything, you've been ready for 3 hours..... get it together!!!
So finally (I'm using the word a lot!) the bridesmaids walk out and they are running out of song too. Surprise!!! As the last one is walking down the aisle, we had to start the next song. The ring bearer, well he didn't waste any time - good boy! He ran down the aisle. Good thing, because the flower girl (who was probably around 13 or 14 years old) walked very slowly down the aisle and then she handed flowers to the ladies on the ends of the rows of seats.
As she is still passing out flowers, 'the helper' is giving me the sign to start the bride's song. Hello, genius! The flower girl is still in the aisle! (Can you tell why this could be a little stressful at time?)
Then we start the bride's song. She is the only one who walks out at the right time! Thank you!!!

The ceremony is over and the people start to eat. They are seated kind of far away from us and no one really dances as much as the bride thought they would. The cake cutting was in a clubhouse even further away from where they set us up on the 'dance floor' (it was a concrete slab right outside of their house. They had a huge yard and people were all spread out. The group dances were a flop! The dollar dance was a flop! And no one stuck around to dance. The bride had said that she thought that people would stay and dance until mid-night or later. She was wrong! We wrapped up at 10:30 and we were out of there! Thank goodness - it was hot and the whole night was a beating!
The people were really nice, but sometimes the crowd just isn't what they expect....

Sorry this was such a long post. I know it seems like I'm just venting - well, I am! And I have even more to say about Sunday's wedding! Please come back tomorrow for more laughs and a twist that you wouldn't believe!!!! (I've got you on the edge of your seat, huh?)