Wedding Vibes- The Micro Wedding
Written by curator Eric Sampson (Jem) of The DJ Firm:
To all my brides, grooms and fellow industry colleagues! I hope all is well and you have continued to find positivity during this time. We are about 5 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and the situation is definitely still fluid. As a DJ and a owner of The DJ Firm, I have tried to be honest about where the light may shine down the road and I have had some good days along with the bad. I am sure that you have probably shared this same feeling whether you work in the wedding industry or you are a couple still continuing with your 2020 wedding plans. As the idea that we were in this for the long haul set in, the idea of the “Micro Wedding” really started to take form.
From July 2020 till now, I have completed three micro weddings and it will be four by the time you read this blog post. My goal of this post is to give you some insight from a DJ’s perspective, tips on what to look and ask for from your DJ vendor, and give you some different situations and practices that I have run into with venues. All-in-all, I hope this piece can assist in helping you navigate COVID-19 a little bit better.
Personal Thoughts
When the idea of the “Micro Wedding” started to take form, I was not really sure how to feel about it. At this point we had lost all business in April, May, and June. So, if it could help us keep some weddings on board for 2020, I was open to it. My first Micro wedding had about 27 guests and it was a blast. I ended up DJing for 2 ½ hours for the reception portion. There was dancing at this wedding which felt weird to me at first, but I quickly snapped out of it. My instinct and job as a DJ is to make people dance, so you could understand the emotions I would have if people weren't. The guestlist was made up of all family and that felt good to me. You could feel and see the joy on everyone’s faces. I realized that nothing about my set really changed and people just wanted to celebrate something special. Throughout the course of the night I did find myself playing a bit more requests from guests, I thought that it was important because there were not many people to draw from which meant every song counted. This also made me feel personally connected to each guest as well. Overall, If you are continuing to move forward with your 2020 wedding, I say do it! The gratification of making it happen and having a great celebration where love present will trump anything!
Your DJ
If you are planning on still having your wedding in 2020, I believe that there are a few things that you should be looking for from your DJ vendor.
Has your DJ or entertainment company shared a COVID Preparedness plan with you? I find this extremely important so that you know how your DJ is taking the proper steps to keep your guest safe. This includes before and during the events.
Please confirm the number of staff the DJ will have on hand with him that night. Although this may be small, It is still good to have your number in check and every person should be counted.
What is your DJ’s microphone procedure? The microphone is going to be the main piece of equipment passed around the event for speeches. Speeches are mainly done by close family members and friends, But it's still good to know the procedures between the DJ and the first guest speaking.
Musically I would recommend giving your DJ some good material to pull from. The task of playing for a crowd becomes more difficult the smaller the crowd becomes. To keep the energy high, your DJ is going to have to be almost surgical when it comes reading the crowd and selecting the music.
Your Venue
I had weddings in Chicago, Indiana, and a Chicagoland suburb. Within the three weddings I have done, I have noticed that each venue has interpreted the rules of “dance floor” in different ways. In every venue the staff was great and followed mask protocols. Dance floor or no dance floor, I think it is extremely hard to contain people's emotions to want to have fun. I would recommend learning the guidelines of your venue and relaying that to your guest before the wedding. Take those steps and I feel you should let the rest play out. At the end of the day, you are still there to celebrate something special!
The human race is resilient and where there’s a will, there’s a way! The Micro Wedding is another way that we have evolved! Thank you so much for taking the time to read this post and please reach out to Eric@thedjfirm.com with any feedback, questions, or comments.
