We’re in part 3 of a 5 part series of posts that we’ve entitled “The most awkward weddings we have ever DJ’d”. We’ve had some doozies so far and this is yet another. After almost 20 years in the wedding DJ business, we can tell you that weddings, in and of themselves, make for great stories. With the exception of a few minor glitches, most turn out as planned, but in some rare cases, the “glitches” can be a bit more….well…interesting. As a matter of fact, some can be downright awkward. Obviously, the awkward ones make the most interesting stories.
NOTE: To protect the innocent, we’ve purposefully left out names but beyond that, I assure you that none of this has been embellished. If you’re in the industry, I’m sure you will sympathize with us. If you’re a soon to be bride or groom or a general reader, this may have you shaking your head.
In our early years, we did not have the same event vetting process in place that we have now. Starting out in business, you are sometimes forced to take whatever clients come your way. The couple in this particular story had read our reviews and booked our DJ services online…without any initial phone conversations or face to face visits.
During the planning phase for their big day, I asked what they did for work and the groom mentioned he was a chemist and the bride said she was a librarian. Knowing how serious some librarians and chemists can be, I then asked them to rate their wedding guests on a scale from 1-10 scale (1 being hard to get out of their seat and 10 loving to party). Their response: “1 – 1.5.” Yikes! Not exactly the type of crowd we usually get. Given this situation, I suggested we have a few backup plans in case dancing did not go over well. Trivia was one of the solutions.
Fast forward to wedding day; I start the song for the first open dance set and no one even thinks of dancing. Everyone just stared at me. The dance floor was open for business, but no one was buying. So, I tried a slow song…then a fast one. I even tried line dancing, but no one moved from their seats.
At this point, I was thinking that the 1-1.5 rating was entirely too generous and decided it was time to pull out the trivia. We literally played trivia for an hour and 40 minutes…at a wedding reception. Fortunately, trivia loosened them up enough to finish the last 15 minutes dancing.
Of course, I thought that our services bombed, but was surprised to have multiple guests say that this was the best wedding they had ever been to. Some even said they’d be calling me for their wedding. Ugh, thanks?!? Not exactly the type of wedding style I wanted to be known for, but at the end of the day, it’s all about making a reception fun, and if trivia is what it takes, I’ll do it.