You May Need To Cut Your Guest List........Here's How!

>>>Schedule A Fun Free Consultation With Elite Sounds<<<

Ah, yes. The age-old question of who should be in attendance for the biggest day of your life. For some this may come easy, but speaking from experience, it can also be a challenge.

You’ve found the venue that your princess bride has been dreaming of since she was a little girl. Date works, location works… capacity? Not so much. Let the cuts begin.

Obviously, you have certain family obligations to uphold (whether you actually like the person or only your daddy does and he’s writing the check). So uncles with elaborate comb-overs aside, make a reasonable agreement with whoever is splitting the bill. Give them a table of friends and a couple of tables for family. If they are kind enough to throw some money your way, hopefully they can be persuaded that it’s your day (not theirs).

It may help you to separate guests into lists (A, B, C and D-efinitely not) to better visualize what you’re dealing with. Then you can move them up and down as you hone in. And maybe allot a third of the guest count each to bride’s family, groom’s family and people that you want there (friends).

Kids… Oh boy. If kids are your thing, then by all means. But this is your night to celebrate with people that understand the gravity of the event. Don’t feel bad about doing an adult-only reception. Nothing screams (well kids do) dying reception like a gaggle of caffeinated yahoos doing donuts on your dance floor. Inability to find a babysitter is not a usable excuse for people that you’re inviting. Do an across the board rule. Someone will get their feelings hurt if they see another person’s kids there.

With the cost of weddings always expanding, there is a budget angle to this question as well. For just food, you may be looking around $20/person. There’s a quick way to eliminate a college acquaintance that bought you a beer at a bar once. And that’s just the food per guest. You also have to consider seating, bar, cake, ceremony capacity, reception capacity and more. Each of these details is on a sliding scale of price affected by the number of people you invite. It’s easy to think, “Oh that’s just $5 more per guest.” Well in going from $20 to $25/guest with a guest count of 150, you just upped the cost $750. Easy there cowboy.

Plus ones are usually safe to give to people that have been in a relationship for over a year. If you both know the person’s plus one and you like them, then invite them (why are we even still talking about them?).

There are many tools out there that can help you down this path. Obviously, everyone’s priorities are different but this infographic has a box that we like. “Will they tear up the dance floor and add a ton of fun to your wedding?” I mean what are we here for? You’ve hired a DJ, allotted the time for dancing and then you got everyone drunk. Let’s do this!

In the end, you almost have to adapt a sense of ruthless rationalization. The fact is that this is your day, your (parents’) money and your memories for the rest of your life. Make the guest list count.

Jason Domingues Photography Reviews ESEG

The one-of-a-kind Jason Domingues retells his experience of working with Elite Sounds.

Learn more or get in contact with Jason at jasondomingues.com

Reception Music to Steer Clear Of

Here are a couple types of music that we advise against for the dance portion of your event. Whether you love this music or not, it rarely leads to an active dance floor.

Country: Great for slow tracks, horrible to keep the dance floor moving. I’m not saying that I have never had luck with it, but it is a rarity. Just because you like listening to something in your car doesn’t mean people want to dance to it. 

Too Much Cultural Music: Being proud of your heritage and wanting to incorporate some cultural sounds into the night is a great thing, and you should, but you always want the percentage of music played to equal the percentage of people that would actually enjoy hearing it. If you have family in from Mexico that make up 10% of your total guest list than your playlist should include 10% ethnic tracks. Always work to please the masses. Doing the opposite results in a failed night. 

Non Danceable or Obscure Tracks: This is for hipsters and music snobs mostly. We get it, Bonaroo was awesome and you found some new emerging bands that connected with you on an emotional level. Good thing you found them before the big wedding day so you can include 100 of their greatest hits to your playlist. You love them so everyone else will too??? No, no they won’t. In fact, they’ll hate them because they want to dance, and no one wants to dance to tracks that they don’t know at a wedding. Suck up your pride, and tolerate some Billboard Top 100 music. Sure you won’t look as cutting edge, but people might actually have fun. What’s the bigger priority? That emerging artist may fit in cocktail or dinner hour though.... 

Now, just because something is on the Billboard Top 100 doesn’t mean that it’s a heater either. Adele for instance…….for the most part not danceable. Great to listen to in the car, definitely not great for dancing. Trust your DJ, and let him guide you through tracks that work and tracks that don’t.

Consider This When Choosing Your Wedding Reception Music

Wondering what direction to take the night musically? Here is a little insight on how to work together with your DJ to make your reception better than all of your friends’!  :)

Look at the night in 3 different parts and make requests that fit in each one:

1st Part:  This is after the ceremony has concluded and all of your guests are making their way to the bar for cocktails.  This time of the night should be FUN!!  You can help with this by picking out fun music.  No Enya or super slow jams here......we want guests experiencing an upbeat vibe that makes them want to stay out of their seats, mingle, and drink!  Now, we definitely don’t expect them to rage on the dance floor either so your track selection should be those which have a great energy, represent your personality as a couple, but would most likely never get used for the dancing part of the night.  

Example Cocktail Playlist

As cocktails conclude, and we begin the dinner portion of the night dial it back a notch.  Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis or maybe even acoustic versions of some of your favorites can be used to create the vibe that fits this time of night and the branding of your wedding.

Example Dinner Playlist

2nd Part:  This is the part of the night where we open up the dance floor but there is a lack of inebriation on your guests part.   This is where you want to think about throwing in some Motown and Classic party tracks that everyone knows.  Some of your older guests will respond well to these tracks and it gives you, as the bride and groom, a chance to spend time with them on the dance floor!  You can thank us later after seeing your amazing dance pics with Aunt Carol!

3rd Part:  When guests are on their 15th glass of your signature cocktail and they feel like they will live forever, you have reached the 3rd part of the night.  This is where you want to consider some of your more hip hop and house influenced tracks that typically caterer to the younger audience.  Turn Down For What, Get Low.....you get the picture.  Throwbacks and sing-a-longs will also get the job done so be sure to give them the props they deserve by including them in your playlist as well.

While thinking about your reception in 3 different parts will help you in selecting the right mix of music, it won’t guarantee a packed dance floor.  ONLY THE BRIDE, GROOM, AND WEDDING PARTY can guarantee that.  You are the guests of honor.  Your guests are there to spend time with you, and they will likely do that on the dance floor if you lead them there. Let us help you get there.