Are Djs necessary??

I think this is one of the things where you have to know your crowd. You know your family and friends well enough to know if a playlist would suffice.

I think this is fine if you don’t think a lot of people will dance. It does save a lot of money. A dj does set the mood though

I think if you want a party vibe, a DJ is a necessity. They don’t just hit play on a preset playlist, they keep events on track, MC the event, they read the room and decide what kind of songs to play next. No matter how great your playlist is, it can’t do all of those things.

In my opinion, yes. I think a DJ is one of the most important vendors at a wedding. I've been to weddings with no DJ or a DIY DJ and the party atmosphere isn't ever there. Plus you don't have an emcee to announce first dance, parent dance, cake cutting, and to get people dancing.

I agree with the Brides above me. It all depends on your crowd and the atmosphere you would like for your reception. If you choose to go the Spotify route, make sure you build in tracks/pause songs for big things like introductions, special dances, cake cutting etc. You will also want to designate someone to be Emcee for the evening.

I think a DJ is important. They can feel your crowd out, MC the entire event, make announcements & entrance etc. I don't think an event like a wedding is complete without one. If you're worried about budget, maybe consider hiring a DJ for the beginning of the event and see if there's a way you can seamlessly switch over to music for the duration of the event.

View Quoted Comment I totally agree with you. A DJ does so much more than just play music. When we set our priorities for our wedding a good DJ was in the top 3.

I’ve heard the main pro to having a DJ is they keep the order of events following, they can host a game, they announce the first dances, etc. But if you have someone that could do those announcements I totally think you could get away with no DJ.

Honestly, I don't recommend cutting the DJ. My sister got married in May, she had a small wedding and they thought that making playlists would be sufficient. They were wrong. Their playlists were terrible, but even if they weren't, they still needed someone to start and stop the music at certain points, so my fiance stepped in and spent the wedding being the DJ instead of having fun. There also wasn't anyone to run the flow of the night - I had to just decide when I wanted to give my speech and try to get everyone's attention for it. They also ran around trying to tell everyone when it was time for cake, etc. There was no one to announce mother/son and father/daughter dances - and my fiance had to step in and play those songs at the right times too. It was a disaster. The DJ does more than just play some songs. I initially thought she was so smart to cut that expense but we were wrong. You don't realize how much you need a DJ until you go to a wedding without one.

It’s honestly whatever YALL want to do. My fiancé’s brother got married, they didn’t have a dj. They had a loud speaker in the venue and created a list and played all their songs.

I've been to one wedding without a DJ. It went well. But they had a charismatic friend MC the show. And it would not have gone well without that person.

Im debating if I'm going to have a DJ honeslty im leaning more in thag direction of having one to make ot less complicated for us....

We didn't have a DJ (we used a spotify playlist) and it went over really well! A few things though... make sure you have someone responsible for MCing (like, making announcements, encouraging people to get up and dance, etc) and to manage the playlist. It really isn't enough to just press "play" and let the playlist go... you need to change songs if people aren't responding, adjust the volume, etc.

Another thing is don't be afraid to go off-playlist! We used our playlist for about 30 mins and then my husband's best man (who we had put in charge of manning the playlist) and I ended up just picking some off-playlist songs because we felt like they would fit the mood really well, and THAT was when people actually started getting up and dancing.

A DJ definitely does WAY more than just pressing play on songs. I cannot emphasize how important it is to read the room in order to choose what song (or what type of song) to play next. That being said, I still don't think hiring an actual DJ is "necessary" if you have a friend or relative who would enjoy taking on this responsibility (and who you trust to do so!)

View Quoted Comment THIS. EXACTLY this.

I think if you can afford one you should get one. They make the day run smoothly and can read the room and change up the music if needed. If you can fit a DJ in your budget don't get one, but have someone ready to control the phone playing the music. I do believe spotify has a option to blend songs together at the end and the beginning so it is a more smooth transition as if a DJ was playing it.

We rented an AV unit with speaker and microphone for $250 and asked each guest to submit a song they’d like to dance to at the reception and made our own playlist on Spotify! We also saved $700+ by doing this and are happy with our choice!

A dj is a master of ceremonies so to speak, can read the room and switch directions, help with keeping the party moving or slowing it down when needed. Try looking at thumbtack. We cut back on ours by no photo booth, no names in lights, no up lightening, etc.

If you like a glitzy, entertainment atmosphere, a DJ is great. We didn't want that atmosphere. We had 2 family members who split announcements, or starting or stopping music when needed. Mostly, we are not into making a movie, or video. We wanted a formal, family oriented party. At family reunions, big anniversaries the same size as weddings, no one sees the need for professional entertainers or activities directors, or coordinators to make things as smooth as a TV special. People were dancing from after dinner at 9:30 til we closed up the sound at 3 am. About 60 of our 170 guests and WP were still dancing til we shut it down. A dance band played a short time, earlier in the evening. Other than that, his family, like mine, always has family handle things. So though almost no one from either family had ever met the other side, and almost none of his friends knew mine, everyone turned and quieted to pay attention when anyone approached the mic. No one messed around. Everyone was great. We did prepare a variety of CD's and DVD's, and the sound system was easy to use. We never for a minute considered a DJ, and we're happy with that. And not spending money on a club atmosphere we did not want. The difference between being guided and entertained, or smoothly taking care of running your own affair as a cooperative effort. Choose what you want.

Go for it! You do what you want. With your way, you know what songs will be played, no surprises.

My brother did a playlist at his wedding and people danced. It wasn't like a "rager", but people had fun anyway because they picked good music. I think it depends on your crowd. I'm also considering just doing a playlist and using mic/speaker equipment my same brother has since he's in music + family friend to oversee it. Since we'll have a DOC she will keep us on track, and we won't do any special dances that require intros or anything. We want to keep it casual so literally I can get a bridesmaid on the mic to say "cake cutting!" We're a more intimate wedding, so a DJ might actually feel like over-kill.

If you still feel you'll need all the intros and some organization because you've got a big crowd, I think DJs are much more of a must. But someone with a closer knit group, I think a playlist is something to consider.