Wedding Experts Suggest "Dumping the DJ"

Wedding Experts Suggest "Dumping the DJ"

Current mood:angsty

There appears to be an apparent trend lately for wedding planners and other "experts" to suggest that brides eliminate DJ's at their receptions in an effort to save money. In this economy, everyone seems to be interested in saving a buck here and there, and I would agree one should shop carefully for their DJ to avoid overpaying for someone under qualified...but to suggest a complete elimination is discounting what it is a professional wedding DJ actually brings to the table.

For example, here is an interview with one Jenny Lefcourt, who suggests dumping a DJ completely in favor of IPODs...:

http://www.myfoxchicago.com/myfox/pages/InsideFox/Detail?contentId=6836578&version=1&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=5.2.1

Now, when they get to the reception...what are they going to play this IPOD on...a home stereo? What will they use to make announcements or other public address related needs? Who will coordinate the itinerary with the caterers and photographers and videographers to ensure that all are on the same page and no snags happen...or if the snags do occur, who will make things transition smoothly so the bride and groom are not bothered? Who will watch the flow of the room and keep the energy maintained? Leaving the IPOD on shuffle is going to do this? Who will coordinate the dedicated dances, and the requests and dedications throughout the night?

A good DJ is not someone who just shows up and plays music like an over paid boom box. A professional wedding DJ (or DJ for any event for that matter) is bringing a quality pro grade sound system, thousands of songs and the knowledge to play the appropriate songs at the appropriate time. He is bringing the organizational skills to coordinate the event. He is leaving his ego at home and working for the bride and groom, and has the interests of all the vendors at heart to bridge the needs of everyone in the room. He is working with the caterer to balance their needs, and working with the photographer to ensure they are aware of when the magic moments are going to occur. The DJ, if used properly, is an important cog in the machinery of a finely honed event. What is that worth to the success of the event?

I like to calculate wedding/party expense values by factoring the number of guests at a wedding, then dividing what you pay for services by the number of guests. For example, if a bride has 100 guests, and the cake is $100...that is a dollar a guest. If the bride pays $500 for flowers, that is $5 per guest. When you are paying 30-50 dollars a plate or more for catered food per person, why would you balk at paying a fair rate for the entertainment? At the end of the reception, what do people remember more, the veal marsala or the entertainment? I have done consultations where the brides balked at my price, but then I point out they are paying more for their seat covers in the reception hall than they are for my services. I like to think I bring more to the table than the seat covers.

There are plenty of ways to save money on a wedding reception, but I cant imagine, if you envision music at your soiree, and you are considering the music to be entertaining, that you would ever overlook the value of the DJ. Shop all of your vendors carefully, check references and be penny wise, but not dollar foolish!

I had the luxury of seeing the video linked above, just as I was leaving to perform at a wedding...and I was really paying attention to just how effective I was at what I do, and very much wondering who would have taken my place were there to just have been a boom box in the room. Hmmm...

Just a PAWN in the system...

Just a PAWN in the system...

Current mood:aggravated

My brother came home from work last Wednesday to find his home had been burglarized. They attempted to enter thru the back porch, but could not get thru the sliding glass door, so they decided to go thru the bedroom window. My brother came home to find the window broken open with the air running full blast and the house full of mosquitoes. When he realized he had been burgled, he called the police and took stock of what was missing. They had amazingly left a lot of good stuff, but obviously were grabbing what they could sell quickly...the mark of a tweaking druggie. They took one of his pillow cases to put his cameras and other small items into, took his laptop but left the desktop PC, and took his guitar.

He is insured, but the only thing that held any sentimental attachment was the Stratocaster.

Now my brother is very anal about keeping records. I sometimes made fun of him for that, but it paid off this time as each item that was stolen had an empty box being stored for it...and while the police were there, my brother produced serial numbers for every item, much to the amazement of the sheriff. The sheriff put everything in the computer and by Saturday, the guitar showed up at a local pawn shop. Again, this was great news as this was the only thing that he really did not want to replace with insurance money.

He went in and the pawn shop informed him that because they paid out on it, they now owned it. They had taken the proper info on the pawner, and the pawner turned out to be a career criminal, and had already been arrested for something else over the weekend and was in custody. My brother really wanted the guitar back, so the pawn shop actually sold him his guitar back for the $150 they paid the druggie for it. He could have gone thru legal channels to demand them to return it, according to this Florida statute:

F.S. 539.001(15) discusses "Claims against purchased goods or pledged goods held by pawnbrokers." Specifically, to obtain possession of purchased or pledged goods held by a pawnbroker which a claimant claims to be misappropriated, the claimant must notify the pawnbroker by certified mail, return receipt requested, or in person evidenced by signed receipt, of the claimant's claim to the purchased or pledged goods. The notice must contain a complete and accurate description of the purchased or pledged goods and must be accompanied by a legible copy of the applicable law enforcement agency's report on the misappropriation of such property. If the claimant and the pawnbroker do not resolve the matter within 10 days after the pawnbroker's receipt of the notice, the claimant may petition the court to order the return of the property, naming the pawnbroker as a defendant, and must serve the pawnbroker with a copy of the petition.

It was easier to pay for the guitar again and claim the payment on the insurance, but what a load of crap! Suppose he had no documentation, or serial number? For that he was lucky. While he was at the pawn shop with a city cop and a sheriff, there were SOOOO many customers coming to the door and turning around without coming in, out of fear. The pawn shop manager then asked them to hurry and complete their transaction as they were losing business because the police were there!!

Absolutely amazing! I did a lot of research on pawn shops since then and found they claim a moral high ground, but there actions belie their words, and the laws are written to protect their ability to fence stolen goods. Only those citizens who are anal record keepers have any hope of seeing their merchandise, and have to face a legal fight to get their goods returned.

Just a heads up to you all.

The guitar was pawned just hours after the burglary, and the timeline shows it was a broad daylight burglary. On a humorous note, when they took the pillow case, they removed the tag from the pillow which said not to remove under penalty of law, and left the tag on the night stand. I guess you have to giggle about that.