We'd like to shake our groove thangs, please.

When I started mapping out what I wanted to achieve with wedding planning and when, I quickly realized that certain elements had to be top priorities: the date, the church, the reception venue, the photographer, and the music.  I wanted to move quickly on these aspects of the wedding, since I figured that most of the vendor options for these positions would only take on one wedding per date.  A florist can probably make bouquets for multiple weddings on the same Saturday, and a transportation company can book as many weddings as they have limos.  However, when you need an actual person to perform a job for you at a specific spot for a specific period of time... the "whole multiple weddings in one day" goes out the window. As I've detailed for you up to this point, we knocked out all of those big-ticket decisions, minus music, without too much of a sweat.  Let's just say that we made up for all that missing perspiration when we tackled the music issue.

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First, like so many other couples in today's world, we tossed around the idea of an iPod reception.  While we liked the cost-savings and the modern twist on a DJ or a band, we weren't interested in having to troubleshoot electronics at our own wedding.  And we all know that when you really really need something to work and be stress-free, it goes completely haywire at the most inopportune moment.  To put it mildly, troubleshooting any moderately stressful situation isn't really either of our strong suits.  After about 2 seconds of thought, we said "Adios" to the iPod option.

 

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I'd like to say that we considered a band... but that would make me a liar.  I knew that finding a band in Johnstown (or the surrounding area) that could match what we wanted in terms of skill, availability, and repertoire, would be beyond daunting.  Not to mention the fact that finding the time to get from Pittsburgh to Johnstown in order to meet the bands and see a sample performance would be a hassle and a half.  In theory, we could have explored the wedding band scene in Pittsburgh and likely had more success.  But, that solution still requires a lot of work, and probably more money, than GG or I were interested in expending.  A band wasn't ever really an option, so once the iPod got the axe, we went off in search of our DJ.

All we really wanted out of our reception entertainment was someone to help direct the flow of events at the reception, play good music that would get the dance floor packed, and pretty much fade into the background beyond those expectations.  I wasn't interested in hiring someone who's looking to bust into show-biz and using the wedding industry as a launch pad for his comedy career.  Or his karaoke career.  Those were my basic requirements, so I expected to knock this decision out in a few short phone calls.  I contacted the only DJ I had ever seen at a Johnstown wedding, waited patiently for the quote, and then pooped my pants after seeing the cost of his services.  Suffice it to say, it was more than I had anticipated spending on the DJ, period.  Unhappily, I went back to the internet to hopefully track down someone who could perform professionally without charging what I considered to be too much.

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Stay tuned to learn more about my education in wedding DJs! 

How did you decide on iPod, band, or DJ?