Weddings, as everyone who’s ever helped organize one knows, have plenty of moving parts. One of the main ones is musical. On your special day, should you opt for a DJ or a band?
There are plenty of factors to consider, covering everything from price to musical preference. Here are a few things to consider if you’re trying to make a call:
Guests party in the rain during the Davis wedding in May, 2023.
Consider the cost
While price ranges vary for both DJs and bands, bands will generally be the more expensive of the two.
At a rough estimate, bands can cost anywhere from $2,000 to the tens of thousands. DJs, on the other hand, are usually a one- or two-person operation that often costs somewhere in the $700 to $1,200 range.
“As far as budget goes, bands are going to be more expensive,” said Michelle B. Charlot, of Baton Rouge wedding planners Poshed and Peachy. “Also, the bigger the band, the more money you’ll have to pay. Bands are just more expensive in general, and they can definitely get pricey.”
Factor in your venue
How big is your wedding venue? Is it inside or outside? What’s the layout like? All these can play a role in making your musical call. This is especially true, given their increased size and requirements, when it comes to bands.
“You have to factor in whether they require a stage, whether they’re indoor or outdoor,” Charlot said. “The weather, especially in Louisiana, is always going to be a factor. Whether it’s cold, hot or rainy, you’re going to have to accommodate that band.”
More on weather later. …
Decide what sort of feeling you’re going for
When it comes to creating a feel, or a vibe (if you will), bands have a presence that DJs lack. They come in different configurations, from classic wedding cover bands to jazz trios, making them malleable when it comes to particular situations.
Unsurprisingly, given the city’s popularity for destination weddings, second-line bands are particularly popular in New Orleans.
Lights twinkle inside the heated tent where wedding band Epic set up to entertain guests at Burden Museum & Gardens.
They’re also great for themed weddings — think disco bands or, say Kiss cover groups. DJs can’t quite replicate a shredding, acrobatic lead guitarist, after all.
Maybe do both
You don’t necessarily have to choose between the two. Depending on time and budget considerations, combining DJs and bands in a single wedding can prove a potent combination.
For her part, Charlot likes to start with a band and move to a DJ later on.
“I like the idea of starting it off a little slow and jazzy, then kind of picking it up after dinner,” she said. “A band can give you that live music jazzy feel, and then for the real party vibes — where people are ready to dance, they’ve eaten, they’ve started their cocktails and they’re ready to kick off their shoes and get down — a DJ can come in.”
Whichever way you go …
Party on the dance floor at the wedding of Frank Relle and Romy Mariano, June 15, 2019.
Most people tend to agree that both bands and DJs both have their strengths, so it’s hard to go too far wrong either way.
And then, of course, things can always take an unexpected turn anyway. Take the DJ at Hampton “Happy” Davis’ wedding in May in Algiers Point. The event had a star turn when a typically hot New Orleans day gave way to a sudden downpour.
“We were wandering around when, all of a sudden, these big drops started falling,” Davis’ mother, Angi, recalled. “The older ones ran off and got covered, but the younger ones started jumping up and down — they were having so much fun that … a lot of us just jumped in and started dancing in the rain. The DJ was cracking up at us going, ‘OK, we’re going to keep on going, then.'”
Davis said the DJ didn’t blink.
“He probably would have been mobbed if he had said he was going to shut down, so he just went with it,” Davis said, with a laugh. “It was great.”
So, instead of running for cover, the crowd danced the night away on a black and white checkered dance floor to The Weathergirls’ “It’s Raining Men” to create a memory none will soon forget.
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