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It Shouldn’t Happen to a DJ

Posted on 12 September, 2023 by admin

DJing can bring us into many different situations. Some of which can be exciting, some challenging, but most rewarding.

Here are some stories from different situations I have found myself in.

The Show Must Go On…

I was loading into a less familiar local venue for a birthday party, and I worked out the most efficient load in. This involved stepping over an 18-inch-high wall, rather than wheeling up a longer ramp. My roadie was arriving independently and was nearly there. I stepped back over the wall to get more equipment from the car. As I stepped over, I forgot about a small slope of concrete along the length of the wall and went flying in the car park as I did so. I was in shock and some pain. People came running as they heard me yell. I received paracetamol, a stool for my knee or to sit on and ice in a tea towel from the venue manager and help with the equipment from my roadie. My ankle had a swell night and I called my husband who brought crutches and ice packs from the house. Did this stop me? Oh no! I played for the whole night. My husband later returned in an Uber to drive me, the roadie and equipment in my car home. When it seemed no better the next day, a trip to A&E showed a break. I made sure the following week I had lots of help, plus my husband had to do the driving for a few weeks.

Coventry…

When we were serving a famous clothing brand on a regular basis I went to DJ for the opening of a store. I set up outside the shop facing the open space in a pedestrian area. I thought it rather strange when a man started pacing up and down with a clipboard after putting some tape from one side to the other of the middle of the square space. I was even more puzzled when he came up to me with the clipboard and asked if I was part of the East or West of Coventry. I replied I wasn’t from Coventry, so neither. He then said “yes, but are you with the East or West side?” I just shook my head and said, “I am not from around here”.

He seemed to be approaching others asking questions.

I took a lunch break, putting on a mix that would last long enough for me to have a sandwich. I just got tucked in when I thought it odd the music had stopped… then the manager rushed upstairs to ask me to fix it. I came down to find the volume had been moved. I put it back up, and the clipboard man came back and moved it down again! I moved it back up, and when he went to touch my mixer again, I went in to tell the manager what was happening. She ran outside and said, “It’s Dom Jolly from Fool Brittania!” She was quite excited. It didn’t air. It goes to show though, you can certainly get some surprises when DJing!

End of the night surprise

At a wedding I was happily leading up to the end of the night, preparing for the last song. I like as many people to be gathered for the last song as a finale to the party. All of a sudden, a bunch of young men started running up onto the balcony above me. I then saw that all guest’s eyes were on these young men and that many guests were cheering and pointing at the balcony. I asked a guest what was happening and was told the young men were stripping! Soon I had the duty manager at my side as he had come to find out what all the cheering was about. As the venue had a strict end time policy I asked him; “Please can I play one more song?” The manager agreed it would be appropriate to do so. I asked everyone to make a circle around the dance floor and we returned the attention to the newlyweds.

“Best Night of My Life” ….

I was about to pack down after a wedding and the Best Man came up to me and said “thank you so much, it’s been the best night of my life!” to which I replied “I’m so glad you enjoyed it, would you like a card?” to which he replied “No but I’d love a hug!”

I obliged. 🙂

Working in Film and Television

Posted on 25 November, 2022 by admin

I remember the excitement Sam and I shared when Dr Who were looking for DJ equipment for a wedding scene. I asked them if it wouldn’t be useful to also have an actual DJ on set to operate the equipment and play the part? The answer was yes! Sam was able to set up as he would for a wedding at Miskin Manor and experience the unique and exacting creation of film. You can see this episode here (Sam appears in the last 10 minutes)

Doctor Who, Series 5 Episode 13, The Big Bang

I had a similar experience some 10 years later, when DJ equipment was being sought for the drama series The Pact. I am in the background providing the DJ set up and lighting for episode 1 and 4 of series 1. This was in the middle of the pandemic, and mask wearing was a constant rule on set until the director said “And set…” Covid Testing was a prerequisite, as it still is in 2022.

What is it like?

There is a lot of preparation and testing, and at least one rehearsal for each shot. Sometimes there can be around 6 takes of the same scene. The reason is often that in order to get the multiple camera angles without getting crew in the shot there will need to be a repeat of the same action for each angle. There is also the fact that there are slight differences between each take in terms of how the actors and support artists perform it. There is a lot of discarded footage in the cutting room!

Often actors and support artists will be asked to dance in silence as if there is music and the music is layered over the top afterwards. This is so that they can record the speech of the actors clearly.

There are frequently long days and it isn’t possible to get an understanding of the whole story of a given episode, as each scene will only contain a small part of the bigger picture. If the story takes place at night and the filming occurs in the day, then windows need to be blacked out. If filming of day takes place in the dark, then often large cranes will supply artificial daylight through the windows. We have also provided equipment and DJ for two different scenes on the Sky series Extinction, for Casualty, and also equipment for Y Golau and Pobl Y Cwm.

How to create the perfect First Dance.

Posted on 13 March, 2020 by Paul Baker

The first dance is significant for so many couples. It is another moment where you are the centre of attention. For some this is a glorious thing, and for others it is fearsome. There are a few ways to approach it before you even consider what you will dance to.

Performance
This is where you either just throw yourselves into it with spontaneity and have fun in an unstructured way or get dance classes to prepare you. Either get the dance choreographed by a professional, or use skills learnt in classes to choreograph your own. Some people involve the bridal party and have their DJ create a mix of different songs.

Private moment shared
Basically, this way forward is where you consider this a moment of tenderness and intimacy between you that others just happen to witness. You forget everyone else who is there and look into the eyes of your beloved. It doesn’t matter if you are just swaying in an embrace, or dancing with a little more animation. Everyone present is there to celebrate your official status as a married couple and they support you and feel delight in that.

Let’s get this over with…
Okay, so you are super embarrassed, and want everyone to just get on with partying and you want this over with, but feel obliged… so you ask your DJ to bring others to the dance floor part way through the dance. If you fall into that category, be assured that this is the same for many couples. It’s okay!

Nope! We are not going to conform!
So you are adamant that you will not follow this tradition. For whatever your personal reasons whether embarrassment or rebellion against tradition, there is no first dance. This is a party. Everyone just enjoy dancing please, don’t mind us!

So unless you are in the last category, you need to choose a song or track. I see posts about this on wedding Facebook groups regularly, and it led me to the decision to write this article.

What are the best First Dance songs for my Wedding?

Some more unusual choices-
Enya – Flora’s. Secret
The Flight of the Conchords – The Most Beautiful Girl (In The Room)
Greenday – Good Riddance (Time of your Life)
The Muppets – Life’s a Happy Song – faded into Time Warp
Jonathan Coulton – Baby Got Back

Please remember, this is about you as a couple. It can be romantic, it can be fun, it can take you back to a happy moment, it can be something that everyone else will happily join in with. Either way, we hope your choice brings smiles to people’s faces.

If you’d like to learn more about the services we provide or need help planning your wedding. Please CONTACT US.

An interesting week in August

Posted on 2 October, 2019 by June Cecilia

We had an interesting week in August. Most of our events happen on a Friday or Saturday, but this week we had some unusual days and interesting events.

Monday we were at RWCMD in the Union bar. We were providing entertainment for an annual event that they were hosting this year. A bunch of NUS officers were having a conference. This day proved that you can Conga to anything- even recent chart tunes if you want!

Wednesday I was DJing for the 18^th Birthday of a past 50^th Birthday client. We had some great dancing- especially considering it was a Wednesday!

Thursday I was DJing for the “I Wish I Went To Prom” Prom with Capital FM. This took place at The Philharmonic, and it was totally fun to be part of the team and provide entertainment for people who never went to their Proms back in the day. It was fun working with Kally and Josh the Wales teatime presenters, and Matt Lissack, who used to present Breakfast.

Friday I was expecting a quiet evening… but around lunchtime I received a call from Charlotte who was organising a surprise 30^th birthday party for her husband Marc. Two weeks is a short time to plan a party beginning to end… and the day of the party is quite short notice to book a DJ. I was delighted to help, and she was over the moon. Small touches like the light box with his name on it were appreciated.

Saturday I was DJing for a 60^th Birthday of a good friend of mine, Kathy Plaster who is Principal of 344 Dance Centre and The Dance Station in Bristol. The entertainment was full and varied, and she was honoured as she should by many appreciative friends and past pupils. Oscar Anderson who has played a Porter on Casualty- almost since the start of the series was there as guest. As I do a little film extra work myself, it was nice to see him in a social context. He kindly helped my load the car at the end!

A busy busy night!

Posted on 26 January, 2019 by June Cecilia

8th December was very busy for SGDJs. I was pleased to see that all of the bookings were for returning clients.

Joff was at City Hall, DJing for a charity event for Orthopaedic doctors, with Lizzie on the Selfie Wizard. The Assembly room holds up to 500 people, and so the Platinum package it had to be. Podiums and moving heads plus gobo lights on the booth were provided. A great night was had by all, and we are looking forward to seeing them again in 2020.

June was in Penarth serving a client who was hosting a work party. A musical theme of 70’s and 80’s Disco, complete with mirror ball and fancy dress was totally fun.

James was at St Athan partying until the small hours.

Alex was in Newport for a Christmas party and Paul was at another!

So remember- we are a team. We have more than one DJ to go around. Try us for size … any size!

House Party to mega big. 🙂

Why Selfie Wizard?

Posted on 6 December, 2018 by June Cecilia

A new innovation is on the scene- if you haven’t experienced it yet, maybe it is time!

It’s not a photo booth, it’s not a magic mirror… it is a way of collating and sharing photos taken on electronic devices during your event. How better to get pictures taken from various aspects of the venue and party and capture all the fun, not just pictures of those brave enough to go to a booth?

Everything goes on to a memory stick for you that you keep.

Takes up very little space- that of either our TV screen or projector and screen if fitted in the venue. Our wedding this week was a party who had real fun with it.

Discounts when booked with a DJ package, but also available as a separate hire.

Silent Disco Haverfordwest

Posted on 17 January, 2018 by June Cecilia

I was invited to provide both equipment and DJ services for Silent Event for a Silent Disco at Haverfordwest. It was such fun for both DJs and participants. We had a channel each, and each channel was represented by a coloured light on the headsets as dancers tuned into respective channels. My channel was red. I started out assessing the age group, and played predominantly dance music from 00’s and 90’s.

Near the end it seemed appropriate to turn to more rock and pop music. This was the point when my followers began to increase. The spread of followers was pretty constant and diverse between the three of us, but by the end a majority were following me. I would thoroughly recommend this method of pleasing more people for more of the time!

Wedding at Botannical Gardens of Wales ~ DJ June Cecilia

Posted on 6 August, 2014 by Sam Gould

Avile and William were married on 2nd August. We had many communications before the day, planning and sharing ideas. The Marquee in the gardens is a pleasant place for a wedding. We provided background music for the reception, which was begun with “Spring” from the Four Seasons by Vivaldi for them to be welcomed into the room.

There were 3 courses served at dinner, accompanied by a largely classical background playlist. Speeches were given and recorded, and a competition between the guests for what the length of the speeches would be, as devised by the best man, David.

A mix of old and new music, sprinkled with some Spanish music as selected by Avile. A good time was had by all.

Wedding 1st dance Botannical Gardens of Wales

Wedding dance

Tony & Mo’s Joint 65th Birthday @ East Glos Club, Cheltenham

Posted on 31 July, 2014 by Sam Gould

Tony & Mo had a Great Gadsby Theme, which meant there were lots of lovely period styled outfits worn. I played 20’s music for the early part of the evening- up until the buffet. The food was lovely- provided by venue staff, and the warm weather meant some enjoyed sitting outside to eat.

Plenty of disco dancing- music from 50’s through to the present day.

Our hosts!

Lighting

Tom & Alicia’s Wedding, Stonehouse

Posted on 3 June, 2014 by Sam Gould

Tom and Alicia had a cool, but dry day for their wedding. I set up for the ceremony in the main venue, and played music to keep guests entertained until the registrar and bride arrived. Some very apt ceremony choices musically- “Marry me” by train, 1000 years by The Piano Guys as Alicia entered… just a couple of examples.

The wedding breakfast was in the annexe function room. We had up lighters in the corridor as well as the function room to match the colour scheme of purple, and an extension speaker in the bar, to facilitate anyone in the bar being able to hear both music and announcements. Tom added some fun to the speeches with scratch cards. There was some money won!

Music selections included a mix of dance, rock, and some classics and chart. A very happy wedding party, with plenty of good humour and love in the room.

1st dance

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