Top 5 Tips for Choosing Your Wedding Reception Playlist

Wedding Music

Oftentimes, when people talk about how much fun they had at a wedding, what they’re really talking about is how much fun they had at the wedding reception.

For many couples, the wedding reception is also one of the parts of their wedding they look forward to the most, as it finally feels like you’ve reached the point where you can kick back and relax.

A fun, memorable reception all starts with a killer wedding playlist.

Check out our top 5 tips for choosing an awesome wedding reception playlist.

1. Start Planning Early

A reception playlist really isn’t something you want to try and crank out at the last minute, as you will likely regret putting in certain songs and leaving out others.

Therefore, it’s a good idea to start curating your playlist about four to five months beforehand.

This should give you plenty of time to narrow down your choices and put them in an order that feels right. This way, you can also tinker with it sporadically and then come back to it with fresh ears to tweak later on.

2. Look at Your Existing Music Collection

Sometimes, when couples aren’t sure which songs to choose, they Google wedding playlists and use one of those.

While this can be a great idea for getting some songs, such as the Top 50 Father Daughter Dance Song Ideas, you don’t want to completely use someone else’s playlist.

It’s important to make a playlist that’s in line with your tastes and your personality. Therefore, there’s no better place to start than with your own music collection!

Just scroll through your Spotify, and choose songs that appeal to you.

And remember, not every song needs to have a special meaning. Really liking the song is enough reason to play it!

3. Choose the Right Amount of Songs

You don’t want to waste your time picking out a bunch of songs that aren’t going to get played. But, you also don’t want to make your guests listen to repeats.

You’ll want to choose about 15 songs for every hour of your reception. So, if your reception is 4 hours long, then you should have 60 songs chosen. You should separate the list into “Must Play” songs and “Play if Possible” songs. Also, make sure you leave about 20 songs for the DJ to choose on their own.

Just let your DJ know what genre you’d like to stick with, and they’ll take care of the rest.

Wedding Reception Music

4. Use Line Dances as Ice Breakers

Sometimes, it can feel like pulling teeth to get people out on the dance floor.

One great way to get those shy dancers out there is to start with some line dance songs that everyone can feel comfortable dancing to. Examples of these would be songs like Cupid Shuffle or Electric Slide.

Then, once there are some good numbers on the dance floor, the DJ can jump into songs that you really want to hear and that are more inline with your preferences.

5. Talk to Your DJ

Even though no one knows your musical tastes better than yourself, don’t hesitate to talk to the DJ for some help.

Remember, DJs are real pros who curate awesome playlists for a living. So, don’t be afraid to show them your playlist and ask for some honest feedback.

Also, the DJ is sort of in charge of the dance floor, so you’ll want to discuss with them your policy on guest requests, dance floor action, etc.

With these tips, you are sure to have an awesome playlist and reception!

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