10 Seasons of Music!

2021 was my tenth season of DJing. And if that milestone wasn’t mind boggling enough, my last wedding of 2021 (in mid-December) was my 150th wedding!

On top of those 150 weddings, in the past ten seasons I’ve also DJed at 100 events, including corporate parties, family events and school dances, and 27 Name That Tune events… for a grand total of 277 events. Wow.

The amazing thing is that when I look through the lists of each year’s events, with only a few exceptions, I can remember every single one. And truthfully, the few events that I don’t remember are weddings I DJed while working for an agency that would usually only send me the couples’ names and details the day before the wedding.. so I didn’t have a lot of time to get to know them. As for clients that I’ve DJed through PopJukebox, when I often had many months and usually multiple meetings to get to know each couple… how could I forget any of you!?

Being part of your weddings, anniversaries, birthdays and school dances has brought me so much joy… ten seasons in, I still look at a dance floor filled with smiling people dancing to music that I love and I think to myself - how wild is it that I get paid to do this!?

While I could tell you something memorable about every event I’ve DJed… I’ve narrowed all of the memories and stories down to a highlight reel for you…

Highlights from 10 seasons as a wedding DJ…

My very first wedding…

The first wedding I ever DJed was a Super Mario themed wedding with a CMYK colour scheme. Honestly, kind of perfect for me, as I love weddings that have personal touches and I totally have a soft spot for a nerdy couple.

I’ll never forget this wedding. I’d been training as a DJ for a few months, working Name That Tune events at a horrible dive bar to become familiar with the equipment and shadowing my boss at weddings, and was eager to finally perform on my own. I’ve talked about this elsewhere, but when I took the job I really was looking for any job, and just thought I’d give DJing a try since it seemed to fit with my skill set at the time. I had no idea how much I would love DJing weddings, and how naturally it would come for me. But this wedding made that clear.

I don’t remember being nervous, but I remember feeling like each song choice was a do-or-die moment. Not long into the dance, a wedding guest came up to me and said ‘you know, I really thought you were going to suck, because every wedding I’ve been to, the DJ has sucked… but the music has been pretty great!’ Um… thanks?! Despite the backhanded compliment, I was truly encouraged to get positive feedback from a skeptic so early in the night.

I only have two blurry photos of the dance floor, but I remember it well… I remember some of the amazing 90s pop requests and I remember that this couple had mentioned that Disney’s Tangled was special to them so I played “I See The Light” as the last song, and the couple slow danced with tears in their eyes. Everything had gone perfectly.

As I was packing up, the venue staff told me I was the best DJ she’d ever heard, and even took the time the next day to email my boss and let him know how impressed she was. From wedding number one, I knew that I’d found my thing.

Two Unforgettable Corporate Events…

In 2014 I got to perform at an incredible corporate event. With extremely talented event planners, there was an atmosphere created at this event before I even started playing that made it easy to get all 400 guests on the dance floor at the same time. It was definitely a career highlight at the time - the largest event I’d DJed and a packed dance floor all night.

If that wasn’t a high enough, the week after that event, the organizers got in touch to say that they thought I did such a great job that they wanted to fly me to Toronto to do another event with the same format but even more guests. I cannot express how cool I felt to be boarding a flight with my controller in tow, escorted to the hotel in a black SUV, and fed room service for every meal. Not to mention another event where the atmosphere was so thoughtfully created that every. single. person. got on the dance floor.

More Highlights…

Clearly, I could go on and on about every event, but this post would be way too long and self indulgent for anyone else to enjoy. So from here I’m just going to share some photos and one sentence from the weddings and events that stand out most in my memory. Enjoy!

Kari + Elliot

Kari and Elliot’s dance floor was so much fun and finished with all of their loved ones surrounding the two of them and dancing to “Hina Na Ho (Celebration)” by Susan Aglukark. (Full blog post here.)

Kaelyn + Dylan

When I met Kaelyn and Dylan, I felt like we’d been friends for years. Their love for the Beatles was epic and made me feel right at home, and I even asked to get on the dance floor to Twist and Shout with them at the very end of the night - something I very rarely do! (Full blog post here.)

Brad + Deanna

I never got professional photos from this wedding… so here’s a horrible photo I took of the garter toss on my iPhone 4!

After an epic night of dancing, with a full dance floor for about four hours solid, Brad (the groom) walked over to me with a concerned look on his face. I was worried that I’d done something wrong or that there was a problem… until he leaned in to me and asked, “Hey Stacey…. do you know where my shoes are??”

Food Fight YEG

I got to DJ this amazing competition among some of Edmonton’s top chefs, and had a blast playing alternative music and creating a fun atmosphere for this unforgettable night.

SGCHS Grad

This grad was my biggest event yet - 2100 people!

Aaron + Carolyn

Aaron and Carolyn’s weddings was one of my favourite weddings ever… they have an amazing group of friends who know how to have a good time and have great taste in music. From newfie singalongs to old school hip hop, this wedding was one for the books. (Full blog post here.)

Mandy + Damon

Mandy and Damon’s wedding was intimate and unique, and another one where their friends were completely invested in celebrating with them… which always makes for a memorable dance floor. (Full blog post here.)

Jeff + Meaghan

This wedding was great, but what’s even better is that after the wedding these two became cherished friends to my husband and I. I’m forever grateful that my work brought us to each other! (Full blog post here.)

Savannah + Lance

Do I really need to say much when I have a photo of the groom with his tie around his head at the end of the night? Suffice to say that Savannah and Lance (and their friends and family) know how to party and I loved being part of it. (Full blog post here.)

Fraser + Anita

I’ve never seen friends more focused on celebrating a couple more than Fraser and Anita’s - almost the entire night was spent with the couple in the middle of the dance floor, surrounded by their friends dancing with them and cheering them on. (Full blog post here.)

Abby’s Birthday

I never know what to expect when I arrive at a small party in a private home… but Abby’s birthday exceeded all of my expectations! She and her friends danced the night away, along with a fun group of parents. Sometimes it blows me away how much fun I can have even when I’m performing for less than 20 people.

Lisa + Ryan

These two were crazy in love, changed into comfy clothes as soon as the dance started, and belted out a number of epic singalongs with their friends. Such a great night.

Frances + Ryan

There was no pro photographer at this wedding… but there was confetti.

They wanted fireworks at their wedding, but the venue didn’t allow it, so we coordinated the most epic confetti cannon moment… and it kicked off one of the most fun nights of dancing I’ve ever performed at.

Emily + Tony

These two kicked off their dance with a first dance that included them belting out the words to the Rod Stewart song they chose to dance to… and getting the whole crowd singing along too! And the rest of the night included a packed dance floor song after song… one of my favourite nights.

Amy + Darren

It was like -40 outside, but so cozy and romantic inside. Amy and Darren were sweet enough to invite my husband to come along to their wedding so we could ring in the new year together while I coordinated an epic confetti cannon countdown. So much fun!

Scott’s 70s Birthday

Scott and his wife planned a 70s-themed joint 40th birthday, and asked me to prepare as much disco and Soul Train-inspired music as possible. I arrived to find that they’d only invited 12 guests… but the commitment these people had to the theme and the dance floor did not disappoint!

WEM Waterpark

DJing at WEM Waterpark was so fun! It was a private event in what was definitely the largest room I’d ever performed in. Fun fact - Steve Aoki played in the same venue the night before I did!

Daisy + Alex

This wedding included an epic dance off that ended with the bride crowd surfing… need I say more!?

Gillian + Chris

Something about Gillian and Chris had these two feeling like friends from the first time we met… I loved getting to know them and their friends as we worked on my MC script together.

Chloe + Dan

We were supposed to finish at one am… we went until two am… we wanted to go until three but the venue kicked us out! Enough said. (Full blog post here.)

Justine + Ian

Yes, that is a photo of the groom being thrown in the air by his friends. And that was at the beginning of the evening! (Full blog post here.)

Bethany + Ryan

Ryan and Bethany’s wedding was the first one I did through Airwaves Music, and it couldn’t have been a better fit for me… amazing taste in music, silly and fun couple… and guests that were down to party until the venue kicked us out.

Melissa + Andrew

The first proper dance floor back after more than a year’s hiatus due to Covid… we danced the night away under the shade of a weeping willow. The sweetest couple and the classiest Harry Potter details. Perfection. (Full blog post here.)

Phew! If you made it this far, you’re a champion!

It seems like a lot, but this was just the top 25 memories of 277 events DJed… when I frame it like that I realize just how many events I’ve really performed at. 277 is a LOT!

I am so, SO grateful to keep doing what I love, and that couples keep inviting me to create memories with them on the dance floor. Thank you to every couple and every client who has trusted me over the past ten seasons - I’ve loved working with you.

And a huge special thanks to all of the photographers who I have had the privilege to work alongside and who have generously shared their photos with me.

Here’s to many more amazing dance floors in the years to come!

xoxo,

Stacey