Using my background in sports announcing, I had the pleasure of being the emcee and official DJ for this year’s Great American Mud Run in Pattersonville, NY.
All of the dirt and sweat took place at a familiar backdrop to Upstate, NY residents; The Indian Lookout Country Club of Mariaville, home of the world famous Harley Rendezvou, and also Club Bisco.
The Great American Mud Run 2013 in Pattersonville, NY
Despite droves of teams coming out for the run, the competition was fierce. America’s “muddiest 5k obstacle course race awarded cash prizes to four lucky finishers!
There was guts and gore and blood and mud in this crazy obstacle run.
I played a mix of hair band 80’s metal and also some of today’s hits to a thousand or so of the muddiest athletes you have ever scene.
The run wasn’t all the fun… We also had some official merchandise giveaways including an air guitar and the first ever, open invitational muddy YMCA dance contest.
I appropriately played “Talk Dirty To Me” by Poison for the air guitar contest.
We gave away tons of muddy T-shirts, sun glasses and there was a bunch of fun by all. Before each wave of competition, I was able to throw hundreds of sunglasses out to the runners to try and keep them from getting “mud in their eyes.”
Here is a video of the muddy YMCA dance-off.
In case you made it to the run, here are some pictures of the 2013 event. See if you can spot yourself!
As weird as Flavor Flav is, he knows the importance of time
WHAT DOES PROFESSIONAL MEAN?
Arriving early really means something. Today, I just wanted to spend a little time giving out my thoughts on DJ’ing this past weekend and why professionalism matters.
We had five gigs this weekend. I personally had an awesome wedding in Esperance, NY way up on a mountain on Saturday and Sunday was a Sweet 16 in Schenectady. The wedding came off without a cuff, but the Sweet 16 brought about something worthy to blog on.
First off, it is safe to say that if you want to be successful in life, you have to put in the extra time. We have found that one thing that helps us to get a ton of gigs over other disc jockeys, and one thing that makes for a successful party is …to BE EARLY.
UP TO TWO HOURS EARLY? Yes. Being “on time,” is not good enough. That is why I often prefer to be up to an hour and a half to two hours early to set up for important events like weddings, corporate events and sweet 16s. This gives me enough time to problem solve the unexpected and pay attention to fine detail so everything comes off without a problem.
At his particular Sweet 16, one of the kids wanted to be “DJ Helper.” When this happens, I play along and let them take a few unbreakable things from my car and bring them into the venue with me. While unloading a few gear bags my Jeep Patriot, I pushed my door shut with my hip. The helper kid from the party tried to follow my lead and help me by also shutting my passenger door on the driver side… right where my keys were sitting. When the door shut, the electronic brain of the car thought I was in the car with a large portion of my unloaded gear. Therefore my car decided to help me, as well, by locking the doors.
If I hadn’t been an hour and a half early, I would not have had time to call the police, then the Sheriff, then a towing company to finally find a person available to unlock my doors and let me unload the rest of my gear. If I wasn’t early, I wouldn’t have had enough time to still set up and have everything come off without skipping a beat.
The party still came off and with a tip at the end, to boot! (And the tip just about covered the tow truck fee!)
It is not impossible, sometimes, to book that DJ that you had your heart set on when looking at a small venue.
Today, sound systems have become smaller, more efficient and spacial-wise EVEN BETTER.
More and more we are seeing that bride and grooms like to show individuality by booking their favorite hangouts as the place-to-be for their destination wedding. At a recent wedding taking place at The Lodge At Saratoga Raceway, we were posed with a tight DJ set up, in order to utilize the hardwood flooring effectively.
If we set up anywhere other than where we had, it would have infringed on the possibility of a full dance floor experience. Therefore, we had to improvise.
Setting on the staircase was tight, but we aim to please. This opened up the entire dinning room minus tables and created an ample enough space for the night to rock! Our makeshift dance floor was instantaneously transformed to keep the party pumping into midnight!
Due to a scheduling mix-up conflict, the photography company you had booked didn’t make it to the event. Therefore, we stepped up to make the pictures happen. While didn’t have the exact equipment we would have liked to for the shoot, with uplighting and backdrop, the shots still look pretty good! Hopefully, we helped save the day!
TO SAVE… Click once to view large, then just double click on the ones you like, then right click to save! (You can also click on the large picture itself to browse through all the pictures in the large view window.)
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Please… If you really appreciate the freebie pics and had a good time, please like us on our DJ FACEBOOK PAGE !!!
Your wedding DJ’s set up should not look like a flea market explosion
HOW TO KNOW IF YOUR DJ IS GOOD OR BAD
Being in the disc jockey and entertainment business now since 1994, there are some things that I consider to be traits of a BAD DJ. These are practices that we, personally, stay away from.
If you are in the market for a DJ and, perhaps, able to see one operate live in action, there are a number of things you should really look for. There are many wedding DJ’s that care very little about the appearance of their presentation, despite the elegance of the wedding hall/venue.
PAYING ATTENTION TO FINE DETAIL – Having worked all around Capital Region as a DJ (and in the entertainment field all over the country,) I have seen the effort first hand that goes into creating a romantic and eye-catching room for wedding receptions and other formal occasions. Therefore, I can’t understand why “professional DJs” would under mind these efforts with their lackluster actions, but they do.
As a DJ from from the Albany, New York area, there are many things that may work here and may not work somewhere else in the world. However, the traits defined below and the following picture gallery could very well indicate a bad DJ.
Before you select a wedding DJ, the single most important element relating to the success in your entertainment value of your reception, ask to see pictures or videos at weddings, ask for references. If you are not sure if your DJ prospect is bad or not, here is a list of things to look out for when trying to identify “The Dad Wedding DJ”:
Top 10 Signs of a Bad Wedding DJ
1) WIRES, WIRES, & MORE WIRES
Nothing gets me more wired than seeing a lots of wires. You should really NEVER see much of any wires, at all. This mess is an eyesore and lacks professionalism.
2) TALKING UP RECORDS
A mobile DJ is not a radio DJ. Too much talking, especially during dance time, slows the fun and kills the dance floor. Your audience does not need to hear the artist names and the title of the song they are about to hear.
3) “LOOK AT ME!”
Stealing the spotlight is wrong. While a wedding DJ is, in fact, booked to entertain, the newlyweds are not looking to pay for a four hour stand up comedy act, or someone trying to use their event as a commercial to further their business.
Shameless Self Promotion
A DJ’s personality should be peppered in as a season, but not the main course. Some DJ’s really just like to hear the sound of their own voices, and chime in with way too much to say. They attempt to be funny and always try and get the last word in like Ron Burgundy. This steals the spotlight from the bride on her special day.
DJ’s also should NOT ADVERTISE DURING YOUR WEDDING! That means they should not have a massive banner or sign promoting their business during your wedding. Who wants a DJ commercial in half of their wedding pictures? They are being paid to work for you, not to promote their business / name during your time.
At very most, a business card can be handed upon request, but further self promotion is cheesy and shameless.
4) DEAD AIR & NO BLEND
is absolutely terrible. A second or two of silence between songs is just enough to entirely kill the dance floor. Dead air gives the reluctant dancer an immediate reason to sit down. If the DJ is using a laptop but there is dead air between every song, they are probably not using a professional DJ program. Shame on them. (One way they try and hide this is to talk between EVERY song so they can cut the slow fade. See if you can catch this!)
5) MIXING IT UP
A DJ should never play the same type of music for extended periods of time.
Lots of little “rock blocks” of many particular types of music / genres is the best way to keep diverse crowds happy as a whole. A good host wants everyone to have fun, not just a select few. Therefore, your DJ should put in a little something for everyone all through the night.
Just a mustache…
6) JUST A MUSTACHE
Just a mustache is bad. You can have one with a beard or a goatee, or even perhaps the exception: a Fu-Manchu Hulk Hogan-style mustache, if you really really think you can rock it. However, the Chuck Norris mustache by itself is a “no-no.”
If your DJ has just a mustache, look out! No matter how bad-ass your DJ may profess to be, he is not Tom Selleck, he is not Burt Reynolds, and he certainly is NOT Chuck Norris.
7) TOO MUCH TO DRINK DJ
If your DJ goes right to the bar when he gets there, this is bad. I can see one or two maybe, but when your DJ is stripping on the bar like Coyote Ugly… please…
8) DELILAH SHOW PLAYLIST
Have you ever been to a wedding that is all old 80’s love ballad songs (like Richard Marx) even after dinner? Too many old slow tunes is LAME! Out of date, means out of touch with today. That means your general base of guests will be hearing music that they do not relate to.
9) “I KNOW BEST”
If during a planning session, your ALBANY NY DJ or any DJ in the world gives the impression that he doesn’t take requests well or even at all, run far away. Some DJ’s think they have created the all-purpose, one-size-fits-all golden playlist, and their agenda is to force it on you. While your DJ’s expertise can really help in the creation of a playlist, they NEED TO BE FLEXIBLE. It is your night, and you are paying them to play music that you want to hear.
Bad DJ’s default to outdated schtick like The Chicken Dance, Celebrate, We Are Family & The Last Dance…
10) THE CHICKEN DANCE
Maybe 30 years ago you could say, “this is my jam,” but not today.
With all the modern activity / line dances that are out now, there is no reason to ever play this horrible track at a wedding, unless there are like 30 preschool or grade school kids in attendance.
If the bride & groom absolutely love this dance and have requested the DJ to play it, that is one thing. But when the DJ defaults on this song on his own accord, and follows it up with “Celebrate,” and “We Are Family,” then ends the night with “Last Dance,” your DJ is officially an OLD FART…
THE SEARCH FOR A GREAT ALBANY NY DJ
Below are some pictures of bad DJs. It pains me to see flea market explosions , gear purchased at Job Lot, and out-dated eyesore set-ups that kill the atmosphere. There is no excuse for it. Cables should always be hidden. Lighting hardware shouldn’t dominate the room, and speakers shouldn’t come from The Salvation Army.
If you choose a wedding DJ in the Albany NY area that will not bring the traits you see listed above or in the pictures below, drop us a line. You can reach via phone or TEXT at 518-506-3305. Thank you!
(518) 506-3305. Affordable wedding DJ / disc jockey in Lake George, NY with a complete library of new music & classics. Also – Digital Photography & Lights!
NEW HITS & ALL THE CLASSICS: Want top quality in music entertainment and disc jockey services for your wedding reception in Lake George, NY. TheDJservice.com mixes today’s best new music with all your favorite throwbacks and classics, right in Lake George, NY.
MUSIC SELECTION – THERE ARE NO RULES! Want to have a hand in creating the wedding playlist? No problem! You can have a hand in creating the playlist, or just leave it up to us!
#1 LOCAL DJ SERVICE IN LAKE GEORGE: DJ Kenny Casanova and TheDJservice.com is #1 for most DJ related searches in the Lake George, NY area. If you are looking for a DJ with local experience at Fort William Henry wedding Hall, or Dunham’s Bay, look no more!
YOUR LAKE GEORGE DISC JOCKEY & WHAT WE BRING TO THE PARTY:
DJ Kenny Casanova -Call/Text 518-506-3305
•200,000 song library
•DJ/MC experience since 1996
•Professional Photography “The DJ Cam”
•Interactive events, dances, & activities
•Digital Slide Show Projector
• Music Video Package
•Voted #1 Karaoke DJ in Lake George
•Radio Personality Experience
•Ring Announcer Experience: WWF / WWE
•Biggest Laser Show in Lake George, NY
•Professional Gear Bose L1 Stick & Peavey
•Very affordable prices!!!
CONTACT US NOW FOR WEDDINGS AND EVENTS AROUND LAKE GEORGE NEW YORK!
LAKE GEORGE WEDDING DJ SERVICES: If you want an affordable experienced DJ for your wedding reception with countless local venue hall relationships, our local Lake George New York office serves points around TheDJservice.com serves customers from points in Lake George Village, Bloody Pond, Crosbyside, Diamond Point, the west shore of Lake George, Fort William Henry, Lake George, south end of Lake GeorgeBig Hollow, and the town of Lake George, and over at Prospect Mountain, all on a regular basis for wedding disc jockey mobile DJ services.
Lake George, NY… Thank you for the call! Here is a video of a Typical DJ Kenny Casanova Wedding Intro, with the ring announcer energy many request!
