FLOOR FILLERS: HOW TO CREATE THE ULTIMATE WEDDING PLAYLIST

by Rosie Williams May 05, 2020

Music is such an important part of a wedding day, it creates atmosphere, stirs emotions and gets the party started! With food tastings and venue visits off the cards at the moment, why not use the time to work out when you want to play music over the course of the day (and believe us, it’s more often than you realise!) and spend time pulling together the ultimate playlist. Don’t know where to start? Below are some tips and tricks from us as well as some of our favourite OWN bride dancing shots…

When to play music

When I first came to planning my wedding I thought choosing a band = music sorted but then I realised there are so many other points in the day where music can play an important role, starting with getting ready on the wedding morning. You will have a good few hours with your bridesmaids getting ready before the guests arrive - make sure you’ve got a good playlist of songs that make you smile, or delegate this to your friend with the best taste in music.

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Walk through the wedding day as a guest, think about each stage of the day and whether playing music at that moment would create an even better vibe. If you’re getting married at a venue, where are your guests gathered before you arrive? If it’s in a welcome space it’s a great time to play some low-key music that helps build anticipation.

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Introducing music into the drinks reception after the ceremony is a sure-fire way of creating a buzzy atmosphere - this might be a playlist or it could be that you ask a few members of the band to come early to play an acoustic set. Dancing before dinner is something both Jess and I did at our weddings and it was one of my favourite parts of the day - not everyone is expecting it and it immediately brings everyone together.

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Other key music moments to remember (aside from walking down the aisle and the first dance!) are: the moment you walk into the venue/marquee as a married couple, the song that comes after the first dance (you want this to be a real floor-filler), background music during dinner, songs in between the band’s sets and recovery day music.

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Choosing your music

I didn’t expect the process of choosing our music to be so much fun, you forget how many classics there are out there and how many songs carry memories. It’s worth taking some time over. For each section of the day think about the tone and mood you want to create and group your songs together according to that. Using the Spotify radio function not only helps you find songs you’ve forgotten about but you also discover some great music along the way. Why not ask each guest to include a favourite song with their RSVP so you have a ready-made list of songs your guests love.

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If you have a spread of generations at your wedding it’s always worth mixing old-school classics with your favourite current tracks so everyone recognises something! If you have a DJ instead of/as well as a band, make sure you give him your black list of songs you hate too - you don’t want to end up wanting to leave your own dance-floor!