Wedding band or DJ? YOU decide!

When it comes to entertainment for your wedding, music can make or break the party, so you need to make the right decision. But what is the right choice?

Deciding between a wedding band or a DJ is a tough decision and seeking advice from your family and friends doesn’t make it any easier at all!

With this in mind, I spent some time quizzing couples in one of the biggest wedding groups on Facebook to find out what they had to say about choosing between a wedding band or a DJ.

Here’s what they said…

Our decision to get married was a bit last-minute so it was just easier to book a DJ than find a band – Wendy

We didn’t want the hassle of auditioning bands so went with a DJ as it was far easier – Alicia

I was put in charge of entertainment and I wanted a band so that’s what I organised. They were amazing! – Tom

When it came down to the budget, we went for a DJ; we didn’t realise bands could be so expensive! – Sandy

Easy decision…DJ!!! Takes up less space, is cheaper, better range of songs, it was a no-brainer for us – Michaela

We had the band my husband plays in, and it was great to watch him playing along with his bandmates! – Sarah

A band for sure, they were great at working for the crowd and got everyone dancing! – Maria

Band! It’s all about the energy! – Charlie

I wanted a band but my partner wanted a DJ. He won in the end but it was a great night anyway! – Amy

If I want to listen to Guns n Roses, I’ll listen to the original artist, not a band trying to be them! DJ every time! – Paul

You can’t beat live music, but bands don’t have a variety of music to appease all ages so, in the end, we chose a DJ – Heather

Originally we wanted a band until we saw a DJ at a friend’s wedding, and booked him on the spot! – Sammy

When it came down to it, we either booked a band who played a wide range of songs all in the same style, or we booked a DJ and got all the songs we liked playing in the original style we were used to. It was a simple decision really for us – Jonathan

We wanted someone who could take care of all the music during the day, and we couldn’t find a band who could do that for us, so we went with a DJ and had an amazing party! – Laura

We had a mixed experience while looking for a DJ; some were either too full-on wanting us to book their top package while others were set in their ways when it came to music. We found a great band one night in a bar and went with them. They were fantastic, and brought a DJ with them too! – Sara

Weddings are unique events

My best advice if you are considering a band is to ask them if they have any previous wedding experience.

Most bands sound great in pubs and can rock the joint but when it comes to weddings, they suck! Not because they’re rubbish at playing instruments, they don’t have that…whatever “it” is that gets the wedding party rocking.

Sometimes you’ll also find that whilst the energy levels are high when they’re playing, between songs, folk on the dance floor tend to drift away whilst the band work out what the next song is. Sometimes these gaps can be 30 seconds or more and whilst that isn’t a long time, it is when you’re just stood there on the dance floor waiting… and waiting… and waiting.

What happens during a break?

Your chosen band may do two or three 45-minute sets so that could be just over 2 hours of playing time. If your event is 5 hours long, what happens during the other 3 hours? Do they bring a DJ with them? Do they just play background music through an iPad? It’s an important question to ask.

Wedding function bands

Take time to check out some wedding function bands. They keep the energy levels high throughout their sets but they also usually come at a high cost.

There are two bands I’ve seen that were absolutely amazing:

The first is The Redfords, an award-winning live band covering Kent, Essex and Sussex. I saw them at a friend’s wedding and they totally smashed it!

The second is the LDN Show Band. I saw them at a wedding in August 2024 and I was there with my photo booth team. Their energy levels were insane and they covered a wide range of different types of music from soul and funk to garage and dance. Well worth looking at!

Wrap up

I hope this post has helped you a little bit. Both a wedding band and a DJ have a wide range of skills (and music) that they can bring to a party. Other than that, it’s all down to your tastes.

Don’t forget, I’m here to help so if you have any questions just fill in my short contact form.  You can also email me directly at hello@ianforest.com or call/text or WhatsApp me at 07799 782764!

Byeeee!