2010: Year in Review

A lot has happened during the last half of the year - my goodness, it's been too long since we posted! To catch up, check out our page on Facebook.

Milestones
There are a couple of milestones that should be noted here. DJ Jon recently celebrated 10 years as a mobile DJ. That's right, 10 years ago this past Fall, he began as a DJ for WILY radio at Purdue and has been a DJ ever since. In addition, DJ Anna celebrated 15 years as a mobile DJ as of this past June, and you can read about it here.

Music
As per the usual, we're going to wrap up the year with a brief review of tunes that really stuck out at us this year. There was no real standout genre this year at the weddings we DJed, just a great mix of a variety of tunes from the 60s through today.

Hottest Songs
"You Shook Me All Night Long" - AC/DC
"SexyBack" - Justin Timberlake
"I Gotta Feeling" - Black Eyed Peas

Other Popular Songs
"We Are Family" - Sister Sledge
"My Girl" - The Temptations
"I'll Be" - Edwin McCain
"Like A G6" - Far East Movement
"Collide" - Howie Day
"The Way You Make Me Feel" - Micheal Jackson

Popular Special Event Songs
"Cinderella" - Steven Curtis Chapman (Bride/Father Dance)
"My Wish" - Rascal Flatts
"Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" - Beyoncé (Bouquet Toss)
"Foxy Lady" - Jimi Hendrix (Garter Toss)
"Remember When" - Alan Jackson (Anniversary Dance)

Songs We Dusted Off
"Bennie And The Jets" - Elton John
"She Don't Know She's Beautiful" - Sammy Kershaw

Started Fading in Popularity (Fewer Requests)
"Pour Some Sugar On Me"- Def Leppard (far fewer requests this year)
Zac Brown Band
Lady Gaga

Came Back to Popularity (More Requests)
"Old Time Rock And Roll" - Bob Seger (Lit up the dance floor!)
"Sweet Caroline" - Neil Diamond (many more requests this year)
The Beatles

Oddest Request
"Bennie And The Jets" - Elton John (Very popular, random song this year)


We wish you and yours a very happy New Year!

15 Years for DJ Anna!

About 15 years ago this weekend, I got my start soloing as a DJ.

The event was a church festival, and I was working for my father. We set up 2 rigs, one outside and one inside, and I DJed inside pretty much all afternoon and evening.

From then on, I was hooked.

I continued to do solo work at church festivals and hold the fort behind the board for my father during other events until I moved away to college. Although most of these events were for Greek folks and involved a lot of Greek music, I learned a lot about formal events and how to work with other vendors.

During college, I got somewhat involved in college radio, but focused primarily on my studies. I was an active member of WILY Radio as a radio DJ my freshman year and for part of my sophomore year. During my senior year, I rejoined as a mobile DJ and learned a lot about putting together sets and working a crowd. I stayed on as an alum for a year, then formed AMP Indiana with my then-boyfriend (now husband!) Jon McDonald. The rest, as they say, is history!

Like Us on Facebook!

Are you on Facebook? Check out our fan page!

Fan Page Link

We'll keep you updated on the latest news, photos, and blog posts. Become a fan today and don't forget to suggest the page to your friends!

2 Weddings and a Highlighter Party

Since January, we have DJed 2 wonderful, fun weddings and we have another wedding coming up this weekend. We also DJed a highlighter party a few weeks ago. It was a pinch hit for the students at Meredith Hall on Purdue's campus. They were in a bind, so we jumped in and used it as a good opportunity to work with the students at Harrison Hall Radio (WHHR) and mentor them further on the flow of an event. Some pictures are shown below, with the rest posted on our Facebook album.

Weddings

Highlighter Party

See more on Facebook!

ODJT Midwest Meet-N-Greet

Jon and I just spent the weekend with some wonderful DJs from the Our DJ Chat online forum. We met up right here in West Lafayette and activities included shopping at J L Records, enjoying peanut butter burgers and root beer at the Triple XXX, an afternon at the Christina & Company salon for the ladies...and LOTS of gear talk! We enjoyed hosting this Meet-N-Greet and hope to attend more in the future.

Thanks to all who attended!
Kirby & Coreen - Ball Photography and DJ Service
Randy & Carmen - Party Tunes DJ Service
Rob & Tracy - Total Impact DJ Service
Keith - Hired Power Entertainment
Scott & Hope - WHHR

A Friend in Need...

My good friend, Crystal, is tying the knot this August and I have the honor of being one of her bridesmaids. As a part of that role (and just being a pal in general), I offered to help her out with her wedding plans if needed. The email asking for help came just this past Thursday.

To put a long story short, Crystal had a DJ lined up for the date and he backed out, leaving a bride out of the entertainment for her wedding. I spent the rest of that day checking out DJ websites and phoning DJs, weeding them out to give Crystal some options. Since I am a DJ, I was able to cut through the sales pitches and right to the chase with a whole slew of questions. Besides, I felt like I was a pro about this from having done the exact same thing for my own wedding last year.

I found for her some DJs that are available, do written contracts, have decent gear, and should come in around the high end of her budget. In addition, I attended a bridal show this past weekend that is near her venue, and I was able to find a couple more DJs, a florist, and some wedding cake vendors. Phew!

It was interesting to learn about the DJ scene in a different market. Last year, I learned about vendors in eastern Massachusetts. This time around, I learned about a different region of Indiana. It's amazing what a 2-hour drive can reveal, whether it's "lake effect" snow or a very different wedding market.

I've mulled over the question of what I can take from this experience and one thing comes to mind: Price
Brides here in central Indiana don't realize how lucky they are, how much money they are saving!

A Note on Professionalism

I recently booked a wedding reception where we met up to discuss the reception details and contract on the day that our new clients were to attend a friend's wedding. A few days after their friend's wedding, my new client discussed in an email about the DJ from that night, that he plugged his services 3 or 4 times throughout the evening. According to my client, "he announced that he was available for weddings, graduations, parties in general, his phone number, and that he was cheap." What? WHAT?!

I didn't realize that there were vendors out there who did that, especially DJs. I think that those who bill themselves as professionals should know that! This is worse than The Banner Syndrome, which I think is already bad enough.

I assured my client - as I am assuring you all now - that we never plug ourselves on the mic. That is tacky and unnecessary. We set a few business cards in a holder by the request binder, so if people like our services, they can take a card and contact us later. Besides, it's easier than fishing around through a bag for a card. But that's all - no banners, no mic announcements, nothing else. It's your event, not ours.

Thanks for visiting!

Thanks to all who visited us at the Classic Elegance Bridal Expo last Sunday at the PMU! We had a great time meeting new couples and talking to folks who decided to take a second look at us from the week before. It was also nice to network again with different vendors before bridal season comes along in full swing. We're looking forward to working with these vendors again this year.

To the many couples who visited our booth inquiring about our DJ services: We look forward to meeting with you soon!

FCC Bans Use of Mics in the 700 MHz Band

"Under a new FCC rule, anyone who uses a wireless microphone that operates in the 700 MHz Band will have to stop operating their wireless microphone by June 12, 2010."

See article here: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/wirelessmicrophones/

The 700 MHz band was reserved last year for public safety usage and I think that it was a matter of time before that frequency was completely banned from other users. Besides, who really wants to listen to an ambulance radio call in the middle of the best man's toast?

Fortunately, our wireless microphone is still FCC compliant because it does not operate in that range. We have a high-quality wireless mic that operates in the 500 MHz range, strong enough and with multiple channels to avoid other interference.

Bridal Show at PMU this Sunday!

Join us this Sunday at the 2010 Classic Elegance Bridal Expo to benefit Family Services, Inc.

When: Sunday, Jan. 13th from Noon-4pm
Where: Purdue Memorial Union, North & South Ballrooms
Admission: $3 donation to Family Services, Inc.
Website: http://thebridalaffair.com/


Free parking is available in the Grant Street Parking Garage, across the street from the PMU.

Fun Time at the Show!

Thanks to all those who visited our booth at the Midwest Rentals Bridal Affair this past weekend! We had a lot of fun meeting recently engaged couples and networking with local vendors.

Midwest Rentals Bridal Affair

Come and join us this weekend at the 2010 Midwest Rentals Bridal Affair!

Where: University Plaza Hotel, West Lafayette

When: Jan. 9th, 10am-4pm & Jan. 10th, Noon-4pm

Website: http://www.lafayettebridalaffair.com/

Admission: 5$

Brides can register on the website and get in for free!