Family Events/gigs (weddings, quinceaneras, etc)

[jam1chicago]

I don't do much of these but a few family and friends have been on my case about doing so. Any suggestions?

Pacing out the event with different genres for sure. Perhaps some recommendations on some dinner music, cocktail hour music, etc?

Latino influences are a plus haha

[ImNotDedYet]

Mellow jazz for dinner and/or cocktail hour, since you want a Latino influence, maybe some Cuban jazz? Take requests and try to play as many as are appropriate. Quinceaneras will have a younger crowd, so you can likely get away with playing a bit more of the stuff you likely typically play. Definitely different genres, appealing more to the "older people" earlier on and slowly migrating to the "younger people" later. Mix in sets of two slow songs every once in a while. You can either play a "banger" like a classic hit or experiment with a new genre coming out of the slow songs.

[VooDreau]

I tend to play acoustic guitar music during the dinner/cocktail hour. Then for the dance itself I skip around, 80's/top 40/ stereotypical wedding stuff. Tequila, cupid shuffle, and other random stuff you'd never play.

[DJ Sunshine]

Check out Kool & Klean. Buy all three volumes, and you have yourself the perfect smooth jazz/cocktail hour/dinner music. I made a full mix of it just for this reason.

http://www.mixcloud.com/sunshineraleigh/cocktail-hours/

/shameless plug

Sinatra, Nat King Cole, and other big band vocalists are perfect for this as well.

Obviously make sure you get the clean versions of tracks for things like weddings. Thrift shop is a perfect example of one of those tracks that is a great crowd-pleaser until the uncensored lyrics come in, and then you can end up giving poor grandma a heart attack.

Random lists of wedding classics have been thrown around the internet. They largely consist of decade classics, Motown, and a few popular tracks that are more recent (Wobble, Party Rock Anthem, etc.) A few quick google searches and a $100 iTunes gift card, and you should be good to go.

EDIT: Just realized I didn't recommend anything on the Latin side.

"Tequila" on repeat. There.

[Kaek]

Get the bride to vet the playlist before hand.