The Green Building Wedding
Brooklyn, NY for Eileen & Michael
The first time I spoke with Michael I knew we were going to get along because he had great taste in music. It really showed at their Green Building wedding in Brooklyn when he got married to Eileen. They had both their ceremony and reception there and it was amazing.
The Green Building is one of my favorite venues. It has large doors that swing open into the main space. And the procession was lead through them and into the wedding ceremony while "The Moon Song" by The Fox & The Hound was playing.
The couple's friend Drew officiated the ceremony. It was his first time so I gave him extra attention. We did a mic check and made sure he was all set. He did a great job! As it came to an end, the couple walked out to "Emotions" by Mariah Carey, a really fun choice that had everyone up on their feet cheering.
Afterwards, guests headed outside for cocktail hour on the venue's nice patio. I curated a great playlist with the couple that included Leon Bridges, Calvin Harris and Childish Gambino which got several compliments.
Next, everyone came back inside for dinner and we did toasts during the main course. They used my wireless mic during their toasts. When the speeches had wrapped up, we kicked off the dance set. This is the order it has been in at almost every Green Building wedding I have DJed.
To start it off, Michael's sister sang "Child of Mine" by Carole King while he danced with his mom. We had planned it in advance. I helped them brainstorm ways to get the perfect backing track for her, and we did a mic check before the wedding started. It was a big hit and she sounded amazing.
I record all receptions I DJ and send my couples their speeches and dance set just days after their wedding. In this case I was able to send them the mother-son song by Michael's sister. I thought that was cool.
Next, Eileen danced with her dad to "Father & Son" by Cat Stevens. Ha! He explained that it was a favorite song of theirs. The couple were next, and they did their first dance to "For You" by Angel Olson. The special dances ended with a surprise. It was Eileen's dad's birthday and Michael brought a cake out to him. Awesome.
For the rest of this Green Building wedding we had an amazing dance set! Together we came up with a great mix of hip-hop, 80's and indie artists. Their guests really loved tit. We played Kanye, Beyonce and Drake, as well as Robyn, David Bowie and Prince. The energy of the party seemed to build with the guests going especially crazy in the last 15 minutes.
Guests took a break from dancing to get ice cream from a Van Leuwen truck that was brought to the back patio during dinner. Here's what Eileen had to say about the night:
"We loved having Ben DJ for our wedding in Brooklyn! He had the whole room on the dance floor by the first song and did such a great job keeping the mood fun and exciting! He played a wide range of music that kept everyone engaged and having a great time. Couldn't recommend him more!" - Eileen
Thank you Eileen & Michael for letting me DJ your Green Building wedding!
All photos by Jacquelyne Pierson
