Tag Archive: dance

Father/Daughter Dance – 3/31/2012

Navesink Country Club in Rumson, once again put on a great party.  This time the theme was a Father/Daughter Sock-Hop themed dance for it’s members.

With the Dads in Suits and the girls in Poodle Skirts we kicked off the party to some top 40 kid’s favorites.  We played a ton of games and audience participation dances, and the girls all got to participate in the Hula Hoop and dance contests to try and win some prizes.

The dads were also treated to watching two NCAA Final Four games:

Kentucky (69) vs Louisville (61)

Kansas (64) vs Ohio St. (62)

In all everyone had a great time at a very special dance.

Spring Fling Party @ Cliffwood Elementary School – 3/23/2012

The PTO headed by Dawn, put on a great “Spring” themed party for kids and families at Cliffwood Elementary School.  It was a great turn out on a Friday evening and the kids definitely came ready to party and dance.

We played all the popular Audience Participation and Line Dance songs including, “Cha-Cha Slide“, “Cupid Shuffle”, “Electric Slide”, “Cotton-eyed Joe”, “Macarena”, “Hands-Up”, “Dollar-Wine”, “Hot-Hot-Hot”, and “Apache”.  The kids loved the hats, sunglasses, Hawaiian leis, and maracas we gave out.  We also played lots of new music LMFAO, Rihanna, Drake, One Republic, Pitbull, Flo Rida, Black Eyed Peas, Avicii, Calvin Harris, and Adele.

We finished off the night with some group pictures of all the students up on stage to go in the year book.  It was a really fun and energetic night.

“Think Big” – Bill Kubeck’s 50th @ Trump Golf Club – 3/17/2012

“I like thinking big. If you’re going to be thinking anything, you might as well think big.” - Donald Trump

Bill Kubeck’s surprise 50th Birthday Party certainly lived up to Donald Trump’s words.  Not only was his party at Trumps Golf Course in Colt’s Neck, NJ, but it was on St. Patrick’s Day, and there was an Elite Entertainment Disc Jockey (Yours Truly) and The Two River Band (T.J., James, Mike, & Will).  Donna, Bill’s wife who planned the surprise party was definitely “Thinking BIG”!

The party started off with the Cocktail Hour where guests were treated to green beer (in honor of St. Paddy’s Day) and champagne.  Once our guest of honor arrived – walking in to a thunderous “SURPRISE!!” and greeted and thanked his guests, everyone made there way into the main banquet room where The Two River Band kicked off there opening set.

Throughout the night we traded sets between DJ dance sets and Band sets, each lasting about an hour a piece.  Some of the special highlights were Bill & Donna dancing to there wedding song and Donna and their son giving a special thank you to the guests and congratulations to Bill.

In all it was a great night, with lots of dancing, singing, eating, drinking and especially “BIG” fun, and helped make a very memorable party for Bill as well as all the guests including myself.

Thank you to Donna, T.J., James, Mike, Will, and the staff of Trump Golf Course for an amazing night, and Congratulations once again to Bill on his 50th.

What Song was That?? – Heather’s Graduation Party – 3/4/2012

I received an email:

“From: Christina Young 

Date: Tue, Mar 13, 2012 at 11:12 AM
Subject: Question

Good Morning,

You Deejayed my cousin (Heather Young)’s graduation party on Sunday,
March 4th.  There was a song that you played, introduced by saying it
was from 1996 – my fiance and I loved that song, but couldn’t remember
the name of it after we left the party!!!

We thought it was the Boricua Anthem, but it doesn’t sound right.  I’m
sure you DJ a ton of parties all weekend long but I was hoping you
might be able to help me out if you recalled the name of this
particular song for us.  We wanted to have it played at our upcoming
wedding.

Thanks in advance.

Christina Young”

Christina was correct, it was the song was “Robi-Rob’s Boriqua Anthem ’96 Remix” by Robi Rob’s Clubworld.  (I emailed her back)

I love getting emails like this where someone asks about a song I played, especially one that I don’t play that often. Heather graduated from Centenary College, and her Party at Flynn’s – Philipsburg, NJ (Last exit in NJ) was a great time. We played a big variety of music: Latin, Top 40, some oldies… plus a few 90’s Club Hits.

One of the funniest things was when the Guest of Honor from the party next door (1st Birthday Party), came dancing in the room… She was adorable…Everyone in our party clapped and cheered for her (Her Parents were embarrassed).

In all it was a great party, lots of dancing, lots of fun….Congrats Heather on your Graduation, as well as Christina on your Wedding.

A Recent Bridal Showcase at The Crystal Point

Wednesday night, nearing the end of March with the wedding season starting to kick into full gear I was a part of a spectacular showcase at the Crystal Point Yacht Club in Pt. Pleasant.  I showed up at the venue at the same time as fellow entertainer Jason Estes and proceeded to walk in a side door into the main ballroom.  As soon as we stepped foot inside, we could feel the energy in the room and knew we had a great crowd on hand.

After a quick run through of our routine for the night, the show started up with a fashion show displaying some gorgeous dresses for the brides to be.  One by one the models made there way out of a hallway off to the side and onto the dance floor.  This was exciting for me because I knew in just a few short minutes after our “pretend” brides for the night made they way out the floor, we would finally get our show started and really see how much fun this crowd can be.

Now all of our Elite entertainers are lined up behind me, waiting for the anticipated cue to head out onto the dance floor and kick our show off with some style.  Kris A. gets the mic, says a few words, then out we come clapping our hands to “Lets Get Loud” as we try and get the room…loud!  We’re all feeling great as we roll through the dance and kick the mic over to Mike (love saying that) as he begins a sample of intros, using a lovely couple in the crowd whose names I believe were John and Jackie.  Mike the invites them up for a slow dance being sung by another wonderful entertainer at Elite, Tara Feely.  Jackie emphatically shakes her head no as she laughs, maybe a little embarrassed but still having fun, as she stays in her seat to watch a beautiful performance by Tara.  She finished her performance strong and hands the mic again, back to Mike as we get ready to start this party rocking.  I have the honor of emceeing the first song of the night which happens the be a classic one from the 50′s, “The Twist”.  I extend the first of many invites to our crowd to come join and dance as I get everyone on the dance floor onto one leg and test them to see how low they can twist.  Following “The Twist”, we have eight more party favorites and great emcees to get everyone we can out on the dance floor for fifteen minutes having an awesome time.

I could go into detail describing each and every song and how awesome it was having such a great crowd (like I had thought we would walking in) and how amazing each one of our emcees did that evening.  But, these are only words on a page.  The real fun was at the show and I can’t possibly express that here.  This is a job that has some great moments with each show, wedding, birthday, or any other event you can imagine being so different, its always a brand new experience each time.  Thanks to everyone who made that evening a great success and I hope to see all of you at our next showcase!

And the Winner Is . . .

We wrapped up our first quarter showcasing season last night with our very own Private Show at The Sheraton in Eatontown. We also did something we’ve never done before in the 22 year history of Elite Entertainment:  We gave one lucky bride an amazing, Elite Wedding.  The winner would receive not just a free DJ from Elite Entertainment but also a lighting package, a Photo Booth, Photography services from our sister company Elite Digital Images and videography services from our sister company Elite Video Productions.  This totaled over $7000.00 in free services for one lucky bride.

Our showcase was tight.  We’ve been performing pretty steadily since the beginning of the year, 16 bridal shows in all since our first one on January 8th. We had a packed dance floor for much of the interactive segment and every DJ who had mic time really shined.  In fact, the most consistent feedback we received from brides and grooms in attendance was something to the effect of: “we can’t decide who we want because you guys are all great!”

So then came the moment we were all waiting for.  We picked the winner of our biggest giveaway ever.  And as luck (or maybe fate) would have it, the winner was a lovely young woman named Nina whose fiance is serving in the Army in Afghanistan.  We couldn’t have been happier that she was the winner and we can’t wait for their July 2013 wedding.

 

Nina, our Lucky Winner took home over $7,000 in free services from us!

Nina's fiance is serving overseas so she posed here with our very own Marine - John Ruggiero

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Congratulations Nina!

 

March 23, 2012 – Wedding Bells & Lots of Laughs

John Ruggiero, Versailles Ballroom at The RamadaFriday night I had the pleasure of spending an entire afternoon and evening with 2 of the greatest families I have ever worked with. Funny and Charming and Funny and Funny …did I say hilarious. From the beginning till the very minute I sat in my truck to drive away, it was nothing but smiles and lots of laughs that still hurt 36 hrs later like I did a thrashing ab-workout.

It was 6:00pm and the ceremony was just about to start. I was graced with the presence of my good friend and fellow Elite Entertainer-Corey Fox, as my partner in crime for the night, so I had a feeling it was going to be a memorable event one way or another. We’re set up in the back right corner of the room (if you can picture it, if not, you need not read any further). Well we start to hear small chattering laughter from a few couples in their, I’m guessing 60-70 age group, and they are sitting directly to our left, also the rear of the room. The laughter progressively got louder.

As I bring on the Processional music for the Bridesmaids to walk in, which was “Air” played in G, the room fell silent, as it always does. I heard some ahhhhhs and ohhhhhhs but not much from the Peanut Gallery in the opposite corner. Then I fade the music out, wait for about a second and then, Canon starts playing nice and loud as Jessica makes her way into the room and up toward the altar. I couldn’t make out was said over there as she passed by, but it created a laughter that engulfed the entire room and was contagious for the rest of the night. I could only pray that the comedy would stay tasteful throughout the duration of the party. We have all seen what can happen when you add alcohol to a situation.

After Jess and Jim said I DO and seal it with a kiss, I hit the recessional song; Everlasting Love, and they take their very first steps down the road of Matrimony. I just happen to glance over and one of the Gentlemen from the Peanut gallery was aggressively giving me thumbs up signs from across the room. I guess he liked us so far…yay…a fan club.

Cocktail hour was great as The Ramada in Toms River always puts out a fabulous spread. The finger foods were being enjoyed while the liquor flowed from behind the bar. The poor bartender couldn’t even keep up. As I listened to the beats of the music, it started to be overcome by the amount of laughter in the room. It was as if every little group of people had something to talk about that was funnier than the next. These people were a riot.

Introductions were like fireworks, Parents came in followed by all of the members in the Bridal Party, and I had everyone on their feet clapping and cheering.

When Jess & Jim made their Grand Introduction into the Ballroom to Party Rock Anthem-LMFAO, the room went ballistic. They shared their first dance together, and then danced with their respective parents. The attention of the room was focused on the dance floor the entire time.

Now its time for the Toast. We had 3 toasts and all were filled with the same love and laughter possessed by all the guests attending. The maid of honor was overcome with such emotion during her speech, that there was almost a slight awkward moment of silence until one of the other family members shouted out some jubilant expressions and once again the jokes were rolling around the ballroom. At least 1 person from each table had something to say that when all combined, turned her tears into confidence. Once she gained back her composure, her toast went flawless.

The Night was a blast. Dancing, laughing, eating, dancing , and laughing some more. There was even a part of the night when I played Sexy and I Know It and somebody who is well known as a reputable dancer, SPLIT his pants, and had to go change into jeans. Not even gonna say who that could be. But all in all the night was a success. Everybody left the wedding with such an abundance of joy and love wrapped around them. The Parents of the Bride came up to me as I was taking down my gear and thanked me once again for such a great time.

The very next day, not even 24hrs after the wedding, I receive a message from the Bride gloating about how much fun they had and they were so shocked that the party was so wild. They were extremely thankful and I am not going to lie…I was too. Another great time with some very special people that I will never forget.

The kicker here, is that 1 month before the wedding, I met with Jess & Jim at their house to go over all of the details of their party. They told me “We Don’t Really Dance” and “I don’t really think it is going to be a big dancing crowd”. To some DJs, this could be very discouraging, but I took this challenge head on, and personally feel that I knocked it out of the park.

I am firm believer that Good Entertainment = Good Party, but Great Entertainment = Great Party.
What kind of party will your Wedding be ???

The Big Brothers/Big Sisters Bowl for Kidsake

I’ve been DJing  this particular event  for Big Brothers/Big Sisters for 3 years now. It’s really an honor to be part of a great fundraiser.  To be honest when I was going to DJ this party I thought how much fun could a bowling party really be? Let me tell you, after the first year of DJing this event I look forward to DJing it every year now.  I took a few pictures this year to show you just how much I have with this crowd.

All 26 lanes of the alley were filled!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I got to set up right in the middle of the action!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course, I have to get some dance time in.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Pin Heads are one team you won’t forget!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How many people can say they’ve done the Cha Cha Slide in a bowling alley?!?!

February 17th, 2012 – Allison & Rob at Addison Park

I had the great pleasure of entertaining for Allison and Rob on their wedding day. They selected a great venue in Addison Park and we added some elegance and ambience to the room with uplighting. The day went off for them without a hitch!

They had a wonderful ceremony at Gethsamene Lutheran Church in Keyport and Allison got ready at the Oyster Point Hotel in Red Bank. The entire day was captured by Elite Digital Images, and the dynamic duo of Lynn and Carrie rocked it out. Their photos are beautiful, and I cannot wait to see their final album once it is designed!

Once they got to Addison Park, the party was on! A great cocktail hour followed by intros and the bride and groom’s first dance. Allison’s dance with her dad and Rob’s with his mom were both great heart felt moments. Jay, Rob’s best man, and Ali, Allison’s Maid of Honor, gave two AWESOME speeches that the crowd gave standing ovations.

As soon as I opened the dance floor I knew this event wasn’t going to be work. The entire crowd of just over 100 guests danced like Lionel Richie says, “All Night Long“. I hit the dance floor with everything… BeatlesBon JoviLMFAOPitbullJourneyAretha Franklin and they couldn’t get enough. Plus our bride and groom had some slow song dedications that took me back to middle school.

Friday, February 3, 2012 – Eatontown Memorial Middle School Dance

“Music in Schools”

It occurred to me about 30 minutes into the Eatontown, Memorial Middle School Dance, why music is so important to have in school’s curriculum. Laughingly, one of the awesome teachers there said “You ask the kids the times tables and get a blank stare, but then they know all the dances to all the songs.”  It was a funny comment while the kids were all doing the “Dougie”, but It made me think that I was exactly the same way (minus the times table part, I was pretty good in math) – we all knew all the dances and all the songs.  It was the one thing that all the kids in my elementary/middle/high school had in common. Regardless of race, gender, background, if someone was singing/rapping a song that everyone liked and knew, you would have 20 people chiming in on the chorus.

I remember a bus trip out to Amish country in PA, where we were all singing “Ladi Dadi” by Slick Rick  - 30 kids on a school bus… must have drove our teachers and parents nuts…. But music kept us together… The same thing holds true 20-30 years later… At this dance, I played “We Found Love” – Rihanna ft Calvin Harris, and all the girls are singing together and dancing, regardless of once again race, gender, or background.  I played “Sexy and I Know It” by LMFAO to the same affect – boys and girls together singing & dancing.  The kids on this night had a great time, and I really thought that music in schools is such a big part of kids understanding each other, experiencing different cultures, backgrounds, and era. When the same teacher asked me to play “Apache” by The Sugar Hill Gang and dedicate it to a student, I thought, I was dancing to this song at my School Dance…… and the effect was exactly the same…. A room full of kids doing the dance…..

When you reflect back to school you may not remember verbatim learning your spelling words, or parts of history or science, but if you were in a music class, you probably remember the songs word for word you sang back then.  Songs that helped shape who you are, songs that if you put a room full of adults from the same school together, they could probably sing it in unison, just like they did in School…

Thanks to Miss Krsyzckowski and Miss Collins for a great time, and all the kids who made it to the dance at Memorial Middle… Thanks for bringing back some warm memories, and some songs in my head from the past… I enjoyed partying with you and look forward to doing it again.