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!
We have moved and are settling into our new office so if you are coming in for an appointment this week be sure you come to our new office:
2 Hartford Drive
Suite 106
Tinton Falls, NJ 07701
Met with a wonderful couple, Nicole and Michael, this week. They are getting married at the end of February so this was our Pre-Event Consultation to talk about their music, go over their introductions, and finalize any other details.
We offer an online planner which Nicole and Michael had utilized. As I always do, I reviewed their information before we even sat down. Their Wedding Song is “Here There and Everywhere” by The Beatles. They also want some Doors and Pink Floyd too. Classic rock fans. I love it!
As we got going we started discussing some of the blanks on their planner. They hadn’t selected music for their introductions and so we started there. For the parents they wanted a Frank Sinatra song. My first suggestion was “Come Fly With Me” and they loved it. Then Nicole suggested “Whole Lotta Love” by Led Zeppelin for the Bridal Party. I didn’t say No (of course) but I let her know that song has a lot of tempo changes that might make it tough to maintain the energy. I played “Rock and Roll” for them as an alternative. Nicole’s eyes lit up. She loved it. Now the question became, How do we raise the energy even higher to bring the Bride and Groom in? Nicole asked if Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now” could work. I’ve never used that song in this way before (actually when I think of that song and weddings I think of a great wedding video I saw once) so we listened to it. The song had potential – great energy once it kicks in and a great message – but the a cappella introduction goes on a bit too long. I asked if they’d give me a day to make an edit so it could fit perfectly.
So the next day I chopped the song up a little, shortening the intro so as I say their names Freddie Mercury will be belting out “Cause I’m having a good time, having a good time . . .” and sent it off to them. Nicole responded enthusiastically:
Hi Mike!
We love the edit of Don’t Stop Me Now…we can def imagine making our grand entrance to it.
And the reason I’m writing all this isn’t to pat myself of the back and say “Look what I did.” It’s because the planning process is so much more than me (or any Elite Entertainer) simply extracting information from our clients. It’s about allowing us to help you craft your vision. Some clients have every detail of their weddings planned down to the last song of the night. And that’s cool with us. But so many of our clients look to us to make suggestions, offer opinions about some of their selections and, in many cases to work with their tastes but make them better. And that’s what we are here for. That’s why you hire us. And that’s why, by the time we get to your reception, so much of the “work” that we do together is already done. And so much of the fun we are going to have together, has only just begun . . .
September 4th, 2011
Jennifer & Isaac Satten’s Wedding
Rutger’s Gardens &
Waterview Pavillion, Belmar, NJ
So many great things to say about tonight’s wedding with Jennifer and Isaac, I don’t even know where to begin. We first met about 2 months prior to the wedding, and we hit it off right from the start. They were both very organized and passionate about the music for their ceremony and reception, which I LOVE, and it got us off to a great start.
Their ceremony was at Rutger’s Gardens, a beautiful field completely surrounded and isolated by evergreens…a unique and intimate setting that I’d never seen before. Having never played for a ceremony there, I elected to join them at their rehearsal two days prior to the wedding, so I could get the lay of the land, find power, sound check, etc. It turned out to be a great decision because we were able to rehearse the ceremony complete with music, which made all the difference in making today go smoothly.
A few hours after the ceremony, we all met up again at the Waterview Pavillion in Belmar for their reception, and the good times commenced. The dance floor was not only packed from edge to edge all night, but we had everyone of all ages out there, as we jumped back and forth between the oldies, classic dance music, and everything from today.
The best moment had to be opening up the dance floor for the first time, for which I invited Jennifer’s mother out to join her on the dance floor, and kicked it off with Old Time Rock and Roll, her mom’s favorite, and it made their night. Everyone came out to join them and we quickly had a great big circle around Jenn and Isaac that led to some phenomenal dance sets…all before dinner!It was truly my pleasure to work with this beautiful couple, and I wish them all the best of love and happiness for the rest of their lives!
It was the night before New Year’s Eve and all through the house, not a guest was sitting down, not even the staff. HaHa!
There is a moment about this night I will never forget, but I will get to that in a minute. What a great party! Myself and my assistant Craig drove together. We arrived before the ceremony started because Caitlin and Dustin asked if their cousin can use one of our speakers to plug his guitar in so he can play during the ceremony. He did a perfect job and sounded great. The wedding was a blast from beginning to end. Even though the next day was NYE that did not stop anyone from partying. I personally think they went all out at the wedding and took it easy on NYE. The music was a big mix, all the way newer dance music to some country, since Caitlin and Dustin live in Texas. One special moment was Dustin’s brother playing the keyboard as Dustin danced with his mother.
The one moment I will never forget is this. One of the groomsmen is in the Army and was overseas. All 4 of his children and his wife were also in the wedding party. His daughter around the age of 14 was upset and I could tell. His son was around 10 and the father also has twin baby’s which he hasn’t even met yet. Before the main room was open the wedding party was taking pictures, and during that time, guess who shows up – THEIR FATHER! What a huge surprise! When the 14 year old saw her father the look on her face was priceless. She could not stop crying. The 10 year old hugged him and wouldn’t let go. And when his wife said to their little twins, “That’s your daddy,the man from the computer.” there was not a dry eye in the room. He held his twins for the first time. People like him and all who are in the armed forces are the most amazing people on earth. They give up so much (family) to protect us.
This is another reason why I love this job so much, you get to meet some phenomenal people.
Oh boy, first event of the new year! It’s funny how after working events for such a long time you can actually foresee things that are about to happen. I am sure that is the case in many professions after you have been there for 10+ years, but I bet the things I see are way more funny.
For example- I had the honor of entertaining for Kate and Josh on their wedding day. We get to the last hour of the party and our bride and groom are getting ready to cut the cake. Two quick slices, a few poses for the now gathered paparazzi of family members, and Josh very nicely feeds his new bride a piece of cake. The crowd claps, awes, and also offers a few boos!
While Josh interacts with the crowd, I watch Kate. She looks at Josh, looks down at the plate of cake, looks at Josh again (who is still taunting the crowd and isn’t paying any attention to Kate), and looks down at the plate again. Then without looking up, she SLAMS a full plate of cake right into Josh’s face! Classic, and I saw the entire event unfold.
Photos to come shortly!
I got engaged two months ago to my long time girlfriend, Kelly. So now begins the fun and exciting process of planning our wedding (don’t read sarcasm into that, I am actually looking forward to it).
One of the reasons this process promises to be fun and exciting, as well as educating for me, is that I finally get to be on the receiving end of so much communication that I am normally sending. Already, Kelly and I have contacted and met with a number of locations that we are considering for our reception. Seeing how these facilities handle their initial contact, their follow up and their actual face to face appointments has been an eye-opener. And more importantly it tells me we are doing something right at Elite Entertainment. For example, when a contact calls we have a number of predesigned PDFs that we can email them to answer many of their questions and concerns. Also, with the help of Troy Ackerman’s DJ Event Planner, we have a plan in place for consistent follow up.
As I expected, one of Kelly’s first tasks after saying “Yes” to my proposal, was to locate “the perfect wedding dress.” She found a picture of it online, tracked down the designer and then found a dress shop close to us that carries this designer’s line. All this led us to Kleinfeld in New York City. Eager to try the dress on, Kelly contacted Kleinfeld and this is the part of story that made my jaw drop in awe. The first weekend appointment Kelly could get was 6 weeks away. Plus, it was explained to her, she needed to leave a credit card to book the appointment. There’d be no charge if she showed up but if she cancelled, her card would be billed for $50.
While I was impressed that Klienfeld must be in such demand, I would never want Elite to be that elitist. We’ll always do our best to accommodate an appointment as soon as possible. And while cancelled appointments may be a little annoying at times, I can’t ever see enforcing a fee to try to prevent them. The only time you have to give us a credit card is when you’re actually ready to book!
