Jam Out With Houston Wedding Band, Flight of the Keys!

wedding band, entertainment, dancing, microphone, instruments, suit, music, guitar, drums,, the flight of the keys
Photo: Anchor Studios Photography

Dust off those dancing shoes (or forgo them altogether!) and jam out with Houston wedding band, Flight of the Keys. The fun and versatile wedding band, with upwards of 10+ members, creates personalized playlists depending on your musical style and ideal reception vibe.

Whether you envision a lively bash or a laid-back affair, multitalented Flight of the Keys offers packages ranging from jazz trios to 8 piece bands (complete with soulful crooners). Alternatively, book a dueling piano show which guarantees guests a fun and immersive reception experience. As an added perk, lighting packages and DJs are available as convenient add-on’s.

Head to the official Flight of the Key’s Insta and book an appointment with the talented crew today. In the meantime, keep scrolling and get groovin’ to the funky tunes of Flight of the Keys!

Click here to read the rest of this post »

Live Entertainment From The Royal Dukes Band

Hear that?? If live entertainment is a must for your big day, you have to check out the Royal Dukes Band. Whether you’re hosting a backyard soiree or a black-tie bash, Royal Dukes Band will get the party started with your wedding ceremony, and keep it going all night long, through cocktail hour, dinner reception and dancing late into the wee hours.

Click here to read the rest of this post »

Q&A With Lewis Grell Of LG Event Entertainment

Today we’re turning our spotlight on Lewis Grell of LG Event Entertainment & Production, one of Houston’s hottest wedding entertainment companies. Read on to find out what makes this full-service DJ, lighting, special effects and audio-visual company a top pick for Houston weddings…and what LG Event Entertainment has in store for 2019 and 2020 couples!

Click here to read the rest of this post »

Emerald City Band Will Rock Your World (AND Your Wedding)

Top Houston Wedding Band Emerald City Band | Photo: f8studio

This band, you guys…OMG. We’ve seen some pretty phenomenal wedding bands in our 30+ years in the “making memories’ biz. But 13-piece, crazy-talented, super-high-powered Emerald City Band is in a league of its own. Maybe that’s why they’ve been a Dallas favorite for decades, lending their incredible energy and musical skill to major corporate clients, Dallas pro sports teams including the Cowboys and Mavs (heck, y’all, they even played Mark Cuban’s own wedding!!). Oh–and speaking of weddings…they’ve played more than 4,000 of them, each as unique as the love story behind the nuptial celebration, and NOW they’re set to take the Houston wedding scene by storm. Top 40? Check. Dance hits? Check. Hip-hop jams, jazzy grooves, Latin-tinged beats? Oh, yeah. And the vocals? We. Can’t. Even. But don’t take our word for it…check ’em out live, in action, at link below. Then get on the horn (they’ve got three in their blazing horn section), and talk to them about available dates; they do book fast!!

How to Get Great Reception Music: Q&A With Wedding DJ Jonny Black

How to Get Great Reception Music: Q&A With Top Wedding DJ Jonny Black How to Get Great Reception Music: Q&A With Top Wedding DJ Jonny Black

Photos: Anthony Dinh/Composure Studios

We’ve all been to weddings where the reception music was awesome—where we danced all night and everybody, young and old, had an amazing time. And we’ve probably all been to a couple of weddings where, well…not so much. So what’s the secret to the perfect playlist? How can you make sure your party music is pitched to your preferences, while not alienating older guests? What to do if you’re gaga for Gaga and your groom is a country boy through and through? Renowned Houston wedding entertainment guru Jonny Black of Jonny Black Productions answers these pressing party-music questions…and more!

Houston Wedding Blog: What should a couple’s goal be with their wedding music?

Jonny Black: First, it should be a reflection of their taste. It should reflect the energy and type of wedding environment they want. If they want fun and upbeat, they should do that. If they want a cocktail party—we recently had a wedding, for example, where there wasn’t any dancing at all, just high cocktail tables and light appetizers—the music should reflect that, and be more in the background.

HWB: How many songs should be on the couple’s playlist?

JB: For us, if we have 10 to 20 songs from the couple, or even artists or genres, this will give us a very good idea of what they like. We’ll ask, “What’s on your iPod?” or, “What’s in your CD deck?” instead of “What are your top 10 favorite songs?”…which usually gets an “Uhhh…” response. We’ll think about popular music from different decades. From the ’70s everyone likes disco; ’80s is about Journey, Bon Jovi, Michael Jackson; the ’90s might be Black Eyed Peas, Beyonce, Rihanna. From there, we make connections.

Most importantly, we like to make the couple feel comfortable. For brides who get stressed over little details, the last thing we want to do is say, “Come up with X amount of songs,” and add to their stress.

HWB: What if the bride and groom disagree about what to put on their song list?

JB: The bride is always right : ) But truthfully, we want to make everyone comfortable. Everyone should feel like they got a compromise. Last year, for instance, we had a groom who didn’t really dance, didn’t go to clubs. He was into dark heavy-metal-type stuff, and he thought he had his heart set on having that at his wedding We had to help him understand that although that’s what he likes, if we play it at the wedding, the majority of guests are not going to like it, and are probably going to leave early. We told him, if we want guests to leave saying, “Wow this was the best time we had in years,” then playing that music is not a good idea. In these cases, we always try to explain it in a way where we can make the bride or groom see, and usually they’re pretty accepting of it.

HWB: That sounds very diplomatic. OK, so what about raunchy songs and NSFW–as in, not safe for wedding–lyrics?

JB: Where we’re at with technology in this day and age, pretty much every song you might want is available in a clean edit, so it usually isn’t so much of a problem. But we will make recommendations if we foresee an issue. We did a wedding recently where the bride and groom are both party animals but the family is very, very conservative. The couple wanted “Sexy and I Know It,” “Party Rock,” Rihanna, that kind of thing. But we didn’t want to upset the family. So we came up with an alternative list that offered a good compromise. On the other side, we have couples who just want to let it rip, and play uncut songs. We ask, “Are you sure?” At the end of they day, if they want it, we’ll do it.

But unless we discuss it first, you can assume that everything our DJs play at a wedding is clean and radio edited, so there are no surprises.

HWB: We’ve got all these great songs. Now how do we figure out what gets played when?

JB: You have to select an entertainment company that is experienced in weddings, where if you give them a list of music, they can make connections and know where you want what songs—versus providing a huge song list to someone that may not be familiar with weddings specifically. You may get Black Eyed Peas played during dinner, which won’t go over well.

HWB: Your advice for hiring a wedding DJ?

JB: When selecting music or entertainment—or any vendor for the wedding—hire professionals. An experienced wedding entertainment professional on the music side will be able to guide and keep things moving along, to adapt and overcome any potential hiccup that comes up.

For more about Jonny Black Productions, or to schedule a consultation, visit them here, or call 832.867.6911.