Weddings 101: Go big or go home!

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

There’s SO much to say about this wedding… I don’t know where to begin!!! To give you the brief description: Ritz Carlton + Magician + Italian AND Puerto Rican Families + Lamborghini + me and Monica + Colorchanging Uplighting + Dance floor lights + Dancing Underneath the Stars + Karaoke + CRUNK music = EPIC.

DJ in Orlando at the Ritz Carlton

Yes– karaoke at a wedding reception CAN be fun and NOT distracting! This all depends on your crowd AND your entertainer!

You got all that? Elliot and Danielle made one thing clear to Monica and I: after the ceremony was over: it was our show. SWEET! They knew the focus would be on them, but they all came to party and that’s what we do best!

Let’s break it down into some highlights:

  • The Ritz-Carlton staff is amazing! Lee and Jessica are class acts and are at the top of their game!
  • Andy really kept the party going with his karaoke antics…!
  • Hangover quotes. DURING DINNER!
  • Old School quotes. ’nuff said!
  • Elliot rented a Lambo — is this guy ballin’ or what?
  • Danielle partied all night! She’s the best bride a DJ could ask for!
  • We played Lil Jon’s “Shots.” As a DJ, I’m highly amused!
  • EVERYONE sang to Jump in Di Line!
  • I love Puerto Rican/Italian weddings!
  • Extremely classy ambience!
  • AMAZING family and friends who went out of their way to make me and Monica feel welcome– for a while I forgot I was the hired help and I felt like one of them!

Overall, this wedding was amazing– I can’t believe how much fun I had… all the way till 1AM!!!

Package chosen:

Check out the AMAZING photos and videos below!! Oh yes, I forgot to mention: NO MORE iPHONE PHOTOS!!

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Mark & Brenda’s ALL-DAY reception!

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

All day– as in 2 to 8PM!

Mark & I instantly got along as he’s a light tech as well. After our final consult, he asked to check out our warehouse and we geeked it up while Brenda shook her head.

The location was Bramble Ridge in Lakeland— a GREAT location for those looking for a pretty, budget-conscious building. The Karaoke and 4Bar Light Show were a hit… check out the photos and video below for more info!

DJ in Lakeland

One of the guests from last week, Bob, was a guest and he partied hard! BEP’s “I Gotta Feeling” got played a few times that night!

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Charlie and Emily’s elegant reception at Maggiano’s

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

Charlie and Emily found us through a DJ friend in their home state, Kansas. When they called us, they said they wanted a fun, but elegant reception for an intimate group of 75 people. Ok– I’m game. Let’s go! Then they said that the location and dinner will be provided by Maggiano’s in Orlando.

DJ in Orlando at Maggianos

Yeah. I’m ready. Let’s go! :)

They were very laid-back people with an awesome set of family and friends who were eager to make conversation with me until they arrived. I had a great time before and after they arrived!

Check out some photos and a quick video below– this is the last weekend you’ll see of my iPhone photos as my new camera arrives Monday! ALRIGHT!

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Steve and Ashley's spectacular reception!!

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

Steve and Ashley threw an epic wedding— how epic? Well, the party didn’t stop even after they left!! I’ve been looking forward to this wedding since Kelly and I did the wedding for Steve’s brother, Russell, and his wife, Tiffany. I knew their family and friends were here to party and my prediction wasn’t off at all. Not only did they dance throughout the entire night… but even after Steve and Ashley left for their honeymoon in Maui, the party kept going for ANOTHER HOUR!!!!

Lakeland DJ in Eaglebrooke

For me, the most memorable part will be the energy the introduction contained. Wait till you hear how LOUD everyone got when Mr. and Mrs. Villarette made their first entrance!

Check out some great photos and video below. The last photo was taken by Heather Ahrens of HA! Photography.

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Kickin' off the year at Chris and Bridgette's reception!

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

Chris and Bridgette Waters were a lot of fun– it breaks down to being that simple. If you’re a baseball fan, you may recognize his name as he plays for the Orioles– but they were the most modest down-to-earth people you could meet. They just wanted to have a good time.

DJ in Lakeland

Now, I’ve been at the Peggy Brown Building in Lakeland HUNDREDS of times, even had my own wedding there, but the place has never looked as good as it did that night- thanks in part to Flowers by Marilyn. Marilyn and Bill did an amazing job with the  swags, linens, and head-table backdrop.

Michelle and Rachel with R&M Photography were not only incredibly fun to work with, but they also set up a backdrop in the foyer for guests to get family portraits taken and printed on the spot, compliments of Chris and Bridgette.

Check out some great iPhone photos and video below!

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…Epic Wedding and the world's youngest DJ!

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

ARGH! I wish I had an assistant… just to film! I’m going to have to hit them up for a copy of their wedding video and I failed to capture the best parts from one of the most epic weddings of all time.

From my end of things, I got to try some new MC styles that involved a lot of audience-wide interaction off the mic.. of course, this would never work with 200+ person weddings, but I digress…

Patrick, Stephanie and I have been planning this party for MONTHS (just ask them, haha!) and it all paid off with a beautiful ceremony, a fun cocktail hour, the most amazing food I’ve had at a wedding (nothing beats home-cooked meals) and a packed dance floor all night.

Wedding DJ in Spring Hill

Oh yes, and a three year old assistant! Caitlyn, the flowergirl, asked if she could help with the introductions…. it was cute and I couldn’t say no… (She’s the most adorable lil’ thing you’d ever seen). I let her start off the first dance and she felt like one-of-a-kind! She asked if she could be my helper and I realized I made a new friend.

She actually helped me dismiss tables, mingle with guests to get requests, and play music. The last part ABSOLUTELY amazes me… my set up was 200 feet away from the dance floor… not a problem if I have an assistant, but I didn’t have one of my guys with me… and my iPhone’s remote control program decided not to work today! However, Caitlyn was really enjoying her position as the head DJ for the night (I was assisting her mind you, lol) and she played all the music ON cue for each part of a VERY elaborate bouquet and garter toss (over 10 songs).. she hit every song in and out ON CUE.

Let me say this one more time… she hit the songs RIGHT ON CUE. SHE’S THREE YEARS OLD!!! Needless to say, it was the most amazing moment I’ve had as a DJ. Her parents are now on my Facebook, lol!

Such a great set of family and friends really made this wedding amazing… at the end, I enjoyed a conversation with her brother, Brian(who’s getting married– congrats), father-of-the-bride Tony, Patrick and Stephanie, and a couple other guests.

This wedding sparked something within me though… my love and passion for the wedding industry has grown anew…. stay tuned for some new ideas I’ll be implementing real soon!!

Check out photos and video below! The video does this amazing wedding no justice.. I’ll have to track more footage down!

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Claudia and Billy's Double-Floor Reception!

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

This is perhaps one of the most outrageous weddings that I’ve done. Not only did I keep the dance floor packed.. I created a second one, as well!

With the Courtyard at Lake Lucerne as their location, Claudia and Billy wanted a very special evening. Thank God the Florida humidity died down for this one, otherwise we’d have different results. What started out as a quiet evening inside the house ended up as a crazy party with two dance floors. The second floor formed BEHIND the speakers, where no one could tell any different in the sound, thanks to BOSE’s amazing acoustics.

With only 3 Indian guests there, we expected minimal requests for Hindi music (we talked about this with Claudia and Billy and they even requested some Bhangra). However after playing Punjabi MC and watching the floor go WILD we dropped a couple other Bhangra artists including Jazzy B and the crowd became even more intense. Mixing it into some Bollywood, starting with Jai Ho REMIX really sent them over the edge.

Of course, being Dominican, Claudia wanted lots of Salsa and Merengue. Billy wanted to make sure no “wedding music” was played and that this was a chic, styling, and modern wedding. Sandra Johnson (http://www.sjfoto.com) and her team did an amazing job and I can’t wait to see their amazing photography work!!

Check out the video and photos.. I think we achieved that goal!

DJ in Orlando

I’ll brag here and say they were SO happy they wrote on our WeddingWire right after the wedding. With a 5/5 rating, they wrote:

Absolutely fabulous! My fiance and I were wary of hiring a DJ because of some bad experiences that some of our friends had during their own weddings where the DJs didn’t listen to what they wanted and just did whatever they (the DJs) wanted. I contacted several DJs early on in my wedding planning and the attitude of quite a few of them was “I’m the DJ and you’re not, I know what the guests like and you don’t.” Well it wasn’t the DJ’s wedding it was ours, and we knew what we wanted!! When I corresponded with Kelly Suit, it was a totally different experience. I could tell he was actually LISTENING to us and that his DJs would be willing to work with us to give us the wedding we wanted. The DJ for our event was Arnoldo Offermann and I can’t praise him highly enough. Our DJ and music have been the two things that we have gotten the most compliments on post-wedding. He had ALL our guests, young and old, dancing the ENTIRE night!!! It was awesome! We gave him a list of “must-play” songs and he totally had it up as he was working and played ALL of them. We had a fairly international crowd, and he played a great mix of Latin, Hip-Hop, Pop, Indian/Turkish, etc. He consulted us every step of the way, and if a guest requested a song that wasn’t exactly the type of music we wanted, he would ask us before playing it. There was a very obscure song that my mother-in-law requested from an old musical, and I found out after the wedding that Arnoldo had gone from CD store to CD store trying to get a copy of that song because it wasn’t available online. We only gave him this request literally the afternoon before the wedding and the song was played exactly as my MIL wanted it! Anyway, all these 5 star reviews didn’t come out of no where, they really are awesome!!!

Click below for some great photos and video!!!

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Ahora comienza la fiesta! Hector & Liset's "I won it at the bridal show" wedding reception!

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

Right now Hector and Liset are reading this and smiling ear to ear. You know how I know that? They’ve been reading every single one of A Premier Entertainment’s blogs (Mine and Kelly’s and so forth) and took notes on what they wanted for their own wedding. We’ve become good friends through Facebook and I knew that this would be a wild party by the time they walked in through the door for our final planning meeting!

Located at the Lion’s Eye Center in Ybor, the ceremony was elegant, but totally their style and paved the way for an amazing night to come!

Highlights:

  • MARACAS!! (Watch the video)
  • I had a heckler… but we got him right back! He was the life of the party.. I think he and Hector are troublemakers, lol. :)
  • Awesome recessional to the wedding. The Lil Jon remix of Suavemente.
  • A Puerto Rican and Cuban family mesh— how much crazier can it get? :)
  • Delicious dinner thanks to Michael and his team with Affordable Catering
  • A delightful candy bar station compliments of Chanda Janine Ford with Classique Soiree Weddings and Events. (Liset and Hector also won this at a bridal show– LUCKY!!!)

Package Chosen:

  • Entertainment Coordinator (Liset won a free DJ package through the PWG bridal show!)
  • D’Elegance Lighting: Floods and animated centerpiece
  • Ceremony System

As the evening progressed, the party only got wilder…. and then the maracas came out! Matt and I had a blast.. and Matt even got out there and danced with the crowd. Check out the amazing photos and video clip below!

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Sing Along at Alan & Sheri's wedding reception!!!

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

Sing Along, you ask? Watch the video and you’ll see what I am talking about!

Alan & Sheri George are an amazing couple– the only thing that could’ve topped this wedding was… well… um… I don’t know! As Pete and I were watching everyone have the time of their lives, singing along to every song I played, we both asked the same question: Where do I begin on this blog?? So much coolness happened, so I’ll describe everything one piece at a time.

Location: Eaglebrooke Golf & Country Club in Lakeland, Florida.
Food: DELICIOUS!!!!!
Cake Decorator: Piece of Cake by Maggie– it, too, was delicious!
Flowers: Not sure, but he did a GREAT JOB!!!
Photographer: Jenny from KC Photography. Who else?

Sheri and her family: She’s from New Jersey – they wanted 80s, freestyle, 90s, and top 40.. oh yes.. and TECHNO!!!!
Alan and his family: They’re from Texas– lots of country, rock, and 70s-80s.
Both of them: a non-stop party. At no point did the floor clear. It was crazy how they sang along to everytune!!!!!

Lakeland Wedding DJ

Dinner:  I can still taste the mashed potatoes..mmmmMMMMmm. The Centerpiece Giveaway Game and the Alan & Sheri Jeopardy game were a hit!!!
Game Show: It went great! Categories where: Dating Life, Curious Georges, Alan Wrenches, My Sheri Amour, Wild Card

Dancing: A HUGE PARTY!!!! WOW! This video goes by quick because there’s only 15 second long clips… every song seemed to get them pumped up!!! They crowded around the TVs and danced while watching the music videos!

In summary: IT ROCKED!!!! You must watch the video!

Package Chosen:

  • Entertainment Coordinator
  • D’Elegance Lights (Monogram,  Uplights [pink, yellow, and orange], dance floor lighting)
  • D’Elegance Video with Music Videos, Slideshows, and the Game Show System

Check out the photos and video! Note: Photos were taken by KC Photography. However, they didn’t edit these… I played around in LightRoom until I get the final product from Jenny!

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I'll take Sharon and Jaryd for $300, Alex…

Author: Arnoldo Offermann  //  Category: Weddings

Sharon & Jaryd’s wedding reception was totally unpredictable! When I met with them for their final consultation before the big day, I knew we were going to have a lot of fun– but they weren’t quite sure how many dancers would come out. Well it seems almost everyone did! After an awesome introduction (they chose the Halo 3 theme song) and the “Sharon & Jaryd Jeopardy” game show during dinner, everyone knew that Mr. and Mrs. Billups just wanted to have a great time!

The reception was at none other than the Peggy Brown Building, which is now SLAMMED with weddings since neighboring Magnolia Building is closed down for renovations. Diane’s Catering Company (DianesCatering.com) did an amazing job with the food. Sharon and Jaryd were very nice and invited me & Kyle to enjoy a good meal.

Lakeland Wedding DJ

I also had the privilege of previewing some of their wedding photos, courtesy of Grant Thompson Photography (GrantThompsonPhotography.com), and I was impressed. They looked BEAUTIFUL. Sharon & Jaryd will surely love them!

One of the cool highlighs of the evening was the candy bar, which Sharon designed herself. She’s got more willpower than I do, because I would’ve eaten all of it! LOL!

Click the link below for photos and video!!

Highlights:

  • Halo 3 Theme song for introduction
  • Jeopardy style game show during dinner– complete with buzzers.
  • One of the most energetic trains– during Love Shack!
  • Fun Christian music played during dinner!
  • Custom slideshows were played during the first, father/bride, and groom/mother dances!

Package chosen:

  • Entertainment
  • D’Elegance Video
  • Game Show System
  • Uplighting (No gels chosen, just white)

Pics & a YouTube video below!!

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