Professional Wedding DJ Advice

First, after I know what type of event I am doing; age group, any steps I need to follow and so on, I play the most popular and familiar songs first then announce that I'm taking requests. And that's pretty much the ice beaker there.
Line dancing for group sessions is always a "go to" win situation. As a DJ when you get a good read from the crowd then these steps should never fail. A few jokes on the mic are good too.

Well, any good DJ will tell you, the best way to liven up a crowd is to find that person that is wanting to 'let loose'. Find out what song will trigger them.... could be a line dance, or just ask them. Once everyone else sees them having a good time, they'll want to be a part of it!

The main way to get people on the dance floor is to play what THEY want to hear, not what the DJ wants to play. At some events, like a wedding, you're hired to cater to their requests; it's their personal event. Sometimes people hire me to do the Def Jam Blaster show where I play what I want, sometimes they hire me to do their personalized requests. A professional DJ knows the difference.

To answer your first question, there are many tips and tricks to getting people to let loose and have fun on the dance floor! For starters, aside from great song selections, a great timeline is very important. What I mean by that is you want to build energy throughout the night and the best way to do that is to place activities that help you build momentum is a sequential order that flows! For example you do not want to have toasts and speech after you have opened up the dance floor! Also, some of the best activities to transition from dinner to dancing is the anniversary dance!
Also, have your bride and groom out on the dance floor for the first song is great as well because you can sort of guilt trip folks into come out to join them on the dance floor! 'Ladies and gentlemen, if you REALLY love our newly weds.... we need you join them out on the dance floor!!

I usually try and take as many requests as I can to make it an enjoyable experience for all. Even those that may be nervous about dancing usually get on the dance floor if it is a song they like. I try and make it as personalized as possible that way everyone gets into a dancing mood. I always try and play upbeat songs and mix the classics with today's hits. I try my best to make it a fun, party type atmosphere for all.

Sometimes when a party is dead I try to play some line dances. I might play the most popular current dance or depending on the crowd I might play an older one that everyone knows the moves too. I also try to remind the guest that this is a celebration and we owe it to people that invited us to party. If I do play song and I see people moving in their seats but scared to get on the floor. I might walk over and try to get them to step out on the floor and shake they groove thing. If none of that works I might remind the crowd I am taking requests but you are required to dance if you request a song and I play it. Alcohol always helps too. After the drinks kick in people tend to loosen up a bit.

I use the current mood and energy in the room to dictate how I pack the dance floor. If the crowd is already in a party mood, I will hit them right away with a fun, high energy song but if everyone is more laid back and reserved, a smarter approach may be to start with a slower song or line dance. Another ice breakers strategy is to do an anniversary dance, which gets all the married couples out on the dance floor.
There are really no tricks to getting the dance floor full but once the crowd knows the DJ is a professional, it gives people permission subconsciously to let loose because they trust they will be taken care of when they are out there dancing!

Well as this may seem like an easy question to answer....it truly is not.
First off I start reading my crowd as soon as the cocktail hour begins.
What is the age range of the crowd, are they drinking a lot already are they not drinking a lot. Are the being conservative are they laughing and joking. These are my ways of telling how the night may go once we open the dance floor. If the bride and groom choose to do a money dance or Anniversary dance I always do it right before we open the dance floor. I am basically forcing people to come out and dance. Then once we open the dance floor usually they are like..well we were already out there lets go again..lol.
Then there is the opening song...This is where age comes in play. If there is a lot of an older crowd I usually open with something they can dance to..Eart Wind and Fire September is a good one. And with that song i have come to realize that it doesn't matter how old you are...usually everyone gets up and Dances. Now if it is predominantly younger age range, then it can be a bit more tricky...this is everyone likes different things..but there is always a few songs that will get the dance floor packed. The Big hit songs that just make you wanna get up and dance. 24k by Bruno Mars is a great example...then you go into a line dance right after (the wobble, cupid shuffle etc..).
And that's how it works for me anyways you get people on the dance floor for 2-3 songs back to back and they will keep coming back. Once you switch from that style and if people start dwindling down then you know to switch it back to whatever was keeping them dancing.