Gonna Make You Sweat (No ... seriously ...)
A few years ago I made a business decision that wasn't very popular with potential clients.
The Music Guys does NOT DJ outdoor weddings and receptions from the months of June through September.
The reasons behind this are two-fold:
1) A DJ's equipment is not built to withstand summer heat in Alabama. For example ... take a laptop outside on a hot summer day at noon, turn it on and leave it in the heat for six hours. At the end of the six hours go to Amazon and buy yourself a new laptop because the one that's still outside is just a high-price paperweight at this point. ALL of our equipment gets hot under normal circumstances ... mixers, speakers, laptop, lights. I have had two occasions where I was DJ'ing outdoors (once in a barn with no air conditioning) and the computer overheats and shuts off. In the barn, it shut off permanently. Not only did I have to refund the couple's money, I had to buy a new computer to replace the fried one. I now bring a backup computer to every party but haven't had to use it since I no longer DJ in the heat.
2) Your guests won't dance. Sure, there are some guests who would dance barefoot on broken glass ... they're going to dance no matter what is played or what the conditions are. These guests make up about 15% of your total guests. My job is to focus on the other 85% of your guests and determine what it will take to get THEM on the dance floor. Excessive heat is a strong detriment to getting people to dance. We need air conditioning to get them to even THINK about dancing and even electric fans isn't enough to entice people to dance outside.
I think I may be the only DJ who has taken this stance and as I said, it's probably not a popular stance and I know I've lost money and business turning down outdoor parties.
The reason behind this post is to remind you ... while you personally may be okay in temperatures in the 90s and 100s, most of your guests won't be. Even some of my weddings earlier this spring could have had a much more festive atmosphere if the heat hadn't been as stifling.
So please ... reconsider your dreams of having a summertime reception with lots of laughter and dancing.
Because there's a very good chance that's where they'll stay ... in your dreams.
