After working with him at the Roanoke Wedding Crawl I can personally attest that Roy from RSP Entertainment knows how to play a party. His fun upbeat music flowed seamlessly in the background with the event and kept everyone there moving. I got to talk to him more this week about his Deejaying business and why you’ll want to book him immediately for your wedding.

Photo credit: www.topweddingsites.com-by-Roger-Kirby.jpg

How long have you been a DJ and how did you get started?

 

I started Deejaying as a hobby back in 1996 at a ripe old age of 15, both of my uncles were in bands which allowed me access to some excess gear and lucky for me my father put up with the loud jam sessions in our basement!  Not too long after playing for some birthday parties and smaller school events, my younger brother Russell started helping and took interest in Deejaying as well.  By the end of 1999 we’ve started playing for some weddings so my father and I decided that we needed a company name to continue promoting our family run business and hence RSP Entertainment was born.  What does the RSP stand for you may ask?  My brother Russell and I both have the same initials, and since we are the main DJs of the company, we agreed that RSP Entertainment fit nicely.

 

Our company’s goal is to provide our clients with a professional, quality, fun filled and memorable DJ service to handle all of your entertainment needs!  We figured what’s the use of having a party if the entertainment is not, well… for lack of a better word, entertaining!  Everyone in our company is either family or friends we’ve grown up with and I have personally trained each of them to meet the high expectations of our company.

 

 

We usually only have one professional at each event, unless the couple would like to hire Matt & Matt, then you get one dynamic duo (separate DJ & MC) that’s one of the best in Virginia in providing professional and exciting wedding receptions.  When they can play off each others cues to have the perfect song follow the perfect phase and vice versa, it’s hard to stop the energy and excitement that builds as the night progresses!

 

We have performed at well over 2,000 events since we started back in ’96, and currently have 5 complete DJ crews to cover anything from a small birthday party to elegant weddings.  We currently play for well over 120 weddings a year along with company parties and other large arena events up to 6,000 people.  We not only keep up with the most advanced gear, video mixing and up-lighting trends, but also attend professional conferences such as the one in Las Vegas to keep our skills as up-to-date as our music collection.

What would you say your style of music is?

 

Honestly, my style of music is whatever gets the crowd moving.  I can have fun and make a story out of pretty much any genre.  If I’m playing for a wedding crowd, I’ll have it build up with excitement and cool down with a slow dance or sing-a-long, while at teen or club events you want your story to unfold with moments of explosive energy, some down tempo beats and a sing-a-long from time to time…. An old school hit or two can also be desired depending on the age of the crowd, etc., if I’m bobbing around enjoying the mix, it’s likely the crowd is as well.

 

How do you work with couples to determine their playlist?

 

Choosing the right playlist can sometimes be easier than choosing the right DJ.  The easiest way to start a playlist is months before the wedding honestly.  Start writing down songs that you sing, dance or otherwise find yourself moving to while at work, in the car, exercising or what have you.  It’s much easier to pick what you like in the moment then to try and think of them while meeting for the first time.  From that point, I’d suggest providing the key spotlight songs that are meaningful to you, select the genres you’d like played and maybe pick out a top 10 list along with conveying the “feel” you want for the evening, then let the DJ do their job.  You’re paying them to be an expert in their field and most experienced DJs will cater to the crowd.  If they have absolutely no clue where to start, then I’ll start playing some popular tracks and then fill in the gaps once I can tell the direction they seem to be going.

 

Photo Credit: Amodeo Photography

 
What type of equipment do you use?

 

We stick with professional gear that’s tried and true in the industry, using great names such as QSC, Shure, Mackie, Numark, Virtual DJ & more.  Everything we use for our clients gets rigorous testing before it ever goes live with our DJs. This way, if there are any issues to address or iron out, it happens in our basement instead of during a client’s first dance or during a fist pumping frenzy, as that’s not when you want to trip a power breaker or have a new DJ program freeze on you.

 

Are you also willing to act as a “master of ceremonies” and help run the reception?

 

Absolutely, all of our DJs are trained and well versed in the expectations of being a great Master of Ceremonies.  We provide all of our clients with a Ceremony & Reception Planning Guide as appropriate that lists all of the spotlight events any wedding would normally include.  The client can then select what they’d like to do, when they’d like to have it done and the desired song to accommodate the event.  If you don’t happen to have a wedding coordinator (which we do recommend to help keep stress off the bride and grooms), then we’ll be happy to keep the planning guide events flowing exactly as listed so that the result is a storybook wedding that fits into the time span the client has selected.

 

How does your pricing work?

 
RSP Entertainment’s pricing varies depending on what the client desires.  It’s their big day, and every client is different, so we try to set them up with entertainment that’s compliments their vision of the perfect wedding.  We offer various packages that cover everything from a simple “jukebox” DJ to a full production package that can cover your ceremony, up-lighting and video projection needs.  Variables include years of experience, interactiveness with the crowd (such as leading group dances), cutting edge beat blending like you hear in the clubs and so much more.  If it has to do with the entertainment aspect of your wedding or reception, we can likely cover it.

 

Due to the ever expanding nature of our business, we’re constantly upgrading our services to cover more aspects of entertainment, and now atmosphere, than ever before.  On a grand scale, imagine where you walk into the reception, the room is glowing in your preferred wedding color, with your favorite songs effortlessly filling the room and a video slideshow of you and your soul mate plays for all to see. Then, as the night moves along, the up-lights can be faded to any color of the rainbow to enhance the mood as the celebration ramps up to one of the most exciting times you’ve ever had in your life, all at the control of your entertainer.

 

 

Is ceremony coverage/music included?

We do offer ceremony packages that provide full coverage of all your ceremony needs, including but not limited to wireless microphones for the Officiant, bride and groom and any readers or singers as desired.

 

How extensive a music library do you have?

We currently carry over 90,000 songs with new music being added weekly.  It’s extremely rare for us not to have something a client’s guests request throughout the evening and as long as the bride and groom provide their full list before an event, it’s guaranteed to be available for their big day!

 

 

What are some things a bride and groom can do to make the process easier for you?

 

The best thing a client can do to help us make their wedding the best it can be is by filling out our planning guide to the best of their ability, reviewing everything with us by sharing their vision as best they can… and then honestly, let us do our thing.  I know it sounds simple, but we’re professionals at what we do and know that reading a crowd is better than any well laid plan.  We’ll be sure that all of the essentials are covered, the key songs are played and that the attention of the wedding has been focused on the bride and groom, and then take the celebration in the direction the crowd directs it.

Photo Credit: RSP’s website

 

Any other tips/tricks you have?

 

Honestly, choosing the right DJ or entertainer is kind of like choosing a vacation, cruise or honeymoon package… options are key!  Some are really cheap and will likely feel that way.  Others are very luxurious but can give you everything you want!  There’s usually a happy medium that will suit your needs and the key to selecting the right DJ for your wedding is being very open, knowing what you’re looking for and chat with the DJ or even ask for ideas if you’re not sure.

 

Ask yourself, does this DJ have an interest in making my event the best it can be?  DJs now have the ability to be more than simply someone who plays music.  They can be the Master of Ceremonies, lead group dances and some offer audio/visual expertise in things such as dance lighting, up-lighting, video/slide show projection and more.  If your personality jives with the DJs, it’s likely you’ll have a very entertaining and successful event, the rest is just icing on the cake!

Photo Credit: Amodeo Photography

 

 

Thank you so much for talking with me about wedding Deejaying services Roy! And trust me brides when I say you need to call them today for your wedding – they provide excellent service and come highly recommended!