What will your first dance song be?
Choosing the perfect first dance song for your wedding can be a daunting task, but here are some tips to help you make the right choice:
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Start early: Begin the process of choosing your first dance song early, as it may take some time to find the perfect fit for you and your partner.
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Consider your musical tastes: Think about the type of music you both enjoy and find a song that reflects your personality and style.
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Personal significance: Choose a song that holds special meaning to you both, such as a song from a memorable event in your relationship.
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Dance style: Decide on the type of dance you want to do and choose a song with a tempo and rhythm that suits that style.
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Listen to the lyrics: Make sure the lyrics of the song resonate with you and the message you want to convey.
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Seek professional advice: Talk with your professional wedding DJ who can offer suggestions based on your preferences and musical tastes.
Obviously you want the entire day to go perfectly, especially your first dance. This is a moment that you will want to remember forever. Some couples have “their song” in mind months before they even start planning the wedding. While others may still be wondering what will be that perfect first dance song.
Spotify Playlist: First Dance Songs
Thankfully, our Mike Staff Productions wedding DJs have put together a playlist with some of their top first dance song choices. They have included the classics and some more modern hits. This playlist will get you thinking, or even help you pick your song! FYI – over 4,000 people are following this playlist on our Spotify account!
- Love – Lana Del Rey
- Helium – Sia
- How Would You Feel (Paean) – Ed Sheeran
- Perfect Duet – Ed Sheeran & Beyonce
- God Only Knows – John Legend
- Prisoner – Ryan Adams
- Say You Won’t Let Go – James Arthur
- What Would It Take – Anderson East
- How Long Will I Love You – Ellie Goulding
- Mona June – Slightly Stoopid, Angela
- New Year’s Day – Taylor Swift
- Never Be The Same – Camila Cabello
- Look At You – Seth Ennix
- Eyes On You – Chase Rice
- Meant To Be – Bebe Rexha, Florida Georgia Line
- Legends – Kelsea Ballerini
- Greatest Love Story – LANCO
- Yours – Russell Dickerson
- River – Leon Bridges
- I’ll Name The Dogs – Blake Shelton
- Best Part – Daniel Caesar, H.E.R.
- My Forever – Tamar Braxton
- Speechless – Dan + Shay
- Made For You – Jake Owen
- Blessed – Thomas Rhett
- I Don’t Dance – Lee Brice
- Can’t Help Falling In Love – Elvis Presley
- You and Me – Lifehouse
- 10,000 Hours – Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber
- Lover – Taylor Swift
- Beyond – Leon Bridges
- Adore You – Harry Styles
- Conversations in the Dark – John Legend
- Finally // Beautiful Stranger – Halsey
- Yours – Russell Dickerson
- Homesick – Kane Brown
- Ease My Mind – Ben Platt
- 10,000 Hours (Piano Version) – Dan + Shay & Justin Bieber
- Lover (First Dance Remix) – Taylor Swift
- Best Part of Me – Ed Sheeran
- Lifetime – Justin Bieber
- Joy of My Life -Chris Stapleton
- Your Song – Elton John
- Reflecting Light – Sam Phillips
- Nothing Can Change This Love – Sam Cooke
- Prayed For You – Matt Stell
- I’ll Follow You – Shinedown
- Best Part of Me – Ed Sheeran & YEBBA
- Fall into Me – Brantley Gilbert
- From the Ground Up – Dan + Shay
- You Make It Look So Easy – Eric Church
- If You Love Her – Forest Blakk & Meghan Trainor
- Yours – Ella Henderson
- Blessings – Florida Georgia Line
- Baby I’m Yours – Arctic Monkeys
- My Side of the Fence – Dan + Shay
- Love Someone – Lukas Graham
- Tennessee Whiskey – Chris Stapleton
- A Face to Call Home – John Mayer
- The Bones – Maren Morris
- Wherever you will go – The Calling
- I Get To Love You – Ruelle
- Promise To Love Her – Blane Howard
- Always Remember Us This Way – Lady Gaga
- A Million Dreams – Greatest Showman
- Cowboys & Angels – Dustin Lynch
- Give Into Me – Garrett Hedlund & Leighton Meester
- Falling Like the Stars – James Arthur
- You’re My Best Friend – Queen
- Better Together – Luke Combs
- Darling – Roan Ash
- I Am Yours – Andy Grammer
- Golden Hour – Kacey Musgraves
- You Are The Reason – Calum Scott
- Can’t Falling in Love – Hayley Reinhart
- Hey Pretty Girl – Kip Moore
- Worship You – Kane Brown
- Is that Alright? – Lady Gaga
- Trying on Rings – Maddie & Tae
- Diamonds or Twine – Ryan Hurd
- On My Way to You – Cody Johnson
- Heaven – Kane Brown
- Next to Heaven – Aaron Watson
- Things You Can’t Change – Rhys Lewis
- Dance With Me – Morgan Evans, Kelsea Ballerine
- Forever After All – Luke Combs
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7 Tips to Have a Magical First Dance
Let’s set the scene: your wedding DJ calls your name and asks for you to head to the dance floor. You’re standing there with your new spouse, under the spotlight, while family and friends start to crowd around. It’s time for your first spin around the dance floor as a married couple. Check out these 7 tips to make that moment truly magical.
1. Choose A Meaningful Wedding Song
Select a song you both love and one that keeps an easy beat, especially if you’re a beginning dancers. When your song lasts longer than the usual three minutes, ask your DJ to fade the ending. Remember: frazzled dancers don’t dazzle.
2. Take Professional Dance Lessons
Group lessons can be intimidating, but private lessons remove the pressure of dancing for an audience. Your instructor will teach you according to your ability level. With private instruction, beginners can quickly master the basics with confidence. Dancing, like music, lifts the spirit and is so much more enjoyable when shared with your significant other.
3. Decides Who Follows & Who Leads
Gender no longer has anything to do with your decision. Choose the pattern that makes you comfortable. There’s nothing wrong with following a simple lead. Being able to follow the leader creates confidence in the follower and makes a more pleasurable dance for the leader, too. If you’re feeling brave and brassy, create a dance that switches leads once or twice during the routine.
4. Surprise Your Guests!
A pre-planned (choreographed) dip or a twirl makes a splashy statement without the tricky toe work of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. These moves are not only easy, but they offer impressive photo opportunities for still shots and videographers. When you look at them in the future, your photos will take you back to these moments with pride and a satisfied chuckle.
5. Plan Your Entrance and Exit on the Dance Floor
Will you clasp hands and kiss before you begin? Will you sashay in from the left and leave to the right? Whatever you decide, be sure to tell your camera operators where and in what direction you will start and finish your dance, as well as any choreographed moves you plan to make. That way, they can prepare to capture the moment in its best light and with the correct angle.
6. Get To Know Your Dance Floor
Check out the floor you will dance on. Make sure you know its dimensions. Some styles of dancing (like Foxtrot) require a bigger space. In other styles like nightclubs, two steps don’t require much space. Have a good idea of the size and shape of your wedding reception dance floor so that you can practice and get used to dancing in that amount of space.
7. Practice Makes Perfect
Practice on a busy dance floor in a public place. You can also practice at home, of course, (preferably in front of a large, floor-length mirror), but you also need the experience of dancing in front of an audience. Practice your routine at least a couple of times per week, for several weeks, until your feet seem to move without much help from your mind. Concentrate on having fun, and your guests will jump to join you on the dance floor.
Mike Staff is the founder and CEO of Mike Staff Productions, one of the most highly acclaimed wedding services companies in the country, providing award-winning Wedding DJs, Wedding Photographers, and Wedding Videography for over 25 years.