DJ and wedding singer Caz Whelan joined Lottie Ryan on RTÉ 2FM to share the best songs to fill a dancefloor. Listen back above.
"I feel so, so grateful to have this job," says Caz Whelan, lead singer of The Cazettes. "You're literally playing to people on the best day of their lives, with all their loved ones, all their favourite people around. The energy is just magic."
Having been involved in Dublin's music scene for a number of years, Caz found herself playing gigs of all kinds (she even played a funeral), but eventually found a gap in the market when it came to weddings.
A self-professed "music nerd", she noticed that a lot of the weddings she was invited to had the same old playlists being used time and time again - and so an idea was born.
Sitting down with couples ahead of the big day, Caz creates bespoke setlists to ensure that the dancefloor will be filled with guests from start to finish.
When it comes to the first dance, the musician has seen it all, but says the most important thing is that the couple find a song that feels right for them.
Whether they're doing a choreographed number or enjoying soft sway, she says that couples have chosen all sorts of songs, including: After All by The Frank and Walters, Highway to Hell by AC/DC, and You & Me by The Wannadies, and Everywhere by Fleetwood Mac.
On average, the band will play for about two hours (30 songs), and the Dublin woman says she has about 300 songs locked into her brain, but is always happy to learn something new.
Not only that, but once she's done singing, Caz can hop on the decks to DJ the rest of the night away.
The songs she chooses to keep a dancefloor filled at a wedding are:
- Man, I Feel Like a Woman by Shania Twain
- Just Can't Get Enough by Depeche Mode
- Don't Stop Me Now by Queen
All in all, a night of bespoke music can cost about €3,000, or more if the couple want to add saxophones and trumpets to the band, or if they want music to play throughout the entire day.
"I could be there to do the ceremony, the drinks, the band, and the DJ," she explains. "We put so much effort into learning their special songs and curating it."
Listen back to the full interview by clicking on the audio above.
