Ending Your Reception on the Right Note

After planning the date, finding the venue and arranging all of the other details needed for a great wedding, you may have thought about the last song you would like to have played at your reception. In my experience it can really put an exclamation point on the end of a terrific night. However, deciding the last song of the night before your wedding day has even arrived can be like calling the last play of a football game before it is has even started. You don’t know what is going to be happening at the end and who will be there. It might be good to have a couple of options.

Ending on a slow song

If there are a lot of couples left at the end of the night and everyone is pretty tired out from the long day of partying, ending the night on a slow song can be fitting. It is usually wise to pick something that all generations will know. You want everyone there together dancing at the end.

Sing Alongs

Playing a group favorite that’s easy to sing along to can be a fun way of ending the night. Once again bridging the generation gap can be essential if you want to have people from all age groups dancing ‘til the end. Some suggested sing-along songs are “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond, and “Friends In Low Places” by Garth Brooks and “Piano Man” by Billy Joel.


They’ll Leave Wanting More

If you have a crowd that is just tearing it up at the end of the night, there is no sense in putting ice in the boiling water. It is best to just let it flow and end on a very high note. It could be your favorite club song that everybody knows. “The Grease Megamix” by Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta is always a fantastic song that your guests will be singing all the way home.



I Just Don’t Know

If you cannot think of anything to have played at the end, the disc jockey usually has something good in his back pocket to finish the night. That is what he gets paid for. Experienced disc jockeys have played hundreds of weddings and know how to finish it right due to their years in the business. Many times there is a great song that a guest had requested that just did not fit in earlier and yet makes the perfect last song.
So, my suggestion is that if you want to pick a final song, have a couple of options. But if you don’t pick a final song the disc jockey will have you covered. You never know, the perfect song could pop into your head at the end of the night and you can request it then. The mood at the end of the night should dictate what the last song is going to be.