Hailing from beautiful Western Australia, Adrian of Goldbass DJ Entertainment has the State covered with his DJ entertainment services. Add to that MC-ing, lighting packages and even a little reception photography and you have a choice of a wide range of Adrian’s skills to tap into for your wedding day. And in the end we Aussies are all the same, from the city to the bush, from the outback to the coast – we love a lively celebration, with family, friends and great music. And that’s exactly what Adrian loves to provide!

Please tell us how you started in the entertainment industry.

Since a very early age I’ve been very passionate about music starting at age 4 learning the organ and later the piano which led on to creating remixes in high school to joining a band in my early 20s and even creating a couple of remixes for JJJ. It wasn’t until I travelled to Broome in Western Australia that I secured a full time resident DJ slot at the local night club for around 2 years. The good thing about Broome is it has such a rich & diverse culture, teaching me a broad range of music styles for the dance floor from RnB / Hip Hop to Australian Classics through to harder dance in the early hours of the morning. Since 2003 I’ve focused on weddings all over Western Australia and have thoroughly enjoyed mixing all of the different styles of music.

What services do you provide to bridal couples? 

I offer a range of services to compliment my main DJ role. This includes MC services where I keep a smooth flow to the reception timeline, uplighting for the venue, ceremony sound and even a candid reception photography service if I’m not MCing.

What is it about being a DJ/MC that you love?

I think the best thing I love about DJing is that moment when most of the room is feeling the music, dancing, laughing and are just forgetting about all the other stuff going on in their lives. When a bride and groom let me be a part of their special day, I’m honored and excited about the celebration ahead.

What are the defining qualities of a good DJ or MC?

The most important thing a good DJ has is his/her ego in check. Be humble, respect guest requests and stay level headed during the crazyness that some of these celebrations bring to the table. A deep knowledge of the many music styles and songs also helps to build an amazing playlist. A great DJ will also have a few “little secrets” to keep a dance floor full that no ipod / computer playlist will ever know 😉

MCing is a different role all together and the qualities to look for in your MC are, someone who is not afraid of public speaking, someone who isn’t going to steal the show and someone who has a warm & fun personality to keep a smooth flow to the timeline.

What areas of Western Australia do you cover?

I provide DJ & MC services State wide! I’ve been lucky to DJ weddings in Broome down to Geraldton, Perth to Margaret River even out to the Goldfields of Kalgoorlie.

What do you most love about travelling to such diverse places as Broome, Margaret River and the Kimberley to provide entertainment?

For me, there is nothing more fun and adventurous travelling to places outside of my comfort zone. It’s what helps you grow as a entertainer! I actually prefer playing at venues that don’t usually have weddings as it’s a completely new experience for the staff, caterers, guests and wedding couple. Some very memorable wedding locations include a cattle station with a few hundred guests in a remote part of the Kimberley, the surf club at Cable Beach till early hours in the morning (best sunsets ever), Yanchep cave just north of Perth and The Red Herring Restaurant in Fremantle when I was DJing on the jetty and dolphins were swimming right underneath me – must have liked the song choices!

What do you require to set up your equipment at an event? Do you take backup equipment to these far flung places?

All I need is floor space next to the dance floor, preferably against a wall with a couple of close power outlets. Of course I take backup equipment to every gig and even have a battery powered system to help out if the power fails!

Do you offer specialised wedding packages?

I have a base package that includes the essentials such as a JBL sound setup, all DJ equipment and DMX computer controlled lighting for the dance floor. As every wedding is different, I usually create a custom package for couples. Options for couples include uplighting, their name projected on the dance floor, MC services, reception photography services, ceremony sound & operation, more club style lighting or bigger sound!

What is your most popular wedding package, and why?

I’m finding a lot of couples are wanting MC services, someone to provide their ceremony music and the uplighting service. A good MC will keep the timeline running smooth and direct the focus of the guests where and when needed – and it’s a bonus if he/she adds a little personality to the show.

Having a DJ to press play at exactly the right time & right volume is essential for the ceremony experience. I’ve only added uplighting to my DJ packages in the past year and there is some amazing new technology that can help couples really create atmosphere at their wedding reception. They can light up walls, the roof, wedding cake, dance floor, flower centerpieces + more. The uplighting can be any colours and a warm white, white with a tinge of orange, gold, peach, lavender, aqua blue or pink are popular colours at the moment.

How do you help a couple decide on what songs to play – or do you prefer to  ‘read’ the audience and make choices based on that?

When you book Goldbass for your wedding entertainment, I’ll provide the login details for the website so you can create a list of some Must Play, Play if You Can and Do Not Play songs.

It’s actually a pretty cool tool. You can check it out here…

http://goldbass.com.au

Couples can compile this list anytime leading up to their wedding and come back to it to edit at any time also. I’ll get these songs into the playlist and of course work very hard on the day to read the crowd and get that dance floor into a fever!

What styles of music do you find are most popular at a wedding?

Looking back at the last few weddings I’m finding a lot of couples are choosing contemporary indie / alternative / RnB easy listening music for during dinner. When the dancing starts, people dance to songs they have a connection with and that all depends on the bride, groom & guests on the day.

Do you have a favourite song that gets the best reaction from wedding guests?

Hmmm being there’s only a few million songs to choose from, my favourite “feel good” reaction song would have to be “Higher & Higher” by Jackie Wilson released in 1967. It actually mixes very nicely BPM wise with Rudimental’s “Feel the Love” released in 2012.

Five songs that should be on my wedding reception playlist are……

During dinner I would have to say “Songbird” by Eva Cassidy, and a beautiful song I only usually play for Kimberley weddings “Saltwater Country” by local Broome band Pigram Brothers.

3 must play songs for the dance floor would be…

– Stop ‘Til You Get Enough by Michael Jackson – How can you not shake some moves to this track?

– Be Faithful by Fatman Scoop ft Crooklyn Clan – Go the Radio Edit to be lyrically safe lol!

– Happy by Pharrell – There’s actually a good mashup of Happy crossed with Touch & Go’s “Would You” mixed by French producer DJ Y Alias JY.

Who inspires you musically?

I’d have to say Ray Charles, Paul Simon and Beck. All 3 are musical geniuses and if you sit through a few songs / albums of each artist you’ll get what I mean. They don’t usually get a lot of play in wedding playlists – but I do sneak a couple of songs in if possible.

My top 3 respected Australian song writers are Iva Davies (From Icehouse), Ross Wilson (Daddy Cool) and of course Johnny O’Keefe.

My favourite female artist (noticing the above are all male) would have to be Ella Fitzgerald – wow she was an amazing jazz singer.

What is it about WA that makes it your preferred home State?

Western Australia is an amazing State to live in and I plan to spend many more decades here. There is so much untouched land and the colours, well if you’ve been to Margaret River, Kalgoorlie, Shark Bay, Coral Bay or The Kimberley the landscape colours & contrasts are an artist’s dream!

But shhhh don’t tell too many of these East Coast folks 😉

Thank you Adrian for sharing your story. For more information about Goldbass DJ Entertainment please visit the website.

Images courtesy of Adrian of Goldbass DJ Entertainment