When I first met up with Christine and Red, I knew their wedding was going to be fun. They are some of the most easy going people I have met and the time we spent together just flew by. I met with them three times before their wedding (all in Astoria, Queens and twice with maid of honor Ivona) so by the time I rolled up to The New York Botanical Garden for their Stone Mill Wedding, I felt like we were good friends.
The New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx has two wedding venues, the Garden Terrace Room and the Stone Mill. I have DJed at both several times and love going to NYBG to DJ and on my free time. The Stone Mill is a beautiful venue with two levels and a large outdoor patio next to the Bronx River.
Stone Mill Wedding NYBG
The Bronx, NY for Christine & Red
By DJ Ben Boylan
Christine and Red's wedding began on that sprawling patio next to the Bronx River with a lovely ceremony. The wedding party walked in to a rendition of "Here Comes the Sun" by the Midnite String Quartet and Christine came in to a version of "Can't Help Falling in Love" by the Piano Guys. When the ceremony was done, all of the guests cheered while the couple walked out to "Walking on a Dream" by Empire of the Sun.
After the ceremony, cocktail hour was held on the outdoor patio and in an adjoining inside room. I had set up a speaker (and mics) outside for the ceremony and another speaker inside. Guests bobbed their heads to a classic rock playlist (heavy on Billy Joel) that I curated with feedback from Christine and Red.
An hour later, everyone headed upstairs for dinner and entered the room to Frank Sinatra and light classic rock. Once everyone had taken their seat, I did the introductions. The wedding party came in to Sam & Dave's "Hold On, I'm Coming" (a personal favorite), and Christine and Red came in to Metro Station's "Shake It." This is one of their favorite songs and I played it again later. After they danced a little to "Shake It," I started their first dance song: "Dreams" by The Cranberries, a great choice.
After the first dance, we had a short dance set and really got this Stone Mill wedding going. They had asked me just to play one song, Real McCoy's "Another Night," but their guests were going so crazy that I kept it going for 15 minutes or so until I saw the first course being served. Then I transitioned back into light classic rock and jazz standards for dinner service.
In between courses there was a toast from the best man and one from the maid of honor. I provided them with a great wireless mic and they both did great. Afterwards I played two slow songs to start off the dance set, Frank Sinatra's "Nice N Easy" (a must-play from Christine) and "Can't Stop Falling in Love" by Elvis.
Then we started off the dance set with parent dances. Christine danced to the Beach Boys' "God Only knows" with her Dad, and Red followed it up by dancing with his mom to "Tiny Dancer" by Elton John. Then we started the dance set and it was wild! They had asked for a mix of 80’s pop, indie, 90’s dance, 80’s freestyle (just a few), throwback hip-hop and old school dancehall reggae.
We took a couple breaks to cut the cake and throw the bouquet, but they were dancing for about two hours! Really fun crowd. At midnight, everyone headed down for a chill after party where guests had snacks and danced to a playlist I had programmed with feedback from the couple. The highlight of my night was how happy Christine and Red were at the end of the night.
Thank you Christine and Red for letting me be a part of your amazing Stone Mill Wedding at The New York Botanical Garden!
I'd also like to thank these great vendors who worked with me:
Catering: Kristal and Chris of Constellation
Photographers: Domenick and Jeff of Studio 1
Officiant: Valerie Coleman
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