iDJ San Diego - Gary Kelley - Top 5% of Wedding Professionals 2012 - Member BBB
(map) Phone: 619-504-4716
Reviews for iDJ San Diego - Gary Kelley - Top 5% of Wedding Professionals 2012 - Member BBB




We found Gary after a search for a non-cheesy and yet still fun and affordable DJ in San Diego. We were thrilled that he seemed to be very much like us; we didn't want a lot of "DJ talking time" (like bouquet toss, garter, etc.) We did have a first dance, and we did have him announce us, but didn't do the other things that so many people say that you "have to have" -- we just wanted a lot of great music, and he delivered! Great reception (in laws' backyard), one guest wanted to use him for her reception a few months later but he was already booked, so book early.
GUEST




Gary did a fantastic job. He hit every cue. Kept the wedding moving along. We highly recommend him. Plus he is super nice guy.
GUEST




Gary Kelley is a great DJ. He played all of our favorite music and was a great MC. Good price, very professional, and didnt try to be the center of attention as some DJ's do. I highly recommend.
GUEST




Gary Kelley did a fantastic job at my sister’s wedding last October. He played songs for all ages and created a fun and memorable atmosphere. Gary was very professional and responsive to any of my sister’s requests. He kept the guests dancing and wanting more at the end of the night. I highly recommend Gary to anyone looking for a DJ for any occasion.
GUEST




Being the father of the bride, it was important to have a professional that would make my daughter feel confident that the event was going to go off without a hitch and a DJ that has the experience to handle any unforseen problems that might come up. Gary met with the bride and groom in advance and gave them the confidence that the evening was going to go just fine. Gary was very professional, played all the music that the bride and groom had requested and kept the guests dancing all night long. Some DJ's think they are bigger than the event if not "The Event." Gary is not one of those DJ's.
If you are looking for a professional DJ that is concerned about what you want and not how they want it to be, Gary is your DJ.
GUEST




Gary was amazing! He checked in with us before each event began and made sure that things went smoothly. he kept our guests grooving all night and his music collection was awesome!
GUEST




We had Gary Kelly dj for our 4th annual family party and he was fantastic! I have gone through 3 other dj's in the past years looking for one that could fit our venue. Sadly we had to endure 3 unprofessional or boring dj's before being refered to Gary through Russ T Nailz. He was on time, played a great mix of music and overall has a perfect fit for our very fun family event. I would highly recommend him for a wedding. He has the experience and personality to make your special day perfect. We are so happy to be able to say that he is our official dj for our annual event!
GUEST




We absolutely loved Gary! He was awesome, we were very happy to have him DJ our ceremony. We recommend him to all of our friends!
GUEST




My wife and I got married in August of 2009. We were referred to Gary Kelley from some close friends. We were able to meet with Gary a few weeks in advance to give him an idea of what we were looking for in a DJ. We really enjoyed sitting down with him and sharing our ideas as well as getting some great input. Right away we knew that he was on the same page as us. Gary really made it a priority to personalize his services to fit our needs. During the ceremony and reception was when Gary's professionalism really became apparent. His experience in media really stood out. Overall Gary's involvement in our wedding was a huge addition and I would recommend him to anyone looking for someone profesional and willing to customize his services to fit his clients.
GUEST




As the mother of the bride, I have to say Gary Kelley was an absolute professional DJ. He made everything happen so smoothly at the wedding and reception; his many years of experience really pay off. He has done so
many weddings that he knows what needs to be done and when. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed his entertainment and music. He let the bride, groom, and parents make selections weeks in advance. He was always responsive and willing to answer all our questions. I highly recommend Gary Kelley for any wedding/reception.
GUEST




Gary Kelley was overall a decent DJ for our wedding reception. Guests were dancing all night and had alot of fun - he knew what songs to play to keep people on the dance floor! He also respected our do-not-play list, which was nice. He responded pretty quickly to email and phone questions. Overall, nobody else probably noticed the mistakes/problems we had with him - which was good.
We had clearly told him at our first meeting with him that we didn't really like most dance music and that would prefer not to have most rap/pop at the wedding (we are mostly into rock), and he ended up playing a good amount of pop - maybe even more than rock. We requested a certain song be played during the 'anniversary dance', and he ended up playing another song and then tacking our song at the end when the last couple was wanting to leave the dance floor. Before every song we had requested he interjected "and now... a song specifically requested by the bride and groom" - it got sort of repetitive by the third or fourth time. He ended up playing the same music CD for the cocktail hour and dinner hour even though we requested different things for each on the form he had us fill out ahead of time; one of my bridesmaids complained to us that she'd heard the song playing before twice and so we had to request that he change it up.
Overall, he was a decent wedding DJ and seemed to understand what we wanted when we booked him ~6 months earlier. We should have sat down with him again sometime in the month before the wedding to really clarify what we wanted because maybe we weren't clear enough originally. It probably would have helped to avoid some of the problems we had!
Vendor response to review
Thank you Stephanie for your review. I appreciate it. If I could I'd like to respond to a few things you pointed out. Not excesses, but I would like to point out why I do things the way I do.
I know you didn't like most dance music and was sensitive to stay as close to your musical boundaries as possible. The dance portion of your wedding was about twice as long as an average wedding reception. Dancing for over 3 hours. It's a challenge to entertain your guests and keep them dancing when your don't like dance music. Due to a large percentage of your guests asking several times for more current dancing music, I did play 7 or 8 current dance songs in the course of 3 hours. Yes they all packed the dance floor and even had you out there smiling and laughing with all of your guests. I would like to point out I did incorporate every song you asked for into the mix. Buying many songs for you that I normally don't play. I do this for all of my clients. Some of your requests where more geared for listening then dancing, but I played them with a smile on my face. Yes I did say 3 or 4 times that here's another special request from our Bride and Groom. You picked these songs. I wanted people to know they are special to you. This works out to about 1 mention per hour. As a DJ when your playing music and reading the crowd you try your best to respond to what's working at the time and constantly make adjustments for the good of the evening. I ask every client, "Is is ok if I use some of my judgement in this?" Usually the clients requests and some requests from the guests, plus the DJ's experience work well together. This is why you could post your comment, " Guests were dancing all night and had a lot of fun - he knew what songs to play to keep people on the dance floor!"
As far as the background music. I did play a portion of it again for you as your walked into the room. It was your number one request for background music and I wanted you to hear it. The guests did hear part of it earlier along with another of your requested artists. Someone did ask me to change it and I did instantly. Again I just wanted you to hear what you asked for. It was only background music in a very crowded room. I was just trying to give you want you asked for.
The anniversary dance. You asked for "In My Life - The Beatles 2:28 in length. With all of your guests it would of been an impossibility to properly get 30 to 40 couples off the dance floor slowly and properly during a song that's just over 2 minutes long. I chose another song off your list and played your requested Anniversary dance when the last couple was left standing. It was great when you came out with them for pictures with your chosen song playing. It was the only way I could make it work for you.
Everything you pointed out is the way I run my business and always have. I always encourage my clients to make comments during the event if they would like something changed. You can't redo it later. In this case they only thing that was pointed out was to change your requested background music, in which I did instantly. In being the controller of the pulse of the evening, I tried to be in tune to you and your guests to the very best of my ability.
I thank you for your comments and wish you the very best. I thought you were a great couple to work for.
Sincerely,
Gary Kelley
The Kelley Co.
www.iDJSanDiego.com
866-881-7880
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