Good beat, appropriate song at weddings
Engagement and wedding ceremonies are a celebration of a union and are culturally symbolic; and full of meaning, not only to the two ‘love birds’ ,but also for the society at large. Showing up at engagement and wedding ceremonies, one expects to hear some good wedding songs and on occasion, that local track you and I heard played at weddings while still youngsters, which was full of meaning and lessons for marriage.
For example, remember the days of “mwanawangasuyo, suyoowalowam’banja…” So, I have been struck lately by the selection of songs played at weddings. The other day, at some friends’ engagement and wedding ceremonies, it really hit a low when Chris Brown’s bit “These Whores Ain’t Loyal”, was played. Yes, you read it correctly! I was pleased that the track was cut short because the gathering rose against it.
Now, I have not yet had a wedding or the opportunity to plan one. I do think though that something is amiss with the song selection at some of the engagements and weddings these days. It seems wedding playlists are more about the beat than the message they carry.
Most people would consider this normal, because we are at that age where we are all about popularity and belonging, where the honourable women and men getting married are in their own age bracket, with their close friends and classmates who have grown up jamming to these beats.
To say the truth, it is indeed that time. Yet to some degree, it is this age bracket that is part of the cause to the oversight on wedding song selection. We would like to have songs that are popular and that resonate with our age group played at the engagement or wedding. This is not always bad, but has its problems.
You see, unlike in past times when people sought a band to play at their wedding or parents and friends decided to sing their way to shower gifts, these days, it is normative to expect a disc jockey (DJ). And we want to tell him to play. We want to, but we don’t! Unfortunately, we mostly assume the DJ is in our age bracket and knows his game; and we are good to go. And, lo and behold, “where is my Johnny” blasts out at your wedding. Now, don’t hasten to blame the DJ. If you are looking for the real culprit, you only need to look in the mirror.
The knowledge that you respect your partner echoes in your actions. It is this respect that falls into question when your engagement or wedding playlist includes some inappropriate selections. While blame may be apportioned to the DJ, it is not always him that is to blame. If you want a respectful choice for a wedding playlist, I urge you to take time to come up with one.
Investing time in a wedding to celebrate your union with family and friends should reflect the value you place on the lifetime journey you are embarking on. That means taking time to plan effectively, including time to plan a fine selection of music that resonates with your wedding theme or at least your union. That means taking out time to actually listen to what Yemi Alide’s Johnny is really all about and to find out what Oliver Mtukudzi’s Toddi really stands for before deciding it as a suitable track for your wedding.
