Live Band/DJ Cues for Popular Wedding Games

Great music cues turn simple games into cinematic moments. This guide gives bands and DJs clear timings, count-ins, stingers, and safe volumes for popular Filipino wedding games, plus hand signals and backup plans so the program feels tight and joyful from first note to last cheer.

Roles and comms at a glance

• Host calls the game and watches the floor
• DJ or bandleader runs cues, count-ins, and fades
• Coordinator stands by the host for hand signals
• Photo lead confirms the exact reveal beats

Hand signals

• One finger up start bed
• Flat palm stop on next bar
• Small circle loop the bed
• Crossed forearms hard stop now
• Point to audience stinger or drum fill

Universal music cues

• Bed music low under voice while giving mechanics
• 4-beat count-in before each round
• Stingers 1–2 seconds for reveals and winner calls
• Hard stops on command for fairness and laughs
• Fades no longer than 2 seconds between rounds
• Safe volume conversational during dinner blocks

Recommended crates

• Warm acoustic OPM and instrumentals for explainer beds
• Upbeat clean pop for action rounds
• Short percussion loops at 100–112 BPM for flexible pacing
• Victory riffs under 2 seconds

Shoe Game

Flow

• Bed low during intro then silence on first question
• After 3–4 prompts add soft percussion loop
• Stinger when answers mismatch for comedy
• Fade down fully for last two sentimental prompts

Cues

• Bed start low
• Stinger mismatch
• Hard stop photo

Bring Me

Flow

• Countdown sting then upbeat loop while guests search
• Micro stingers each time someone arrives with an item
• Hard stop after 10 seconds to move on
• Quick riser for the final bonus item

Cues

• Count-in one bar
• Loop on search
• Chime winner
• Riser finale
• Hard stop next item

Hep Hep Hooray style showdown

Flow

• No bed during commands for clarity
• Short clap SFX when a player succeeds
• Soft buzzer for eliminations keep friendly
• Speed-up beat for final three then victory riff

Cues

• Silence commands only
• Clap SFX correct
• Low buzzer out
• Speed-up 1 bar
• Victory riff 1–2 seconds

Trip to Jerusalem musical chairs

Flow

• Strong groove with clear downbeats
• Random hard stops only on the bar line
• Short riser into final round
• Winner riff then transition to photo bed

Cues

• Groove at 104–115 BPM
• Hard stop bar line
• Riser finals
• Winner riff
• Photo bed

Table Quiz and QR Polls

Flow

• Light bed under questions at very low volume
• Timer beep at 10 seconds and at time up
• Reveal sting for answer slides
• Short fanfare for leaderboard

Cues

• Bed low
• Timer beeps
• Reveal sting
• Fanfare top table

Money Dance or sabitan ng pera

Flow

• Two or three romantic tracks with steady tempo
• Gentle crossfades between songs
• Optional bubble machine cue on last chorus if allowed
• Fade to photo bed and thank you

Cues

• Track A start
• Crossfade to B
• Crossfade to C optional
• Bubble cue last chorus
• Fade photo bed

Anniversary Dance

Flow

• One slow song while host calls year brackets
• Subtle swell at last 30 seconds
• Winner riff then bouquet handoff bed

Cues

• Slow ballad start
• Swell last 0:30
• Winner riff
• Handoff bed

Tinikling guest round

Flow

• Pro troupe track at performance volume
• Drop to slower practice tempo for guest try
• Hit on couple’s pass then photo bow bed

Cues

• Performance start
• Practice loop slower
• Couple pass hit
• Bow bed

Prize calls and raffles

• Short riser when drawing
• Drum roll loop under number reveal
• Winner riff and photo bed
• Keep the riser under 3 seconds to avoid drag

Suggested OPM and feel-based crates

Explainer beds

• Acoustic instrumentals and light guitar patterns

Action rounds

• Bright pop at 100–114 BPM with clean edits

Romantic

• Tender ballads that are widely known to guests

Cultural set handoff

• Light percussion and rondalla-inspired textures

Gain staging and safety

• Keep host mic 6–8 dB above music beds
• Duck beds automatically when host speaks
• Walk the room to check elder tables for comfort
• Avoid sudden SFX at high volume

Sample run snippets

Bring Me mini

• 00:00 Host explainer bed low
• 00:20 Count-in search loop
• 00:30 Winner chime hard stop
• 01:40 Riser final item victory riff fade

Hep Hep Hooray finals

• 00:00 Silence commands only
• 00:45 Speed-up loop
• 01:15 Victory riff photo bed

Anniversary Dance

• 00:00 Ballad start
• 02:30 Swell cue
• 03:00 Winner riff handoff bed

Band chart notes

• Prepare 1-bar stop cues and clean endings for each tune
• Drummer triggers claps and rolls on pads at low volume
• Bass locks with host cadence by watching hand signals
• Keys hold warm pads for photo beds

Troubleshooting

• Dead air prepare 10-second neutral loop on hot key
• Feedback cut bed, aim mic away from speakers, resume at -6 dB
• Host off-cue hold bed and wait for hand signal
• Crowd too loud push clap pattern for 4 bars then drop for voice

Quick pack checklist

• Laptop or tablet with hot keys labeled
• Two USB sticks with show crate
• 1–2 wireless mics plus fresh batteries and one wired backup
• Small SFX bank claps, chime, riser, drum roll, victory
• Timer app with visible display on DJ screen
• Photo bed playlist and quiet interludes

Closing handoff

• After awards a 2-bar drum fill into the couple’s chosen dance cue
• Fade to venue playlist once the band or DJ set begins

With clear cues, short stingers, fair hard stops, and warm beds, your live band or DJ becomes the silent co-emcee who keeps every game crisp, kind, and unforgettable.