Creating Unforgettable Weddings with Disney - DJ Chuck Johnson
What makes Disney weddings so magical, and how can couples create unforgettable guest experiences at their own celebrations? We’re diving into these questions and more with Chuck Johnson, a veteran DJ who brings the Disney touch to weddings across Florida and beyond.
Chuck is a seasoned DJ with over 15 years of experience at Disney Fairytale Weddings, joins us to talk about creating unforgettable wedding experiences. From personalized touches to structuring the perfect entertainment flow, Chuck shares valuable tips to make any wedding stand out. He discusses how the guest experience should be front and center, why customizing the day makes all the difference, and how couples can avoid common planning pitfalls. Hint it's not following the trends.
Chuck also reveals insider secrets from working at Disney, including the logistics of magical moments like Mickey and Minnie cutting the cake or hosting a wedding at Epcot's Living Seas Lounge. He dives into trends like ditching traditional bouquet tosses and emphasizes the importance of crafting a seamless timeline for the big day.
Whether you’re planning a Disney wedding or a backyard ceremony, Chuck’s advice on storytelling and guest-focused events will inspire you to think beyond the ordinary. Plus, he shares a few funny and memorable moments from his career that you won’t want to miss.
Tune in for actionable advice, heartfelt stories, and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes weddings truly memorable.
Highlights
- Why the guest experience is key to a memorable wedding.
- Chuck’s favorite personalized wedding moments, including REO Speedwagon’s Bruce Hall debuting an unreleased song.
- Tips for structuring wedding entertainment to keep the energy flowing all night.
- The unique logistics of Disney weddings, from character appearances to park restrictions.
- Trends Chuck is seeing in weddings today, like skipping the bouquet toss and cutting the cake early.
- Insider tips for couples to personalize their weddings and tell their unique stories.
Have questions you’d love answered on the show? Write in and let us know! Don’t forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast to help other couples discover these tips. And, of course, share the episode with your friends and family!
Get in Touch with Chuck
Get in Touch with Kevin:
Transcript
Kevin Dennis (0:0.764)
All right. Well, welcome to another episode of Now That I'm Engaged, How Do I Get Married? We're very excited to have Chuck Johnson with us. Chuck is a DJ out of over in Orlando area, right? Or outside of Orlando. Yep. Yep. then but Chuck DJs at Disney. And if you haven't figured it out, we're really ready for the Disney. We're leaning all in with the Disney here. So but it is it is so.
Chuck Johnson (0:14.198)
Yes, Orlando, Orlando, Florida, yeah.
Chuck Johnson (0:22.177)
Hahaha
August Yocher (0:26.344)
You
Chuck Johnson (0:26.652)
It's a Disney day today, yeah.
Kevin Dennis (0:30.056)
Chuck, tell us a little bit about Chuck.
Chuck Johnson (0:33.752)
Well, I wasn't born here in Florida. I was born up in Baltimore and lived there most of my childhood and actually moved out to Southern California a million years ago when I was in my 20s and I met my then wife at Disneyland and we decided California was way too expensive. so way back then we moved to Orlando when it was cheap to live in Orlando. It's not so cheap anymore.
Kevin Dennis (0:45.852)
Oh well.
Kevin Dennis (0:51.774)
Hmm.
Kevin Dennis (1:2.739)
Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (1:3.732)
But we've been, I've been here ever since and I have my company, it's called Classic Dish Jockeys, but it's really just me, DJ Chuff. I do a lot of weddings out and about in central Florida, anywhere up to St. Augustine, down to Tampa, that type of thing. But I am one of the featured Walt Disney World Fairytale wedding DJs. And I've been doing that for 15 plus years now. So I do official Disney Fairytale weddings. So that's pretty cool.
Kevin Dennis (1:31.868)
That's well, and I think that's. And that's what we're going to talk to you about today, but August.
August Yocher (1:32.456)
Very cool.
Chuck Johnson (1:33.473)
you
Okay.
August Yocher (1:37.990)
Yes, yes. So Chuck is going to be talking about the Disney Guest Experience Method, which I'm really excited to hear what that's all about and how he uses that to structure wedding reception entertainment effectively. So yeah, we're going to ask you some questions, Chuck, and we're excited to hear what you have to say.
Chuck Johnson (1:55.926)
Alright, I'll do my best.
August Yocher (1:59.410)
Alright Kevin, you wanna start off?
Kevin Dennis (1:59.530)
All right. Sure. So why should the guest experience be important to a couple?
Chuck Johnson (2:6.976)
Oh man, know, one of my favorite sayings is when somebody is getting married, a lot of times the couple will think, hey man, it's my day, it's my rules, it's my thing. And I always say, hey, look at it like this. You the ceremony is all yours, but the reception, reception is a party for your guests and you too, but your guests, you know, you wanna have your guests have a great time. So give them something really memorable. Give them something that's different than every other wedding that they've been to. And they'll remember your wedding.
for not just next week or next year, but the goal is five or 10 years from now. Hey, remember back at Kevin and Mary's wedding 10 years ago when A, B, and C happened? That's kind of my philosophy. That's what I want to bring to the couples I work with.
August Yocher (2:49.918)
Totally.
Kevin Dennis (2:50.026)
The funny you said, real quick, was going to say, my wife and I have been married almost 18 years now and we got married on New Year's Eve and we brought out pizza and people still to this day talk about pizza and food just kept coming. I think it is, it's all about the guest experience. I love it.
August Yocher (3:11.540)
And I think more so recently than it ever has been before, obviously there always has been sort of focus on the guest experience, but in any recent wedding education, Kevin and I have tuned into, even the knot just came out with saying that that is the top priority for couples these days, is the guest experience. So I think more so lately, it's just been such a huge focus.
Chuck Johnson (3:32.246)
Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (3:35.776)
Absolutely, And when you talk to people that are not in the industry, like when I get together with my friends or my family and this topic of weddings comes up, they always want to go to the negative first. They always want to say, hey, Chuck, what's the worst thing you've ever seen at a wedding? And so I always try to reframe that and say, think about some of the weddings you've been to in the past couple of years. Is there any one specific thing that stands out in your mind that you still think about today? And a lot of times, it's not. They'll be like, oh, you know, it was fun. We had a great time. Nothing specific.
But if there is something specific, it's almost 100 % of the time it was something very customized and personalized to that couple. They were telling their story somehow, and that's what they remember. It's not about if you have chicken or steak for dinner or what your centerpieces are, unless your centerpieces are pictures of you as little kids and when you're five, that's table five. That might be interesting, that might be cool. But if you personalize and customize it, man, that's what I find guests remember.
all the time.
August Yocher (4:36.210)
And yeah, I feel like that will be a big topic today is the personalization and of course the focus on guest experience. So why do you think engaged couples need to think about structuring their reception entertainment when it comes to personalization and the focus on guest experience?
Chuck Johnson (4:53.656)
Well, because if you are like any typical citizen of the world and you get that wedding invitation, probably 50 % of those people getting that wedding invitation like, oh, great, another wedding we got to go to. So we want to shocken all of them when they come to our events, right? They get there, and it's kind of a Disney thing as well. I learned a lot from them. But you're always kind of.
Kevin Dennis (5:8.958)
You
Chuck Johnson (5:23.448)
under promising and over delivering. And when, and when they get to that reception and there's some kind of crazy introduction that is just high energy and really themed to that couple and they come in and you can feel that energy like vibrating throughout the ballroom or the room or the farm or wherever you are, man, and you start off that way, then it's, it's nothing but, but awesome energy for the rest of the night. So, so I try to stress that as much as I can. Uh, people think about, I don't know what the
some introverted brides or grooms might be on them with the focus on the ends. It's not about that. It's really what speaks to you and sharing that with your guests. And when you can take that conduit through your MC, your DJ, and you can kind of hype that and create something that's really special about that guest, man, that's electric sometimes.
Kevin Dennis (6:16.102)
I agree. All right, so, you know, being the Disney expert, how does Disney do it differently?
Chuck Johnson (6:22.085)
Well, besides the fact of the location, You're right there. You have access to all of that IP, well, intellectual, I'm tripping over my words, right? That intellectual property. Yeah, okay. Yeah, so you have access to all that intellectual property, that IP. So I just did a wedding last week where,
Kevin Dennis (6:26.386)
Yeah, I mean, you can't beat that.
August Yocher (6:26.920)
Hehehehe
Kevin Dennis (6:39.646)
Don't worry, Kerry.
August Yocher (6:42.612)
You
Chuck Johnson (6:50.384)
we're cutting the cake and I say, hold up a second. We need somebody else to help you cut the cake and in walk Mickey and Minnie. And they come and they help the couple, they come and they help the couple cut the cake and they cut the cake and then we come out and we do a couple of dances and then they go off and get some personal pictures together. So you get a Mickey and Minnie at your wedding reception, which is super cool. The stuff behind me, I'm a big Haunted Mansion fan. There's not just,
Kevin Dennis (6:58.117)
Oh, no way.
August Yocher (6:58.941)
Hahaha
Chuck Johnson (7:19.874)
film characters, but park characters can come to your wedding too. There's a character called the Haunted Butler. He's basically a ghost from the Haunted Mansion and makes my job real easy because he does the introductions into the reception in a ghostly zombie type voice. And I'm sitting back just playing the Haunted Mansion music. that's a good gig for me. So I can kind of give all the names to him and the Haunted Butler will invite
Kevin Dennis (7:34.885)
Oh, no way!
Kevin Dennis (7:43.934)
Oh.
Chuck Johnson (7:49.418)
entire wedding party into the reception. So that's fun too. that, mean, entertainment wise, obviously there's that whole thing. The set pieces, you can bring in a set piece of a scaled down Cinderella's castle and put it into the bar room. Anything you want to theme it to. If you want, if you're having a brunch, you'll get waffles that are shaped like Mickey. That's pretty cool. So.
Kevin Dennis (8:6.235)
Oh wow.
Kevin Dennis (8:13.710)
Oh wow.
Chuck Johnson (8:15.732)
So yeah, mean, really the only limit is money, you know, and if you ask Disney to do something and they can do it and you got enough, you can do it. Yeah, it used to be back when I started, which was a long time ago, a million years ago, there was never such a thing as getting married in front of the castle. Like you just could not do that. That was like a thing you couldn't do. And then I think what happened, somebody came along one day and said,
August Yocher (8:20.436)
You
Kevin Dennis (8:24.722)
You have enough.
Chuck Johnson (8:46.524)
how much money y'all got? And then they figured, hey, we can monetize this space. And of course you can't do it during the day. You got to do it early in the morning or later at night. But it is possible to get married in front of the castle. And I've even done receptions in front of the Tower of Terror in the courtyard. So that's pretty cool too. Yeah. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (8:48.520)
Yeah.
August Yocher (8:53.448)
Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (9:5.690)
Oh.
August Yocher (9:6.254)
So cool. Well, and I kind of-
Kevin Dennis (9:9.118)
So they'll shut down parts of the park. Go ahead, August. Sorry.
August Yocher (9:12.978)
Well, and I kind of have like a personal question for you, Chuck. And this is just kind of coming from like a hospitality standpoint. I feel like as I've been in the industry, people constantly reference Disney as an example for hospitality and for creating this amazing experience for any guests that step into the park. Do you feel like an immense amount of pressure when someone puts the Disney name on something?
Chuck Johnson (9:16.290)
Sure.
Chuck Johnson (9:39.096)
Well, yes, because just like I said earlier, you're always over, you're always trying to at least over deliver, know, exceed guest expectations. When you can exceed guest expectations, you're hitting your mark. One of the things that is kind of great and kind of not great, I'll give you a perfect example of this. When we had an in-park reception at Epcot, there are a couple spaces along the World Show, if you're familiar with World Showcase,
August Yocher (9:47.966)
Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (9:48.541)
Hmm.
Chuck Johnson (10:8.457)
There's a private space in Italy right there on the water. There's a private space right there in France along the water and couples can rent those areas out for receptions. So what will happen is they'll have their ceremony wherever the ceremony is and then they'll come about 8.30 or so, nine o'clock to that private area. And the very first thing they get to do is have a private viewing of the fireworks. So that's...
Kevin Dennis (:Mmm.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh wow.
August Yocher (:Mmm.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, so that's super cool. So they watch the fireworks and then dinner is served. They got tables set up. I mean, they've got the whole set up outside. And I'm out there and set up already. And then once the fireworks are done, the park is closing in and then the park will, you the guests will leave. But I can't play any amplified music until park clear, which means until the very last, until the very last guest is out of the park because they don't want to hear, you know, low by little John.
August Yocher (11:0.892)
Yeah
Kevin Dennis (11:1.155)
Hahahaha!
Chuck Johnson (11:3.825)
in World Showcase. So that's how seriously they take it. Even if there's just a few guests wandering back there in World Showcase, they're making sure that all those guests are clear of that area before that we play any non-branded Disney music at the reception. So yeah, the pressure's on. The pressure's definitely on.
August Yocher (:Wow.
August Yocher (:Hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:Wow. Does that mean like you're playing like for like there's like a cocktail type thing and you're playing Disney music and then once you get that all clear, you could kick. Oh, wow.
Chuck Johnson (:Not even that because they have their BGM going throughout the park. So basically, the guests are eating dinner to that, which is the World Showcase theme. Now, if I'm inside, we also do receptions inside the American Adventure. If you're familiar with that attraction, when you go in, the Voices of Liberty.
Kevin Dennis (:Okay.
August Yocher (:Oh.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh, yeah, yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:typically perform right there, that's the rotunda. So that's where we have our reception. And there's a little bit different because you're closed off, you can start the music earlier and that type of thing. again, you don't never expect to hear walking to that attraction and hear Lady Gaga or Justin Timberlake, but it happens, it happens. Hot to go, right? Yes.
Kevin Dennis (:Uh-huh.
Kevin Dennis (12:3.730)
Wow.
August Yocher (12:8.923)
you
Kevin Dennis (:Or hot hot to go that's new. Yeah, there you go. So OK, logistics. We're getting off topic a little bit, but like so you you have you have to get there pretty early. I imagine because you does they have to help you cart your stuff out. I mean, like I'm just like the logistics in my head. I'm like wow to make the magic happen is not easy.
August Yocher (:Yes!
Chuck Johnson (:All right, all good.
Chuck Johnson (:Um, I, I bring all my own stuff in and I have it down to a science where it's one trip so I can, I can unload the car and bring it in one trip. And if we are outside in a guest area, say in Italy or France, yeah, I got to be there pretty much before the wedding guests arrived. That's why I'm usually there between seven and eight, uh, before the, before the wedding guests come. So you guys know this, you don't want wedding guests coming in and you're still in your t-shirts setting up your stuff.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Okay.
Chuck Johnson (13:4.972)
And then but then I'm basically on hold for maybe two or three hours while the fireworks and the dinner and all that kind of stuff is going on. So that that's one thing. But if I mean if I'm in the American adventure where I'm inside, that's a little bit easier. They give me park access that day. So I go in through the backstage area and you know, get cleared and come in. I can pull up right behind the building there and just load in from the back. And that's that's actually pretty easy. It's not not terrible. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (13:9.831)
Wow.
August Yocher (:you
Kevin Dennis (:I would say that sounds pretty simple, the being out with the guests and manipulate that, that seems pretty crazy. So just knowing how it, I mean, just from, mean, my kids are older now, but just pushing a stroller through the park is can be, it can be, it can be an adventure in itself, let alone pushing a hand truck full of all speakers and everything. So that's, that's amazing. All right. So, you know, with this, you know, having a Disney wedding, what, do you think some mistakes couple makes?
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Yes.
Kevin Dennis (14:2.770)
you know, in doing, like, where do they miss the mark? You think?
August Yocher (14:7.406)
even like, I mean, mistakes you might see with Disney weddings that you still think might happen with non-Disney weddings, too.
Chuck Johnson (:Well, I think you can apply this to all weddings is when, and look, I'm not here to crap on any wedding planner. I work with a ton of great wedding planners, but when a couple might hire that wedding planner and she's a wedding planner because she had a wedding once and they're not very experienced, they might get some ideas. Again, there's great wedding planners. I don't mean to sound like that. But, but.
Kevin Dennis (:No, no, no, your preach, please preach
August Yocher (:No, everyone knows what you're talking about, it's okay!
Chuck Johnson (:But I'll give you a perfect example of you're spending not as much money as you can, but a lot of money on entertainment and a DJ. And you should trust what that DJ is telling you as far as how the entertainment logistics and itinerary is going to flow. And if they give you a timeline for the reception, try to stick to that timeline. Use the timeline from the wedding planner for the ceremony. But when someone who is not
thinking about entertainment at the forefront of their mind, they may put together a timeline that is as ridiculous as at 728, we're going to do a toast, and at 743, we're going to do the father-daughter. And it's so that specific that we all know that doesn't work that way. And then number two, I'll get a couple or a wedding planner, not all the time, but every once in a while, they'll say, hey, Chuck, you know what you
Kevin Dennis (:No. Never.
Chuck Johnson (:you know the anniversary dance? I'm like, yeah, I know the anniversary dance. And if anybody's listening who doesn't know what the anniversary dance is, that's one of those things where we get all the married couples on the dance floor. And it's a celebration of people who have been married. And then we slowly eliminate them one by one. If you've been married less than 24 hours, please step off to the side. So the couple steps off and everybody laughs. And then we get somebody that's married for 53 years. And it's a huge moment. And it's great. And it's wonderful. And I'll get sometimes a couple that wants to start off their dance floor.
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (:not realizing that 90 % of your guests who you're trying to celebrate that are married are out here on the dance floor and we're opening the dance floor by emptying it. that's and that's not a good, and luckily, and I've been very lucky, you sit down and you explain to the couples why that's not maybe the best thing to do. And then the light bulb goes off and they get it. But they've got this thing in their mind and sometimes people have this thing in their mind of how they wanted their wedding to be for many, many, many years. And you're saying,
long time, but I've done like:Kevin Dennis (17:4.520)
Yeah.
August Yocher (17:8.082)
Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:your DJ, your entertainer is gonna be in charge of your entertainment. So put that trust in your DJ or whoever is doing your entertainment for that night to run the logistics, I guess, for flow because we all love a good flow, right?
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
August Yocher (:Well, and I like that you've explained the why behind it, right? Because I think a lot of people, like you said, they go into their weddings with a certain, you know, vision in mind, but I think the why is really important. But I was also curious because I used to be a planner and we had that same explanation for the anniversary dance. But a lot of times we would suggest the reverse anniversary dance. Yeah, so a great way to start it off, but you still have basically everyone out on the dance floor, too.
Chuck Johnson (:Oh yeah, yeah, you could do that, sure.
Chuck Johnson (:Absolutely, absolutely. when there are alternatives and then they realize, oh, I didn't know you could do it that way. Well, yeah, could. It's your way. Do it any way you want. It's your day. We'll make it work your way. Yeah.
August Yocher (18:2.217)
Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (18:6.108)
And I always think doing the anniversary dance going into the cake is always a good thing. that's just that's. Yep. Yep, exactly. That's that's a that's a good time to do it. So all right. So Chuck, let's talk like how should we're talking a lot about the entertainment at a wedding. How should a couple structure the entertainment you think for the wedding?
Chuck Johnson (:Yes, yeah, you've you've cleared your dance floor and now you've got everybody's attention right to do the cake, right?
Chuck Johnson (:Well, I think if you've hired a good DJ, they're going to have a good planning form for you. And probably nine times out of 10, it's laid out the way that that DJ has found a good reception will go. So you can follow that pretty much right to the T from your introduction to the first dance, it's all that kind of stuff all the way down to the farewell dance. Or if there's something special like an anniversary dance or something nonconventional, which I always, always, always suggest.
If a couple comes to me and says, hey, there's something not on your form that you would want to do, I'm like, tell me more because I want to know. Yeah, I want to know why you're doing this and why it's special to you because then we can really make something special that's not typical that all your guests have already seen before at some other wedding reception and they're judging you silently in their head and all that. So when the couple has an idea and maybe they're not quite sure of how the execution is going to go or anything like that,
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah. Let me learn why. Yeah, exactly.
Chuck Johnson (:We kind of have a little pow wow about that and say, well, that would work perfectly right in here. And we can slot that in and do that. always think about, I would say, always think about the flow. as entertainers, that's so important to us because we want things to flow really, really nicely one into the other and then build upon the night and build and build and build.
until we had that last dance and it's just one of those things where it's already over. Yeah, time flies, but you don't want to end on a down-note, right? So I always encourage couples to kind of think in that kind of a realm of what are we going to do to make this special to you, but also keep it flowing in that where your guests are going to feel engaged and into your party.
Kevin Dennis (:That's awesome. Real quick, I was curious too, like when it comes to Disney, is there things that you have to do differently when it comes to Disney as far as like the entertainment or is it pretty much like a traditional wedding and just you're just at the park and you have Mickey Minnie, you know, or the.
Chuck Johnson (:It is.
Right. is, you know, other than kind of the specialized entertainment sometimes, it is a lot like other structured, like other wedding receptions. There's something that we do. And, you know, I do this in, you know, outside weddings, too, not just at Disney, but there's something called virtual fireworks that I do. And it's basic. Well, it's animated fireworks inside the ballroom. And the reason that started was back
Kevin Dennis (21:0.062)
Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (21:3.280)
in COVID times, remember those times, when Disney was being really restrictive on big gatherings and they canceled the fireworks for a long time. And everybody loved this show called Happily Ever After, the Fireworks Show. And people were really missing that and they couldn't go out and see this fireworks show. So I kind of brainstormed it and put together.
Kevin Dennis (21:6.088)
Yes.
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (:a five minute animated fireworks show that you can project inside the ballroom and sold that as kind of like an alternative. Well, that just kind of took off on a life on its own. So that's something special that you can do. But as far as, I mean, just fitting something into Disney, the only restrictions I really have at Disney, there's a couple of artists that I am not allowed to play at Disney, no matter if it's a private event or not. And I can tell you,
August Yocher (:Mmm.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh.
Chuck Johnson (:those artists are R. Kelly and Michael Jackson. Yeah, R. Kelly and Michael Jackson. R. Kelly and Michael Jackson I am not allowed to play. And then any song that I play, no matter where it is, is the edited radio friendly version of that. You know, they don't want any F-bombs on Disney property. Then there's only really one other, and if we're in a ballroom, if we're in a private room,
August Yocher (:Like, can you share?
Kevin Dennis (:Oh, okay. Okay. Makes sense.
Kevin Dennis (22:9.288)
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:then that's it. That's the only restrictions I have to go by. But now if I am out in a different area, like for example, there's an outside reception area at the Grand Floridian Resort called Summer House, which is right next to the pool. And they do that during the cooler months. I just did a wedding there a couple of weeks ago. Now there are other guests walking around that resort property, right? So I am probably not going to be able to play
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (:certain songs, Cardi B maybe, I'm not allowed to play, because they don't want their regular day guest hearing something that isn't consistent with the Disney brand. That isn't, so if there's questionable lyrics in a public area, I'm kind of restricted on that, but inside the ballroom, as long as it's edited, then pretty much anything goes, so.
Kevin Dennis (:Hmm
August Yocher (23:0.980)
Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (23:1.267)
Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:No, there's so much to think about.
August Yocher (:Do couples ever get kind of like upset about that?
Chuck Johnson (:Well, you know, they ask why, you know, well, why can't we have thriller at, you know, at our Halloween wedding? And I just say, you know, guys, I wish I could help you. It's their house, it's their rules, and I want to continue to work there. So I do my best to accommodate them. And interestingly enough, I can play Jackson 5, no problem. So yeah, yeah, Jackson 5 is not an issue. Yeah.
August Yocher (:Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh really? Oh, I would think. Oh wow.
August Yocher (:Little bit more wholesome, I guess.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, yeah, yeah. think a lot of what it comes down to is just what a lawyer says somewhere in a Burbank headquarter. And they've just made their mark. And then everybody at the parks and the operations end of it just have to follow those rules. It's not trying to be malicious to anybody or hurt anybody's.
party or anything like that. It's just one of the rules you gotta stay in the lane with. So, yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, no, makes sense. Totally does.
August Yocher (:Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:All right, how about a memorable moment from a Disney wedding?
Chuck Johnson (:Oh, let's see, a memorable moment from a Disney wedding. Well, there's good ones and bad ones, right? And by bad ones, mean entertaining ones, but I don't know that I should tell those.
Kevin Dennis (:And I'm sure you have a lot.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Okay.
August Yocher (:And you already said earlier, like, people ask you about the bad before the good. We want to hear the good things.
Chuck Johnson (:Mm-hmm.
Yeah, so one of my very, favorite memories was there is a venue at Epcot called the Living Seas Lounge. And if you've been to the restaurant there, it's on the second floor. It's above the restaurant. It's a private lounge, but you're still underwater, if that makes sense. You still have the windows you can look out. And there was a wedding there, and somebody was getting married to
Bruce Hall. And if you know who Bruce Hall is, Bruce Hall is the basis of REO Speedwagon. And they, I think a lot of the members of REO Speedwagon live in Orlando. And so it was super cool because when I got up there, and this will tell you how old this is, it's probably about 15 years ago. When I got up there, I had already talked to Bruce beforehand and he had given me a track.
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (:to play for their first dance a song that he wrote for his wife that had not been released yet in their library. So I got to play a REO Speedwagon song before it was actually released. And that was pretty cool. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Hmm.
Kevin Dennis (26:2.237)
Wow.
That's pretty cool. That is actually really cool. We went on a Disney cruise and one of the members of RO Speedwagon was on the cruise. I don't remember which one, but that makes sense now that they're all from Orlando area.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, yeah, so I
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, and they do, you know, when the Epcot festivals come up, it's almost, you can almost guarantee Ario Speedwagon will be playing a couple of those dates because they're there and ready to go. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, makes sense.
August Yocher (:That's cool. Do you remember Bruce's partner's reaction to the song when they heard it for the first time?
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, was, you know, was touching for her. She was very surprised and, you know, she heard it and it was good. It was neat. It was just a different kind of experience. I wasn't expecting it, so, but that was pretty cool. That was good.
August Yocher (:Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:That is pretty cool. All right, so now some of the weddings from what I understand that Disney can get a little smaller. Like, how is it, do you have to do anything different to entertain a smaller group compared to a larger group or?
Chuck Johnson (27:9.920)
Yeah, man, they have one time slot that is it's an 11 to three time slot. So 11 in the morning till three in the afternoon. That's usually a brunch wedding. Excuse me. And I've done weddings for as few as 12 people. You know, you got the couple. Yes. And that's including the couple. So you've got 10 guests and the couple. you it's not Saturday night at the club. We understand that. And I think a lot of them understand that, too. But I think a lot of them
Kevin Dennis (:Oh wow.
Kevin Dennis (:No. Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:want that DJ option because they don't want to have to deal with, you know, they still want to do a first dance. They still want an MC to help coordinate things. And, you know, a lot of times it is a more subdued event and that's cool. But sometimes, you know, I'll look at a group come in and I'm thinking, oh, this is going to be, this is going to be a long one. It's not going to be very, you know, fun in my eyes. And then they'll surprise me and they'll dance for two hours straight, just like 10 people.
Kevin Dennis (28:4.819)
Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (28:8.394)
And so that's always like, that's the gift to me because you know what it's like. You would rather work three hours, a great party than one hour looking at an empty dance floor. Every time, every time. So when I get that surprise, that's great. But even when it's not, and they're just chatting and I'll go up at the end and I'll say, know, like.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh, yeah. Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Just like I said, I realized this wasn't a night at the club or anything like that. And they're like, oh my God, we had the best time. It was awesome. It was just what we wanted. And so we're thinking in our minds a lot of times what the guests want. And a lot of times what the guests want aren't what we're thinking what they want. So.
Kevin Dennis (:No, and it's amazing because sometimes it's just like I feel so bad or you know for the couple and it and you'll they'll come up to you this was the most amazing thing ever you know like you said but in my mind I remember the craziness so anyway
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (29:1.644)
Yes.
Chuck Johnson (29:7.222)
Yes, I got one of the biggest tips I ever got on a wedding like that and I was shocked. And then you'll go on a Saturday night and do a 150 person wedding and you're rocking the whole time and then it's like, thanks very much. Okay, bye. Which is fine, that's totally fine. But yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, nothing. Yeah, no, no, no, it totally is. But I know you're saying because it just had one of the easiest weddings I had in a long time and the couple was easy. Everyone was just flowed. The dance floor was packed all night. You know, it wasn't like one of those ones where you really had to work really hard at. And I got the biggest tip I've ever received. And then the next night,
Chuck Johnson (:Right.
Kevin Dennis (:I work so hard for the couple, you know, and it was just like, and I'm like, so I'm like, well, maybe this balances itself out because the couple last night tipped me for tonight because you know, and I got nothing from the couple I worked so hard for, you know, so it just, it is what it is. I'm always grace. Yeah. And that's my, that's my Disney money when I get tips. So that's the money.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Right.
Chuck Johnson (30:1.474)
Yeah, yeah, and it's all good. It's good. Yeah.
August Yocher (30:5.000)
Yeah.
Yeah!
Chuck Johnson (30:7.605)
Yeah, there you go. Come to Orlando and spend your money. We love it when you come to Orlando and spend your money. Yes
Kevin Dennis (:That's yeah, we got to do that more often. So anyway, are there any trends you're seeing in the weddings that you're doing like with Disney non Disney?
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, all over. Let's just call it right now and just get rid of the bouquet and garter toss forever. It's just, I don't know the last time I did a garter toss, that's hardly ever do. I mean, I do, but not very often. And yeah, and maybe 50 % of the time they'll wanna throw a bouquet, but even out of that 50 % of the time,
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, yeah.
August Yocher (:Those don't show up anymore.
Chuck Johnson (:the ladies that are coming up, 90 % of them don't want to be up there and they make it very obvious they don't want to be up there and it's like pulling teeth. you know, just let's just let let's let it go. If you got a bouquet and you really want to give it away, give it to your mom, give it to somebody special to you, give it to somebody that made a difference in your life. Don't just don't bring that uncomfortableness to your party.
August Yocher (:Well, Kevin, we had a bride who did that recently, who made this really beautiful bouquet. I think she recreated her mom's bouquet from her wedding day and then gave it away to her mom. And it was like such a sweet, special moment. And her mom just looks so grateful. It was just way better than any bouquet toss could be.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, it's. Mm hmm. Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Perfect.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Right.
Chuck Johnson (:That's one of those personalized and customized moments that I would just be like all over, because he can incorporate that and it's so much more entertaining and you remember that from somebody you don't even know. So the guests are gonna remember that forever and you didn't have to do the cheesy toss. So yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
August Yocher (:Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, no, I agree. It's funny. I feel like weddings are very are becoming very non-traditional right now outside of I still see introductions. I still see a first dance and I still see speeches, you know of some kind after that It's a mixed bag of tricks, you know that you're gonna get you know We went through a whole phase here in California where no one was cutting the cake or they were doing Silent cake cuttings where they would go over and just cut the cake on their own and now all of a sudden for 2025
Chuck Johnson (32:4.983)
Yes.
Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (:Right.
Chuck Johnson (:Right.
Kevin Dennis (:couples weren't even having cakes here. So I felt sorry for our baker friends and now all of a sudden next year, people want these big elaborate cakes. So it's like a roller coaster sometimes for you just got to ride the wave.
Chuck Johnson (:Oh yeah. Mm-hmm. Yes.
Chuck Johnson (:Absolutely. And do you guys, no, go ahead.
August Yocher (:What I think?
to say, I think people put a lot of like, what's the word, like, trust into those trends too. Like my sister's getting married right now and she was asking me the other day, like, you know, what trends you're seeing and she asked about cake specifically and I said, you know what, like people aren't really cutting anymore and if they do, it's like a really small cake or they'll do mini desserts and she's like, okay, we're not going to do that. We're just going to do mini desserts and I'm like, whoa, like you don't have to take my word for it. Like do what you want, do what makes you happy. But I think people put a lot of value.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
August Yocher (:into the trends that are happening too.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, and think about this, Kevin. Also, from our point of view, it also makes it better for us because do you remember back in the day, you're probably old enough to remember that back in the day, the thought was, well, whenever you cut the cake, that's when the guests leave, right? I mean, you would hear that. And so now, now if we're not doing a bouquet and garter, which I'm happy not to do.
Kevin Dennis (:Yep. Yep. Yep.
Chuck Johnson (:And the only other really thing is maybe parent dances and a cake. always encourage couples, say, look, when the dinner is wrapping up, let's cut the cake right then when the dinner's wrapping up. Because you're doing a couple things. You're cutting it early so your catering staff can cut it up and get it out and serve. Number two, you're cutting it so early that the guests aren't going to be like, oh, well, you're cutting it. I'm leaving right now because we just finished dinner. So they're not going to do that. And then the other thing is,
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (34:5.149)
Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (34:9.110)
That makes it so there's no interruption for the rest of the night. And then it's just, you hit the dance floor and then you go until the farewell dance. You're not stopping an hour into the dancing, say, all right, everybody, let's sit down and let's watch them cut the cake over there. So I love, I've seen that trend as well, having the cake cut right at the end of dinner and getting that out of
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, and it's just there's no start, stop, start, stop stuff going on. people just want to have a party now, you know, and they want to celebrate with their guests. And I think that's the bigger trend. And I think that's the reason behind a lot of that. So like, I like your idea to cutting. If you are going to do a cake, do it early. your guests get, you know, and you're throwing the guests for a curveball, you know, because like they do. But, know, you think about it 15 plus years ago at a wedding, it's like
Chuck Johnson (:Right. Right.
Chuck Johnson (:Yes.
Chuck Johnson (:Yes.
Yeah, right.
Kevin Dennis (:The older guests would get their coffee, get their cake. They had it and they're gone. Yeah, I mean they were gone. So that's not the case anymore. All right. So curious, know, how often do you go to the parks, Chuck?
Chuck Johnson (35:1.690)
Yes, they're out.
Chuck Johnson (:I don't go to the parks a lot because, I was up until about 10 years ago, was a cast member as well. So I worked a lot in the parks in the entertainment field as well. But the thing is, I look at it as kind of like having a pool, you You want a friend that has a pool because then you can go and enjoy the pool and then come home. So if there's a...
August Yocher (:Mm.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh wow.
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (:if there's a new like Guardians of the Galaxy and Tron, two of the new roller coasters just opened and I'm a roller coaster nut. So I'm lucky enough to have a couple of friends that still work and say, hey Chuck, you wanna come ride Tron? So we'll go, we'll ride Tron. And then after about an hour, they're like, okay, see you later. We're done. So it doesn't mean I don't love Disney. I do. In fact, I'm trying to get to Disneyland in Paris very soon.
Kevin Dennis (:Well, have fun.
Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (36:7.570)
And I feel like that'll be a whole new experience for me because I've never worked there. I've never seen the backstage areas, right? I've never seen the break rooms that the guests don't see. you know. So, yeah.
Kevin Dennis (36:7.838)
Mmm.
August Yocher (:Mm.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
August Yocher (:Well, and it's so cool you get access to all of that too. Like, that's amazing. I did go to Disneyland Paris about two years ago, and it was really cool, like, to see a different park. I mean, I'm sure an even cooler experience for you getting to go behind the scenes.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Right.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, You know, people, if you live in Florida and you say, you know, I work at Disney or I, because right now I'm not a cast member, I'm a contractor through Disney. But if you have any type of connection to Disney and you're in Florida, they're like, oh, okay, yeah, so is everybody on my street work for Disney. But people that are out of state, like my relatives who live in Pennsylvania or somewhere else, it's like, oh, you work for Disney.
Can you get me in free to Disney? I can't get you in free. Sorry, I can't. But it carries a little more weight when you're not around it all the time, I guess you should say. Yeah. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (37:5.074)
Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, no, I get it. let's just be real, there's nothing, the word Disney and free don't go together in any aspect of it all.
Chuck Johnson (:Right, right, Yes. But having said that, if you are visiting, especially around the holidays, there is a free thing you can do. And I've been telling everybody about this. You go to the Disney Springs area, used to be called Downtown Disney, and they have a Christmas tree walk. They had decorate all these Christmas trees and these different themes, 100 % free. You can go and walk around and do all of that. You could spend the entire evening there doing that. do that while it's still free.
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:That's funny. Yeah, exactly. Because it probably won't be free much longer. I was at the conference that I met you at, at the Central Florida Wedding One. And I went over my last night there. I just went down to Disney Springs and putzed around and bought the kids some Halloween stuff. That whole Disney Springs is like a theme park in itself. It's so big compared to our little downtown.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Right, right.
Kevin Dennis (:Disney, know, our little area is so small, you know, compared to Disney Springs. It's absolutely amazing. you mentioned, okay, you mentioned Tron and Guardians of the Galaxy, which was your favorite. out of curiosity. That is the hands down the best, the best Disney roller coaster I've ever been on in my experience. That that thing is absolutely amazing. So.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Guardians. Guardians. Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah. Yep. Yeah, Tron, I was just going to say I enjoyed Tron, but it's a little too short for me, you know? Yeah. Right.
August Yocher (:and
Kevin Dennis (:That's what I was going to say. So it's too short. Tron's great, but it's short. Like I expected it to be longer. Like we got done and the riot was over and I was like, that was it? You know, like I was like, it was cool, but that was it? You know, so yeah, no, but Guardians was, I would have rode that thing a couple more times. It's so amazing. anyway.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Right?
Chuck Johnson (39:6.422)
Yes. Sorry, August, you were saying something.
August Yocher (39:8.582)
I was going to say, don't they have that same roller coaster in Paris, too? Or something similar?
Chuck Johnson (:No, they had. Yeah, Guardians is the only one. Oh, Tron. Tron is what we're talking about. That's in Shanghai, Disneyland. Yes. So that that that's that's in China. Yeah, the Avengers coaster is only only at Epcot, only at Epcot. But yeah, Tron Tron was brought over from China, but we can probably safely say that 98 percent of Americans will probably never get to Shanghai, China to ride the Tron roller coaster there. So.
Kevin Dennis (:No, I think it's the only one.
August Yocher (:Okay. Oh, I'm thinking of the Avengers coaster.
August Yocher (:Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:No.
August Yocher (:Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, that's what I'm sure that's why they brought it here.
Kevin Dennis (:Well, they're talking about doing the Tron at our, they're talking about where they can put Tron at Disneyland here. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Because it's going to be the next great thing. All right. So we always like to end with some tips, Chuck. When it comes to entertainment, Disney or non-Disney, what are some tips that you think our couples need to remember when they're planning their entertainment?
Chuck Johnson (:In California. Yeah. Yeah
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (40:9.720)
Man, you know, I've said it before and I hate to beat a dead horse, but telling your story, customizing, personalizing. If you can tell your, if you can figure out a way to tell your story through your day, you are gonna hit a home run. Your guests are gonna be saying it's the best wedding I've ever been to. And as terrible as for me to say this, it's not about how many people dance. It's not about the sing along songs, which they're all great. And I love it if you do that.
Kevin Dennis (:Hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Chuck Johnson (:but it's really about those memorable moments that you create. And I always tell couples, when you're spending money, when you're planning your wedding and you're actually putting money down to buy something, you need to ask yourself this question. You're gonna say to yourself, okay, is this personalizing my day? Is it customizing, is it telling my story? And if it is, great, spend the money on that. But if you're buying something for your wedding and it's not doing that, you need to ask yourself, why are we doing this? Because just like you said, Kevin,
Weddings are way different than even 10 years ago. Nothing is written in stone anymore. And there's nobody that has to tell you that you have to buy personalized napkins for your bar, because they're all going to go in the garbage. Nobody's going to remember that. So always think about what you're spending money on, and is it accomplishing a goal for that night for you? Because if it's not, seriously considering it, cut it. It doesn't make a difference.
Kevin Dennis (41:8.190)
Hmm. Hmm.
Mm-mm.
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-mm.
Kevin Dennis (:Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, and you don't always have to listen to your mom and dad.
August Yocher (:Eheh.
Chuck Johnson (:That's right, that's right. If they're paying, give them one thing, right? Give them one thing and say, mom, dad, we're gonna do this, but then I'm gonna do this and this and this over here. And usually that works out pretty good. Right, exactly, exactly.
Kevin Dennis (:Yes. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, I always say you got to give them a win. yeah, yeah. All right. That's a great tip. August, you got any tips?
August Yocher (:Mm-hmm.
August Yocher (42:1.908)
I think what I took away from this too is of course structuring the event around the flow. And I think that's something, you know, when I used to plan that a lot of couples didn't take into consideration, I know we reference like the stop, go, stop, go. I would always say let's get all the formalities out of the way just so that way your guests can dance. Because I mean, of course they're there for you, but they really just want to get out on the dance floor too. you know, picking the formalities that are important to you.
Chuck Johnson (:Yes.
August Yocher (:and not feeling like you have to do all of them. Like if the bouquet toss is going to make you uncomfortable, you don't have to do it. It's okay. You know, these days it's all about doing what you want. It's your day. You're putting a lot of time, effort, money into this. Do what's best for you and create a great flow for your guests.
Chuck Johnson (:Yes.
Chuck Johnson (:And it's funny you say that too, because I've been doing something lately that has really been working out really, really well. And it's all because the cake is now, almost all the weddings I do, we're cutting the cake right there at the end of dinner. And you know what it's like when people are finishing up the meal. Some people aren't done yet. Some people are. Some people are looking around like, what's going on? And when you're a guest sitting at that table and you don't know what's happening, you know what's going on, that's really frustrating. So I've been taking it upon myself.
I feel like this really works out well. About 10 minutes before we cut the cake, I'll get on the mic and I'll say, hey guys, I know everybody wants to know what's going on. You see that beautiful cake over there, we're gonna cut that up in a few minutes. So if you haven't gotten a picture of it, you wanna do that now. And then people are like, oh yeah, okay. it's just people, I don't wanna say people wanna be told what to do, but they wanna know what's going on. You've been to a guest at a wedding where you're sitting around and it's like nothing's happening.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
August Yocher (:They do.
Kevin Dennis (:Okay.
Chuck Johnson (:Things are happening, we promise you, just nobody's telling you. That's all. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah, people like to be directed. They really do. People like to be told what to do, whether they want to or not. But people feel more comfortable when they know what's going on and what are the rules and all that stuff. yeah, we are. We really are. And sometimes we make it a little too difficult. right. So Chuck, how can people get in contact with you?
Chuck Johnson (:Right. Yes, yes, yes. Right.
August Yocher (44:1.076)
We're simple creatures.
Chuck Johnson (:Go to my website. It's classicdj.com. Very easy, classicdj.com. And if you're looking for me on the socials, it's another easy one, Orlando Wedding DJ. All one word. Yeah, so Instagram or TikTok, Orlando Wedding DJ. That's me. Yeah, come see me there. Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:Nope. Perfect.
Kevin Dennis (:Perfect. That sounds amazing.
August Yocher (:Well, and Chuck, I have one more question for you before we hop off. I was kind of wondering what your favorite Disney character is.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh!
Chuck Johnson (:My favorite Disney character, it's probably Goofy. And we'll see if you can maybe guess why Goofy is my favorite character because I used to work in entertainment back in the day. So you can draw your own conclusions from that. I'm not saying anything, but I like Goofy a lot.
August Yocher (:Mm-hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:Hmm.
Kevin Dennis (:You were goofy.
August Yocher (45:1.652)
Apologetic.
Kevin Dennis (45:7.324)
What's your favorite character, August?
August Yocher (45:9.876)
I'm gonna go with Winnie the Pooh.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh, I liked when I was a kid Winnie the Pooh was mine, but I like I'm a stitch guy right now. I love give me some stitch. So anyway.
Chuck Johnson (:There you go.
August Yocher (:Yeah.
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, real funny, and you don't have to use this, but when my kids were little, when that movie came out, Stitch, you know how they did the campaign for that where Stitch was interrupting other Disney movies and he was kind of like a vandal? So when they premiered that ride at the Magic Kingdom, my kids were at a school where they were invited to go and they all wore little Stitch hats. And that was the day they
Kevin Dennis (:Yes. Yeah.
August Yocher (:Right.
Chuck Johnson (:They TP'd the castle and had the castle was full to end all the guests that they complained because they're trying to take a picture of Cinderella's castle and it's got graffiti on it and toilet paper hanging from it because Stitch was there, right? I know. Once in a lifetime. Yeah, so that was a pretty cool memory. Yeah, right. Very bizarre. Right.
Kevin Dennis (:Oh.
Kevin Dennis (:Yeah.
Kevin Dennis (46:0.840)
Yes, that's.
August Yocher (46:1.054)
Who would be complaining? That's like a once in a lifetime thing. Like that's so fun.
Kevin Dennis (46:6.514)
Yeah, exactly. Well, that ride was horrible. Yes, it was not a ride. Yeah, it was very bizarre. Yeah, I was like, this is the silliest thing ever. Because we got to do it. were in there for one of the conferences, I forget, and we snuck down to Disney for a little bit. And we rode the ride because it didn't have a long line. And I was like, what is this?
Chuck Johnson (:Yeah, and it didn't last very long so yeah.
Kevin Dennis (:No, obviously, obviously for that reason. anyway, all right. Well, Chuck, thank you so much. We can't thank you enough for being here. We'll have all the Chuck, of course, and we'll have all of Chuck's information in the show notes and we'll see you next time. Happy holidays, everyone.
Chuck Johnson (:Guys, thank you.
Chuck Johnson (:Yes. Bye bye.
Kevin Dennis (:Bye.