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What costs are associated with booking live music for your wedding, and why!

Writer's picture: Suzie LangtonSuzie Langton

In the month where everyone is feeling the pinch, booking suppliers, including booking live music for your wedding, might feel like the pennies are having to go even further - but there's a reason for it, and I'm here to share exactly what goes into our packages and why I set that price tag.



First of all let's talk about what goes into every single package:


  • Purchasing or creating new tracks - most weddings have a bespoke element to them, which means either I have to source a track, or we have to create one ourselves. I am lucky enough to have access to recording equipment, and a sound engineer boyfriend (also guitarist!), who can help with this, but the time and cost associated with this has to be considered.

  • Rehearsal time - even if it's just me as a soloist, I put hours and hours of time into rehearsing your songs, to ensure these sound as good as possible on the day. This time escalates if you've booked a duo package, as we will spend time making sure the keys and tempos are correct, and also making any changes to tracks too. If you've booked the band, this time then quadruples to factor in four musicians getting together and rehearsing.

  • Insurance - this is a must, public liability is a requirement of pretty much every venue I have performed at, and we always make sure this is in place - but guess what, there's a cost factored into this too!

  • PAT testing and electrical safety - we always take the time to check all our equipment is in full working order, and that means checking the electrical standards and safety through PAT testing.

  • Travel / Accommodation / Food - we charge a mileage fee outside of our area, and we allocate a cost to travel time, including any waiting times (sometimes a day's work can be over 12 hours even for a ceremony and drinks reception package including travel, set up, waiting time, performance time and pack down time), food if the journey is particularly long and we won't get time to get food on the way/way back, and possibly accommodation if the location is over 3 hours - this might mean 2 nights if we are booked for the full day.


This is already a hefty list, but let's then add on the running costs of the business, which are not reflected in your package price:


  • Website costs - time for editing, uploading new content, and hosting costs

  • Wedding shows - time and costs associated with attending shows

  • Marketing - time to create new blog posts, social media content, and website material

  • Vocal/Physical health - time and costs associated with staying healthy, including vocal coaching, vocal health, physical health such as looking after our joints (PA systems are heavy!)

  • Time to learn new material and update our song lists - this is ever changing, and is part of our ongoing business growth

  • Attending shoots - time and costs associated with getting new images and video footage to keep our brand fresh

  • Equipment and maintenance - I own 4 separate PA systems, which gives me so much choice and scope when it comes to making your wedding sound fabulous, but each of these PA systems need regular checks, to make sure they are at their best on the day. Occasionally they will need a service, or parts replacing, which takes time, and costs as well.

  • Upgrades to equipment - we always keep checking if we are staying ahead of the curve with our kit, and look to upgrade where we can to make sure our clients get the best experience possible.


So, you might feel that wedding suppliers add a zero when they hear the word wedding, and truthfully I can't speak for everyone - but I can speak for us, and our pricing is a true reflection of what you get on the day of your wedding, including everything that we do to prepare, to make sure you have the best day of your life.


I'll never cut costs or take risks to save money, it's just not worth it, and I'd rather you have the peace of mind that everything is hunky dory, and that your wedding day goes without a hitch. By adding in all of the above steps, that will be our guarantee.


If you'd like to find out more about our packages, please visit our services page here.

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