Easter Seals Fundraiser at Washington Park

In the picture to the side, we see Mayor Jerry Jennings and the good people of Easter Seals, right outside my DJ booth in Washington Park, Albany, NY. What a great day May 19th, 1012, Saturday was for all! I was able to take part in a morning of fun and fundraising at Washington Park for Easter Seals NY.

It was their 4th Annual "Walk With Me" on on Saturday May 19, 2012 and you couldn't hav asked for better weather. A turnout of more than 200 people along with my web site, TheDJservice.com, generated over $40,000 in the end for the Easter Seal's summer camp, Camp Colonie, benefitting Albany NY children with disabilities and special needs.

Being the Disc Jockey and participating in Easter Seal’s annual walk for the second time now, I again had a super time with DJ Maria being a part of these life-changing services. It was so good to see all the nice people come out to raise revenue for children with disabilities and special needs. ANd you can bet that this year's Easter Seal’s summer Camp Colonie, in Albany will be a blast for them, as a result.

Camp Colonie, an Easter Seals program that I bring services to a few times a year, offers an educationally integrated camping experience for children with special needs. To ensure the full participation of its campers, the professional staff provides individualized educationally benificial programs that meet each camper's individual needs. For the past five years, I have brought my brand of karaoke/dance/fun to the camp, this walk, and all the smiling faces at the local Easter Seals.

To read the rest of the 2012 Walk WIth Me ALbany Fundraising event, CLICK HERE - Albany NY DJ Kenny Casanova.

2012 Wedding Songs

Here is a very updated Top 20 Wedding Songs for 2012, as of May 2012, that would be great to use as your first dance, or introduction at your wedding reception. This list does not include anything more than a year or so old, and most of the songs are slow songs. Feel free to reprodice the list as much as you want with a link back to www.theDJservice.com, or we will get you! :)

The link provided will let you hear the song off of Youtube, to help you get a better idea of whether or not the song would be right for you.

TOP 20 SONGS FROM 2011 FOR 2012 WEDDINGS by www.TheDJservice.com

1. "We Are Young" - fun. Featuring Janelle Monae
http://youtu.be/Sv6dMFF_yts

2. "Just a Kiss – Lady Antebellum
http://youtu.be/Xs9X8NhQJF4

3. "Love You Like a Love Song –Selena Gomez
http://youtu.be/4ulaGjwiIbo

4. "Countdown – Beyoncé
http://youtu.be/2XY3AvVgDns

5. "We Found Love – Rihanna (featuring Calvin Harris)
http://youtu.be/1KzEu5hWmRY

6. "I Do," Colbie Caillat
http://youtu.be/rYzdfyB7vyQ

7. "Give Me Everything," Pitbull
http://youtu.be/qpqBAOpamJs

8. "Marry the Night," Lady Gaga
http://youtu.be/O4IgYxHEAuk

9. "Stereo Hearts," Gym Class Heroes (featuring Adam Levine)
http://youtu.be/T3E9Wjbq44E

10. "I Belong in Your Arms," Chairlift
href="http://youtu.be/j_aTOyFRwJ0">http://youtu.be/j_aTOyFRwJ0

For the rest of the list, 11 more songs, check out our blog site www.TheDJservice.com at CLICK HERE

...DJ Kenny Casanova is a wedding DJ out of Albany NY.

French-Canadian Pig Trough Dance

The French-Canadian Hog Trough Dance by Troy NY Disc Jockey, Kenny Casanova

In an earlier blog, I covered the odd tradition of the French-Canadian Ugly sock dance (click here to read) which is a strange wedding custom involving a bride's older sibling who is ridiculed at her wedding. I discussed how this tradition was making a comeback in Ontario Canada and other French-speaking parts, and bleeding into the states.

This seemingly odd tradition that punishes single siblings for not already being married by spotlighting them in an odd dance has trickled down into our states. Now I have seen a handful of French speaking Canadian-American brides and grooms who come from our northern neighbors giving these traditions a shot. This custom has moved into Upstate New York and even down around around Troy and Albany NY. Now another similar custom is on it's way.

Another odd Canadian tradition somewhat related to the Ugly Wedding Sock Dance is here, and it is called The Pig or The Hog Trough Dance.

The funny mindset behind this Trough Dance is still the same as making someone dance in ugly socks alone on the dance floor for public mockery. In the case of the hog trough dance, the idea is to punish your single older sibling at your wedding reception for not yet settling down. Here, the difference is the sibling dances barefoot in a pig trough or a wash basin in the center of the floor with hecklers laughing at their expense.

in the most extreme cruel and unusual forms of this wedding torture tradition, early on, this custom really was for punishment. Dirty old hog troughs were pulled right off their farms and placed in the center of the dancefloor for a barefoot dance. That is right; with mud, steaming fresh pig droppings.

You can bet that pig droppings would have really left some lasting impressions on the guests faceas sitting near the dancer’s piggies later on. This is all the reason more to make sure you are married before your younger brothers and sisters pass on the family name.

However, in today's more politically correct version of The Dreaded French-Canadian Trough Dance, we see a more forgiving version. Now we see relatives pushing victims into the Trough Dance in a clean trough purchased just for the occasion.

A few other variations to this odd custom exist. One variation to this tradition includes adding a mix of beer and other alcoholic beverages poured in the trough first, which are later drank by the dancer upon completion of the dance. And yet another variation includes the addition of food in the trough that needs to be eaten upon completion of the dance.

For additional information on French Canadian Wedding customs, read French-Canadian Ugly sock dance (click here to read)

To book DJ Kenny Casanova to be the disc jockey for your wedding, check out www.TheDJservice.com



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Avoid Wedding Disasters Top 10 List

Avoid Wedding Disasters Top 10 List There are so many checklist items that, when overlooked, can throw your wedding into the unfortunate "Wedding Disaster" category. However, many of these things can be avoided with at little no cost to the bride and groom. Here is a simple list of things to think about and ponder when you planning your wedding so you, too,can avoid a wedding disaster.

1) Avoid placing your wedding date on a holiday - this creates a built in competition quandary for your guests and you may find that your wedding is not everyone's #1 priority.

2) Try to always plan for Saturday Night Weddings - Fridays people sometimes have to work and Sundays people have no day to recover/travel.

3) Have Rain Check Back Up Plan for outside weddings - whether it is the ceremony or the reception, have a back up plan in case it rains.

4) Give plenty of time for the invitation - Some people see that up to 6 months before the event is a good heads up time to RSVP. Others say even more time is essential to the success of your guest list attendance.

5) Keep the invite list numbers as low as possible - Don't invite just anyone. Your biggest expense is usually your venue/catering. Keeping your numbers down can save hundreds of dollars with only a handful of guests.

6) Seat older people away from the DJ - Even if old Grandma Smithers has a hearing aid and really can't hear well, she sure will hear the DJ if she is placed right by the speakers. She will also want the music turned down to practically nothing.

7) Don't force your lifestyle on your guests - If you are vegetarian or vegan, it may not be a good idea to only offer these dishes at your wedding. A good host tries to accomodate their guests desires in order to make them happy, not force something on them. This goes for food as well as music selection.


To see the rest of the list, go to Kenny Casanova's web site by CLICKING HERE.


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Country Western Theme Party / Wedding Ideas

Okay, so you have decided to host a Country-Western theme party, or corporate event. You already know that snakeskin boots, leather chaps and cowboy hats would probably all be great ideas to get over a great Country Western Theme event. But do you think you still need more, partner?

This blog is chock full of western party ideas that will help you come up with the party invitations, decorations and activities that will make your hoedown throw-down one that nobody will forget.

Party Invitations
Start the theme at the very get-go. Use your imagination to round up your western theme party guests. The more creative your invitations are, the better response you are likely to get.

DRESS TO IMPRESS REMINDER - Make sure to request that your guests come to the party wearing the invitation (the hat, not the paper). Whatever you choose to do, make sure and instruct your guests to dress in the appropriate regalia dressed for the occasion at hand. Let them know that as the host, you'll be decked out in denim, and hope they do the same. Offer ideas right in your invitation including clothing options like leather fringe, cowboy boots with spurs, a western bolo tie, a sequin cowboy hat, holster or a nice cowgirl vest/skirt combo.
WANTED / REWARD POSTER INVITATIONS - use one of these as the invitation to your party! Use parchment colored paper and black lettering, and if you are really feeling like a cowboy, dip it in coffee to age it or burn the sides. Roll the poster up with all of the party details on the inside, and tie it with some cheap twine, or maybe a bandana.
COWBOY HAT INVITATIONS - Deliver a colorful cowboy hat to all of your guests. You can put all the party details folded up on a Wanted Poster style flyer inside of the hat.

Decorations & Party Supplies
A wise cowboy once said, “there are three things you have to think about when planning a Country Themed Party; location, location, location.” If you can get a rented barn or ranch, this would be a great setting for all your favorite buckaroos to gather at. If you can pull this off for your venue, you have a lot of your must-have decorations already built in.

SHUTTER DOORS - “must-have” decoration to set up the old western bar shutter doors wherever you can. This will make your guests enter in style.
TOWN BANNER - Welcome your guests with a long banner at the entrance to the party that says something like “Company Hoedown” or some other creative title that follows the theme. This should look like what you would see in the movies when the town was celebrating something, with the Sheriff or town Mayor on a stage.
HAY - Set the stage for your event with real hay bales outside the entrance. You can also put bales of hay around in the corners, and if possible, put handfuls of hay all over the place! If your venue will allow, cover the floor!!! This really sets the tone, when possible!
ROCKING HORSE - Set these up for photo ops! People of all ages will have a blast rocking out!
HOBBY HORSES - Get those cheaper horse heads on a stick and lay them around for fun!
VARMINTS - Place rubber rattle snakes all around the ground, but fear not, your cowboys and cowgirls will surely be able to handle them.
CACTUS - Get some real cactus plants for decorations. If it isn’t in the budget, try cactus cutouts.
TUMBLEWEEDS - A number of large tumbleweed balls to kick around would really be a mood setter.
SADDLES - Borrow or rent a horse saddle and put it somewhere like on top of one of the bales of hay.
COWBOY BOOTS - Western boot danglers are an easy and fun party decoration. Use them all over the room or highlight a special area, like the buffet. Either use real boots from a thrift store, perhaps, or cutout paper ones.
WANTED POSTERS - Hang up silly wanted posters all over the walls with funny crimes listed under the mug shot. You can personalize the posters with the host/hostesses pictures or even ones of key guests.
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To read the rest of this blog, with far more ideas, CLICK HERE, to visit Kenny Casanova's DJ site.

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Russian Wedding Tradition List

Setting aside mail order Russian brides, there are some very different traditions that revolve around Russian weddings. Whether you are a Russian bride or groom-to-be, this is a great list of Russian traditions that may help you come up with some great ideas to commemorate and celebrate your ancestral roots of Old Mother Russia.

For one, did you know that traditional Russian weddings are much longer than the traditional American wedding of today in that they typically go on for two full days?

THE KISS PRINT NAPKIN - Before the actual wedding ceremony, there are things to do and it’s tradition for all Russian grooms to accomplish a few prenuptial traditions. For example, when he comes to pick up his bride, the groom may be handed a napkin with lipstick prints of the bride and her attendants on it. In the unfortunate case that the groom can’t pick out which is his bride’s kiss print, he must pay a fine to the bride-to-be. In jest, Grooms who guess wrong may have to cover a shawl with money to reassure her.

PRE-CEREMONY REGISTRATION- The very official traditional Russian ceremony is only one part of the entire wedding event. To start things off, the bride and groom arrive in separate cars and are lead into different rooms that are ideally a decent distance apart before filling out the regestration papers. Next, the couple wait until they are called.

PRE-CEREMONY BUTTEFLY TOSS - Once the Russian bride and groom exit the civil marriage registration office, it’s time for picture taking to commemorate the occasion. Friends and family members toss flower petals, coins, and sometimes release butterflies to wish the couple good luck. And before they leave, it’s tradition for the groom to sweep the bride up in his arms and kiss her in front of all assembled, among flying butterflies.

PRE-CEREMONY BREAD PRESENTATION - Before the actual exiting the registration hall, a member of the bridal party, or sometimes another special person is assigned to present the bride and groom with the ceremonial bread and salt tray, which will be an important part of the Russian wedding tradition. Next, the bride and groom are lead into the actual ceremony hall where the actual rites and vows are to be held.

BRIDAL PARTY SASHES - It has always been tradition for the Russian best man and the Russian maid of honor to wear sashes over their clothing.


RUSSIAN WEDDING RUG - For the actual ceremony iteslf, the bride and groom always stand on a traditional homemade wedding carpet created just for the wedding, usually by a loved one. In front of the specially-crafted carpet, the officiant reads a welcoming speech and then asks the bride and groom to confirm their reason for being there. Very much like our American tradition, the Russian bride and groom then engage in an exchanging of rings, the couples sign in the registry, and then the witnesses sign and the couple are pronounced man and wife.

There are too many to post here! For the rest of DJ Kenny Casanova's Russian Wedding Tradtion List Blog click below...

For the rest of DJ Kenny Casanova's Russian Wedding Tradtion List Blog including the Bridal Five Stop Wedding Tour and the Bridal Dove Release... CLICK HERE


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Dubstep Music - Top 100 List for 2012

Dubstep Defined- If you are not really familiar with Dubstep music, get ready, because it is starting to make an impact on the charts. Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music is best described as a dark and weird robotic remixing sounding, with overwhelming wobbley bass lines and reverberant drum patterns, and clipped samples.

It is a musical genre that only features occasional vocals, however, in strategic places. Dubstep has become a very popular rising variety of music of late and is crossovering into movie soundtracks, as well as television commericals.

Making Mainsteam Waves – Dubstep and tracks with Dubstep influence are now significantly making their presence felt the Billboard hot 100 charts. This means this brand of music is a genre now making mainstream appeal, whether the undergroud fans like it or not. Back in 2008, another DJ artist as seen above, Deadmau5, saw “Ghosts N Stuff with Rob Swire," reach number-one on Billboard’s Hot Dance Airplay chart. This year, 2012, marks the first year we really see Dubstep tracks grabbing mainstream attention, with one of its biggest artists, Skrillex, being nominated for five different categories in the Grammies, and actually winning 3 of them.

We topped our list with the big Skrillex crossover track “Bangerang! feat. Sirah” which has topped the national charts for a number of weeks now in March 2012, finding its way onto top 40 pop playlists everywhere. So, here is the Top 100 Dubstep list that I have compiled of the top 100 Dubstep songs by 2012, by looking at multiple fan-favorite lists online.

TOP 100 Dubstep List for 2012, DJ Kenny Casanova
1. Bangerang! feat. Sirah (Original Mix) – Skrillex (Original Mix)
2. Oh Snap! (Original Mix) – Eptic
3. Must Be The Feeling (Flux Pavilion & Nero Remix) – Nero (UK) Nero (UK), Flux Pavilion
4. Stars Come Out (Datsik Remix) – Zedd & Datsik
5. Levels (Skrillex Remix) – Avicii & Skrillex
6. Light It Up feat. Heather Bright (Original Mix) & Flinch, Heather Bright
7. Headrush feat. Belle Humble (Original Mix) & 501
8. Whiskers (Original Mix) – Feed Me, Gemini (UK)
9. Make My Whole World (Original Mix) – Trolley Snatcha
10. Fire Hive (Original Mix) – Knife Party
11. Promises (Skrillex & Nero Remix) – Nero (UK) & Skrillex
12. Station Seven (Original Mix) – Downlink
13. Phat Sack (Original Mix) – Triage, The Bassist, J-Sonic
14. Brutal (Original Mix) – Excision
15. You Got To Go feat. Zoe Johnston (Seven Lions Remix) – Above & Beyond, Zoe Johnston & Seven Lions
16. Must Be The Feeling (Kill The Noise Remix) – Nero (UK) & Kill The Noise
17. Kiss My Lips (Original Mix) – Dev, Borgore
18. Never Change (Original) – Hulk, Messinian
19. Ghosts N Stuff -with Rob Swire – deadmau5
20. Difference (J:Kenzo Remix) – DJ Madd, TMSV
21. Led Astray (Culprate Remix) – Friction & Culprate
22. Come Find Me (Phrenik Remix) – Ascendance, The Nineties, Cori Pena & Phrenik
23. Patron & Kush (Calvertron Kush-Step Mix) – Sporty-O & Calvertron
24. Split The Atom (Kito Remix) – Noisia & Kito
25. Altered States (Original Mix) – Mesck
26. Breakn’ A Sweat (Original Mix) – The Doors, Skrillex
27. Deathray (Original Mix) – Eptic
28. Love Drunk Feat. Dom Liberati (Original Mix) – Fei-Fei
29. Party Alarm (Original Mix) – Downlink
30. Crowd Control (Original Mix) – Excision, Downlink
31. Flesh & Bone feat. Rod Azlan (Dismantle Remix) – EmalKay
32. Somebody To Love (Original Mix) – Rusko
33. Falling Skies (Original Mix) – 501
34. Storm (Original Mix) – Dark Tantrums
35. Hit Me (Original Mix) – Zeds Dead
36. Lights (Bassnectar Remix) – Ellie Goulding & Bassnectar
37. Fire (Original Mix) – Hot Noizes
38. Still Getting It feat. Skrillex (Original Mix) – Foreign Beggars, Skrillex
39. Like A Boss (Original Mix) – Eptic
40. Phat Sack (Radio Mix) – Triage, The Bassist, S-MAK, J-Sonic
41. Turn To Me (Original Mix) – Monty
42. DIY (Original Mix) – Savoy
43. Fully Blown (feat. Snak The Ripper) (Original Mix) – Datsik
44. Solace One Ft. Black Sun Empire (Datsik Remix) – Black Sun Empire, Foreign Beggars & Datsik

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To see the rest of the Dubstep Top 100 List For 2012, check out my web site and CLICK HERE.


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...Thanks for taking the time to read this blog! - DJ Kenny Casanova - www.theDJservice.com