Unconventional wedding music

We haven't made our playlist yet, but I feel this 100%. My favorite genre is folk/chill and EDM/hardstyle. Our cocktail hour will be mostly folk/chill (Matt Maeson, Hollow Coves)

Definitely can't play much of the second one, because 99% of my guests will not be happy and even though it's my wedding and my favorite music, the reception is absolutely for them you know? We're not playing any of the classic songs (popular here: cupid shuffle, YMCA, etc) but we will be playing popular (hype) hits from now, 10 years ago, 20 years ago, and 30 years ago. I read that incorporating songs that everyone knows but aren't too overplayed is the best way to get the crowd going, so here we go lol

Just a devils advocate but will you be attending your cocktail hour? Most of the time cocktail hour is when the bridal party takes pictures so you may not even get to hear the music you want if it's only playing at cocktail hour!

We're kind of in the same boat as pop punk fans, so we found little ways to incorporate our music into our wedding day, Bridal Party walking down the aisle to a piano version of a Falling in Reverse Song, recessional song is Smash Mouth, and our Reception Entrance songs are System of A Down and A Day to Remember. It was our way of getting the music we like to be played without subjecting everyone else who doesn't like that music to it all night.

Our cocktail hour is going to be instrumental covers of popular songs (I swear this was my idea before Bridgerton came out lol). I figure that's when guests will be mostly mingling around and chit chatting, so I wanted something enjoyable without being too overpowering. We have a handful of "our" songs on our must-play list, but we're also going to allow guest requests and giving our DJ some flexibility.

Our DJ is mostly in charge of the night's playlists (apart from our handful of requests) because I have super eclectic taste. But he showed us some of his curated playlists of instrumental/acoustic remixes of songs that might be considered too "hard" for a wedding.

My partner and I decided that pre-ceremony, cocktail hour, and dinner playlists can be full of crowed pleasers. Kind of how we might serve food that everyone will like, even if it's not a favorite for us. We of course pick the songs for the big moments, like our first dance.

Barring anything super explicit or thrash metal-y, I think you should play whatever you like! Especially during dinner when there might be a moment for you to enjoy it. If you're having dancing, that would be the time to go for the crowd pleasers.

I was going to do jazz/big band music for the reception, but ultimately decided against it. I had a lot of negative feedback and some people even said they'd leave if we played jazz. We're instead playing jazz for the cocktail hour and rock for the reception. I think though that if you have a good mix of music for the reception, you should go ahead and play what you like. I had someone tell me that they can't imagine my wedding without at least a few Queen songs. I imagine your guests feel similarly about you and your music.