Few things strike panic into a couple’s heart faster than a last-minute call from their DJ saying, “I can’t make it.” As a full-time wedding DJ who rescues abandoned couples every single season, I break down why this nightmare happens, why cheap $500 DJs are often the culprits, and how reputable professionals (myself included) protect couples with real backup plans and rock-solid reliability.
April 14, 2025
It is a worst case scenario, and one that leaves couples distraught and panicked: a phone call from their wedding DJ informing them that he or she is no longer available to DJ their wedding. To make matters worse, too often the call is received the week of the wedding. That is, if a phone call is received at all. DJs who do this most often are far more likely to ghost a couple entirely.
Wedding season has just begun, and I have already received three SOS calls from brides in tears whose weddings are days away and they no longer have a DJ. It is a cry for help that happens repeatedly from April through October year after year.
Trust me, I see this all of the time. And not just DJs. Caterers, photographers, florists. Any and all vendors in the wedding industry. The trade Facebook groups are full of posts from fellow professionals trying to find coverage for couples who have been let down by another supplier. And every reputable DJ in those Facebook groups will do their best to accommodate the couples who find themselves in these situations. We will even work with those couples who no longer have money to spend because the DJs who canceled took their money and ran. Every bride deserves her fairy tale wedding, and the best DJs in the industry will never stand idly by and allow a couple's wedding to be ruined. Personally, I will always answer the call...if I am still available. Sadly, I seldom am.
This scenario has only worsened since we came out of the COVID lockdowns in July 2021. Since then, there have been far too many hobbyist DJs who believed they could take on the world and work for themselves, only to discover that it is not as easy as they thought it would be, and so they disappear without notice. And then, the inevitable: a constant barrage of phone calls, emails, and messages on social email asking if I am able to step in to provide wedding entertainment. And, as noted above, these requests commonly come with less than a week's notice.
One of the three couples who reached out in desperate need of a new DJ was lucky. Their wedding was on a Friday night that I was not scheduled to DJ. I canceled my scheduled night off to be there to make their wedding day run as smoothly as possible without having the weeks and months to plan and prepare. As for the other two couples...I do not know the outcome of their situations.
So, why does this happen?
It may be that there were genuine and legitimate reasons for their DJs to cancel. Perhaps their DJs had fallen ill (we DJs are only human, after all). Maye they had deaths in their families. It is always possible that there were earth-shatteringly detrimental causes for them not being there. Life happens. But in cases such as these, reputable DJs will always do their best to find alternative coverage so that your wedding days run according to plan. In fact, DJs with integrity typically pay for alternative coverage at their own expense.
Three years ago, I was admitted to the hospital the Wednesday before I was scheduled to DJ a wedding. From my hospital bed, I immediately found coverage for my couple. My replacement charged $350 more than I did, and I happily paid the extra cost out of pocket to guarantee my couple's wedding was not ruined by my absence. It goes without saying that this payment was important to me—not only because I cared about the happiness of my couple—but also because I wanted to protect my own professional reputation. This is what responsible, honorable, and reputable DJs do.
It is more likely that the DJs who canceled did so with nefarious intent. For instance, there are DJs who purposefully charge low prices to undermine or hurt competitors in their market (couples usually think they are getting a bargain when they find a $500 DJ on Craigslist; in truth, this should always be an immediate red flag), then try to farm the event out to someone else after taking a cut from the fee for doing nothing (this rarely ends well).
Other DJs quote rock bottom pricing to secure an event, but later find work for the same night at a better price. Which event do you think these DJs choose to work each and every time?
Still, other DJs aren't really DJs at all. There are far too many scammers out there who have never worked an actual event. They make their living by repeatedly scamming couples, stealing their money and then vanishing without a trace (it is always easy to recognize scammers; they will never provide a written contract).
And, of course, there are DJs who are unashamedly selfish. These DJs think nothing of canceling on a couple simply because they have found something "better" to do that night.
DJs who cancel for these reasons are almost always part-time hobbyists. It is highly unlikely that a full-time DJ who does this as his or her primary source of income will ever treat couples in these ways. Now, don't misunderstand me. I began DJing as a side hustle. I was a part-time hobbyist for many years. DJs who do this part-time are almost always trustworthy and 100% reliable. But DJs who purposefully let couples down on what are the most important days of their lives are almost always part-timers. Or scammers. That is the simple truth.
I unequivocally promise that I will never let my couples down. I have canceled a wedding just two times in my 28 years DJing. Once because I was admitted to the hospital, and once because my goddaughter was getting married and I found out after I had already booked with the couple. I have never missed a wedding otherwise. Nor have I ever arrived late to a wedding. I have DJed with broken bones, with terrible bouts of the flu, with pneumonia, and once, with explosive diarrhea. I even DJed a wedding the day after my father died. I take this job seriously, and the relationships I foster with my couples mean everything to me. Being there, arriving on time, and providing the service I've promised is important to me. Because I know it is important to you.
If I learn months before your wedding that I must cancel for an important family event, I will give you plenty of advanced notice, refund your money in full, and personally help you to find a replacement that works to the same standards as me.
But should the worst happen, and I really have no choice but to cancel at the last minute, no worries. I always have a backup plan. I have a backup DJ. His name is Dave. In 28 years, no one has ever met him because I have always showed up as promised. In the unlikely event that Dave is not available, I have a very reliable network of reputable DJ friends who will cover where they can. I will happily pay any difference between my own fees and any stand-in at my own expense to make sure your reception happens as we have planned it. And in the event that I am too incapacitated to arrange coverage, I have someone who will immediately step in to organize things in my stead. If this should ever happen, any change of plans will be communicated with you and to the standard you deserve. I will never call you last minute, tell you I can’t be there, and leave you to find an alternative DJ on your own. That is not who I am. And it is not how I run my DJ business.
Has your DJ canceled last minute? If so, please give me a call. If your wedding falls on a Saturday during wedding season, it is very unlikely that I can help; almost all of my Saturdays from April through October are typically booked more than a year in advance. But if I am available, then I will absolutely be there for you because EVERY couple deserves their perfect wedding day. And if I am not available, I will put you in contact with other DJs who are. You never have to go it alone. That is the Mostov DJ Services guarantee.
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