Songs needed

This was our list of types of songs for our wedding:

Groom entrance, wedding party entrance (they were paired up), Bride entrance, recessional from the ceremony, entrance to reception, first dance, father daughter dance, mother son dance. Then we also had a playlist of songs for during the time in between the ceremony and the reception to fill the silence while we went and did the actual signing of papers (but if you do this during the ceremony you can pick a song for that).

Hey! Just throwing this out there—you likely won’t need four songs for your processional (ie separate songs for the groomsmen, groom, bridesmaids, and bride). Even if you find quick three minute songs for each, that’s 12 minutes of people walking down the aisle! Depending on the size of the wedding party, you could probably make do with one song for the processional, perhaps with a track change for the bride’s entrance if you so desire. I think this is a popular arrangement and it will also simplify things for whoever is handling ceremony music.


Otherwise, yes, you would need music for the signing of the registry, recessional, reception entrance, your first dance, and any family dances. Like Hank said, it’s a personal choice and depends largely on your taste and preferred genre of music. But there are certain “go to” wedding songs that are popular for a reason. I would second Hank’s recommendation to check out wedding playlists on Apple Music or Spotify, etc. This way, you’ll also find some lovely instrumental arrangements that you may want to use for your ceremony. Good luck!

You should pick songs that speak to you personally, and this is something none of us can help with.

If you're absolutely stuck, at least give us genres you're a fan of, maybe even a few artists you like the sound of and we can suggest something.

Or you can use "typical wedding songs," which you can easily find on Spotify or YouTube. Once a year, I attend a wedding that uses Christina Perri's "A Thousand Years" or an Ed Sheeran song (Thinking Out Loud and Perfect are two go-tos for family and friends).