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Most couples want to host a fun wedding. Of course, you want the cake to be delicious and your florals to be amazing, too. But when it comes to your big day, it’s also a unique time to show off your dance moves with the help of a professional. After toasts are done and dinner has been served, it’s time to open up the dance floor with amazing wedding reception songs. Thankfully, you don’t have to go at it alone—as long as you’ve already hired a professional wedding DJ.

When discussing your wedding reception playlist with your DJ, make sure to include a mix of songs that you like. Cover various genres, tempos, and eras to encourage people to shake their tail feathers. We mean it. You should include something for all your guests. That’s why we recommend including a section on your RSVP cards where guests can request their favorite songs be added to your playlist. Ready to get dancing? Then keep scrolling to see some of our favorite wedding reception songs!

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Wedding Reception Classics

These are classic wedding reception songs. Folks will know how to dance to them, you won’t risk offending your new in-laws, and these are sure to inspire some singing on the dance floor. Throw a few of these into your mix, and even your great-grandmother will get up to show off her moves.

Mambo No. 5 — Lou Bega

Shout, Pts. 1 & 2 — The Isley Brothers

We Are Family — Sister Sledge

Don’t Stop Believin’ — Journey

My Girl — The Temptations

Signed, Sealed, Delivered — Stevie Wonder

I Want You Back — Jackson 5

Play That Funky Music — Wild Cherry

Boogie Shoes — KC & The Sunshine Band

September — Earth, Wind & Fire

Sweet Caroline — Neil Diamond

Dancing in the Moonlight — King Harvest

Love Shack — The B-52’s

Stayin’ Alive — Bee Gees

Respect — Aretha Franklin

Build Me Up Buttercup — The Foundations

(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life — Bill Medley, Jennifer Warnes

Do You Love Me — The Contours

Walking on Sunshine — Katrina & The Waves

Hot Stuff — Donna Summer

Image by Lauren Apel

Country Dance Floor Music

If you’re not personally into country music, that’s okay. These carefully selected country songs are crowd-pleasers and many of them have built-in dance moves. Throw a few of them in and watch your dance floor expand.

Tennessee Whiskey — Chris Stapleton

Honey Bee — Blake Shelton

Country Girl (Shake It For Me) — Luke Bryan

You Belong  With Me — Taylor Swift

Wagon Wheel — Darius Rucker 

Boot Scootin’ Boogie — Brooks & Dunn

Man! I Feel Like a Woman — Shania Twain

Footloose — Kenny Loggins

Meant to Be — Bebe Rexha, Florida Georgia Line

Butterflies — Kasey Musgraves

Why Don’t We Just Dance — Josh Turner

Drink In My Hand – Eric Church

Cruise – Florida Georgia Line

Image by Nicole Nero

R&B Wedding Reception Songs

R&B music is perfect for your wedding reception. Some of these have different tempos that will keep some of your guests dancing and allow some of your guests to take a quick break to hit your reception bar. 

Down – Jay Sean

Blinding Lights – The Weeknd

I Wanna Dance With Somebody – Whitney Houston

Good Feeling — Flo Rida

My House – Flo Rida

Family Affair — Mary J Blige

Ain’t No Mountain High Enough — Marvin Gaye

The Business — Tiësto

24K Magic — Bruno Mars

Love on Top — Beyonce

Yeah! — Usher, Lil Jon, Ludacris

I Feel Good — James Brown

Forever — Chris Brown

Celebration — Kool & The Gang

No One — Alicia Keys

Want to Want Me — Jason Derulo

Nothing Can Come Between Us — Sade

Jumpin’, Jumpin — Destiny’s Child

This Is How We Do It — Montell Jordan

Mi Gente — J Balvin, Willy William

Better Now — Post Malone

How Will I Know — Whitney Houston

Rhythm Is A Dancer — SNAP!

We Found Love — Rihanna, Calvin Harris

Crazy In Love — Beyonce

If I Ain’t Got You – Alicia Keys

You’re The First, The Last, My Everything — Barry White

Get It Shawty — Lloyd

Because of You — Ne-Yo

Aint Nobody — Chaka Khan

Best Part – Daniel Caesar, H.E.R.

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Hip-Hop Reception Music

There’s no getting around it, hip hop songs are a surefire to get your guests dancing. Whether it’s Missy Elliot encouraging your guests to lose control on the dance floor or Lizzo announcing the results of her DNA tests, hip-hop wedding reception songs are some of the most fun.

I Like It – Cardi B

My Chick Bad – Ludacris

In Da Club – 50 Cent

Swimming Pools (Drank) – Kendrick Lamar

Pursuit Of Happiness (Steve Aoki Remix) – Kid Cudi

It Takes Two — Rob Base & DJ EZ Roc

Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It — Will Smith

Push It — Salt-N-Pepa

Bust a Move — Young MC

Boom — Tiësto, Sevenn, Gucci Mane

Hey Ya! — Outkast

The Way I Are — Timbaland

Me Porto Bonito — Bad Bunny

Cyclone — Baby Bash, T-Pain

Taki Taki — DJ Snake

Truth Hurts — Lizzo

Jump Around — House of Pain

Kiss Me More — Doja Cat

What’s Luv? — Fat Joe

Lose Control — Missy Elliot

Don’t Stop The Music — Rihanna

Cha Cha Slide — DJ Casper

Gonna Make You Sweat — C & C Music Factory

Do It — Chloe x Halle

It’s Tricky — Run DMC

Hold On, We’re Going Home — Drake

Hypnotize — Notorious BIG

Mayores — Becky G, Bad Bunny

That’s What I Like — Bruno Mars

Pump Up The Jam — Technotronic

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Rock + Alternative Reception Music

Don’t forget about your rock and alternative loving friends when it comes to wedding music. Sure, they might not be confident in all of their dance moves, but they’ll get on the dance floor for songs they know. These songs will offer a fun mix to change up the mood and keep everyone dancing–even those who claim they hate dancing.

Bohemian Rhapsody – Queen

Brown Eyed Girl — Van Morrison

Take On Me — A-Ha

Livin’ On A Prayer — Bon Jovi

Should I Stay or Should I Go — The Clash

You Shook Me All Night Long — AC/DC

Dancing in the Dark — Bruce Springsteen

All the Small Things — Blink 182

Sugar, We’re Goin Down — Fall Out Boy

Summer of ’69 — Bryan Adams

I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) — The Proclaimers

Mr. Brightside — The Killers

Sweet Home Alabama — Lynyrd Skynyrd

Dog Days Are Over — Florence + The Machine

Come On Eileen — Dexy’s Midnight Runners

Best Day of My Life — American Authors

Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go — WHAM!

Shut Up And Dance — Walk the Moon

You Make My Dreams – Hall & Oates

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Pop + Dance Reception Tunes

Just like Cyndi Lauper suggests, wedding guests just wanna have fun. Light-hearted pop hits from multiple eras are the key to success for your wedding reception songs. Don’t just turn on Top 40 to get inspired—those aren’t necessarily good dancing songs. Use this list instead.

Shivers – Ed Sheeran

Get Lucky — Daft Punk, Pharrell Williams, Nile Rodgers

Can’t Stop The Feeling! – Justin Timberlake

Electric Love (Oliver Remix) – BØRNS

Stay – Justin Bieber, The Kid LAROI

The Middle – Zedd, Maren Morris

Give Me Everything – Pitbull, Ne-Yo

Roses – The Chainsmokers

Beautiful Now – Zedd, Jon Bellion

Don’t Start Now — Dua Lipa

Levitating — Dua Lipa

Girls Just Want to Have Fun — Cyndi Lauper

Heat Waves (Oliver Heldens Remix) – Glass Animals

Clarity — Zedd 

Shake It Off — Taylor Swift

I Gotta Feeling — Black Eyed Peas

Despacito — Luis Fonsi ft. Daddy Yankee

As It Was — Harry Styles

When Love Takes Over — David Guetta

I Love It — Icona Pop

Vivir Mi Vida — Marc Anthony

We Can’t Stop — Miley Cyrus

Party In The U.S.A. – Miley Cyrus

Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough — Michael Jackson

Toxic — Britney Spears

Since U Been Gone — Kelly Clarkson

Uptown Funk — Mark Ronson & Bruno Mars

Suavemente — Elvis Crespo

Wannabe — Spice Girls

Let’s Go Crazy — Prince

Higher Love – Kygo, Whitney Houston

Dancing On My Own — Robyn

Livin’ La Vida Loca — Ricky Martin

Everybody — The Backstreet Boys

Turn Down For What – DJ Snake, Lil Jon

Bye, Bye, Bye — *NSYNC

Single Ladies — Beyonce

Danza Kuduro — Don Omar

SexyBack — Justin Timberlake

One More Time — Daft Punk

Dancing Queen — ABBA

Slow Songs To Dance To

Slow songs are important for your dance floor. Don’t sleep on them and make sure that you include a mix of them for all of the couples attending your wedding. 

All of Me — John Legend

At Last – Etta James

Make You Feel My Love — Adele

Kokomo — The Beach Boys

Can’t Help Falling In Love — Elvis Presley

The Way You Look Tonight — Frank Sinatra

Because You Loved Me — Céline Dion

Dream a Little Dream of Me — Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong

I Choose You — Sara Bareilles

Being With You — Smokey Robinson

You Send Me — Sam Cooke

We Danced — Brad Paisley

From This Moment On — Shania Twain

Perfect — Ed Sheeran

Paper Planes — Alexander Jean

First Day of My Life — Bright Eyes

Keeping your guests in mind when choosing your wedding reception songs will ensure you create a collection of the best wedding reception songs. If you’ve hired an expert wedding DJ they’ll also help you curate the mood on the dance floor with their extensive knowledge of both popular and classic wedding reception songs. This is one wedding decision, thankfully, you won’t have to handle by yourselves.

Now that you’ve got your wedding reception playlist rolling you can focus on the other important musical elements of your wedding like your first dance song.

Image by Arte Magna