I was recently hired as the DJ for a Corporate Event where they needed a DJ for their 80s-themed end-of-the-conference party. The party was on Saturday night, after a few days of business meetings and a long conference.
People from all types of backgrounds attended the party, and as you can tell from the photos below many people were attending the party.
Nobody left the dance floor and the party kept going, mainly because they saw the guy with his air guitar and his beard jamming to the song.
Table of Contents
About the Client
Zurvita is a company based in Houston, Texas. Founded in 2008, the company primarily focuses on health and wellness products. Their flagship product line is called Zeal, which includes nutritional drinks and supplements marketed as promoting overall health and well-being.
Key points about Zurvita:
- Business model: Operates as a network marketing
- Product focus: Health and wellness supplements
- Main product: Zeal Wellness drink mix
- Founded: 2008
- Headquarters: Houston, Texas, USA
Zurvita’s business structure allows individuals to become independent consultants, selling products directly to consumers and recruiting others into the business. The company claims their products are based on natural ingredients and are designed to support various aspects of health including energy, mood, and cognitive function.
Challenge
The Challenge was throwing an 80s party for members who attended the conference at the Marriott hotel in Houston Texas. Zurvita’s guest count was made up of over 400 people from all kinds of ethnic backgrounds.
The music had to consist of 80s New Wave, 80s Rock n Roll, 80s R&B, 80s Spanish Pop, 80s Spanish Rock, 80s Salsa, and 80s Line Dances and I was able to throw in a few modern songs from more recent decades.
Solution
The plan was to play mostly 80s hits and take any requests the guests would come up and ask to be played.
Getting the 80s Party Started
Right at 8:00 PM the doors opened and guests were invited into the lovely decorated ballroom. Getting people on the dance floor was my first goal, as I knew as soon as the doors opened, people would be trying to figure out where to go and hang out, so I wanted them to feel the beat, so I started with an 80s Hip Hop song, which was Funky Cold Medina, which is not a dancing song but a song you can start moving your hips to.
The next song was Billy Jean, which was what I would call my icebreaker. It did pull just a few people to the dance floor.
I wanted to get more females on the dance floor, as I knew, once I got them out there, they would help me get the party going, so I played “Like a Virgin” by Madonna. And that did the trick slightly, it was still early and people were still making their wain into the ballroom.
The Fourth song I played was Bizarre Love Triangle, and it did the opposite: It made people leave the dance floor. This was not what I was expecting. I have to blame it on the mix; it had some off-beats that didn’t sound too good.
So then I decided let’s move up to some classic rock & roll and I played You Shook Me All Night Long, and from there it was all downhill. The Dance floor got full, and people kept coming up to the dance floor.
Once that happened, I kept playing hits they knew could keep singing.
I did have a guy who was dressed up with a fake beard come up and request some Legs by ZZ Top, which didn’t fit into my set, but I went ahead and played it and reacted accordingly.
Result
The Complete 80s Music List for a Corporate Event
Below you’ll find the complete playlist that I developed throughout the night. On the right, I added what I could find as the Year each song was released. The Name of the song is just as it says on my computer, all the extra stuff in parentheses is the DJ remix version, the number at the end is the Beats per minute or BPM and that’s the measured speed of each song.
Name | Artist | Year |
---|---|---|
Funky Cold Medina [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 4A 116 | Tone-Loc | 1989 |
Billy jean | Michael jackson | 1982 |
Like A Virgin [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 2A 119 | Madonna | 1984 |
Bizarre Love Triangle [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [80’s, New Wave] 6B 119 | New Order | 1986 |
You Shook Me All Night Long [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 9B 125 | Acdc | 1980 |
Hit Me With Your Best Shot [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 12B 128 | Pat Benatar | 1980 |
Uptown Girl [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 9A 129 | Billy Joel | 1983 |
Your Love [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 12B 130 | The Outfield | 1985 |
Legs (Dance Mix) | ZZ Top | 1984 |
[You Gotta] Fight For Your Right [To Party!] [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 4B 133 | Beastie Boys | 1986 |
Love Shack [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [80’s, New Wave] 6A 135 | The B-52’s | 1989 |
Mony Mony (Remix) | Billy Idol | 1981 |
U Can’t Touch This [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 8A 134 | Mc Hammer | 1990 |
Conga | Gloria Estefan | 1985 |
El Tiburon | Los Ilegales | 1995 |
Danza Kuduro | Don Omar Ft. Lucenzo | 2010 |
Boot Scootin Boogie Mix | Brooks & Dunn | 1991 |
Footloose | Kenny Loggins | 1984 |
Kiss | Prince | 1986 |
Brick House | Commodores | 1977 |
Play That Funky Music | Wild Cherry | 1976 |
Thats The Way | Kc And The Sunshine Band | 1975 |
Cruel Summer [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [80’s, Pop] 12A 110 | Bananarama | 1983 |
Walk This Way [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 9A 106 | Run-D.M.C. & Aerosmith | 1986 |
Another One Bites The Dust [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 4A 110 | Queen | 1980 |
Eye Of The Tiger [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 5A 110 | Survivor | 1982 |
Ghostbusters [SickMix 8 Bar Intro] [Clean] [80’s, Pop] 11A 115 | Ray Parker Jr… | 1984 |
Let It Whip | Dazz Band | 1982 |
You Dropped A Bomb On Me [Intro] – Clean | Gap Band | 1982 |
Eternamente bella | Alejandra Guzman | 1990 |
Las Mil Y Una Noche (Extendedmix) By DJ Memo Lozano | Flans | 1985 |
La Chica De Humo (Dj Club Redrum)(Dj Club Classic Songs) | Emmanuel | 1990 |
Que Nadie Sepa Mi Sufrir (Amor De Mis Amores) (DJ EkSeL Clean Extend) | La Sonora Dinamita | 1977 |
Que Bello (Extended) (Dvj 3b) (Clean) | La Sonora Tropicana | 1990 |
La Rebelion [Clean] 3B 108 | Joe Arroyo | 1986 |
La vida es un carnaval | Celia Cruz | 1998 |
Cupid Shuffle | Cupid | 2007 |
Cotton Eyed Joe | Isaac Payton Sweat | 1985 |
Don’t Stop Believing 1B 119 | 87. Journey | 1981 |
El Rey | Vicente Fernandez | 1974 |
80s Latin Music
I did get some requests for Latin Music so I played those as soon as I could fit them in.
The first Latin song was The Conga, however, I could not think of many 80s songs that were Spanish that I could play with the Conga so I went with a more modern hit El Tiburon followd by an even more modern song Danza Kuduro and the guests loved it.
80s Party Corporate Event Music List With Times
The list below is the same as the one above, but this one is exported directly from my Serato DJ software. This one has more details, The Name of the song, the Artist, the BPM or Beats per Minute, the Starting time, the Ending time, and the total paly time.
At the end of the list, there is a column for the Year of the song, and as you can see most of the songs were from the 80s.
This list is saved on my Google Docs if you wish to download it or copy it for your benefit. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/10lx56eTKHifA56uvNnrPa3SDTZTfp_x1zufZA-P8sLs/edit?usp=sharing
Dancing at an 80s Corporate Event
There was a lot of dancing all night.
Technology and Tools
This event booked our Basic DJ Package which consisted of
- 2 12″ Electrvoice speakers,
- an RCF 18 Inch Subwoofer,
- Basic Dance Lighting for the dance floor,
- a Shure wired microphone,
- an Audio Technica wireless microphone,
- my Denon MC 7000,
- an Asus Windows Laptop running Serato DJ Pro and an Elegante Setup
- a backup laptop running Spotify set to an 80s music playlist
- Wireless DMX Lighting Controller
- 3 Decor Uplights (2 Under the speaker covers and 1 behind the DJ booth)
- 2 Wireless DMX Wash lights under the speakers
- Driverack PA
I opted for our all-white Elegante Set Up.
The Playlist
The Playlist above was exported directly from Serato DJ Pro as a CSV and it was converted to an HTML Table for easier display here on this blog post.
The Music
In Order to have updated my Music I used a two-part plan. I used Spotify on a second computer for an 80s Music Playlist and I also downloaded some songs from my DJ Music Pool.
Spotify: 80s Hits-Best of the 80s
Hi, I’m DJ Francisco Perez, a bilingual DJ and MC with over 25 years of experience. Fluent in both Spanish and English, I bring extensive knowledge across all music genres, from Spanish to English hits. As one bride noted, “He is bilingual and able to make perfect announcements in Spanish and English,” reflecting my ability to cater to diverse audiences. My passion for dancing and having a good time ensures that every party I handle is filled with energy and joy. Another bride praised me, saying, “Nice and friendly, but loves to take control of the event,” highlighting my balance of approachability and professionalism.
My journey into DJing began at the age of 17 when our church youth group needed to raise funds for activities. Driven by a love for music and dance, I eagerly volunteered to provide music for a fundraiser event. This commitment led me to invest in CDs and equipment, leveraging my existing knowledge of great music to enhance the event. Over the years, my dedication to the craft has solidified my reputation in Houston as a skilled and enthusiastic DJ.
Choosing DJ Francisco for your event means choosing a passionate professional dedicated to making people dance. I have invested in my education as a Master of Ceremonies through classes and workshops, ensuring that I can deliver exactly what my clients envision for their events. With over 200 reviews, emails, and letters of gratitude from satisfied clients, my goal is to bring a smile to your face on your special day by creating a memorable and enjoyable experience.