The most-banned songs at weddings are revealed, and some are classics

30 July 2018, 15:22

With wedding season well and truly here, there's a chance you've already had your fill of corny speeches, disposable cameras and crying babies during the vows.

You've also probably heard the same old classic songs being played during the reception by the wedding DJ.

But maybe not, because a list of the most-banned songs at weddings has been revealed, and we're surprised by some of the entries.

FiveThirtyEight.com surveyed various wedding DJs to create a list of the songs most commonly banned from wedding playlists.

While some choices are understandable - no-one wants to hear the 'Macarena', 'Gangnam Style' or the like (we assume), there are definitely some surprises in there.

At the top of the list is the 'Chicken Dance', also known as 'The Birdie Song'. We're in agreement there.

But also on the list are classics like Bee Gees favourite 'Stayin' Alive', ABBA' 'Dancing Queen', and Van Morrison's 'Brown Eyed Girl'. That doesn't sound like any wedding we want to attend!

DJ Gregg Hollman told FiveThirtyEight that some songs "are perceived as overplayed, cliché and perhaps cheesy… Wedding couples want to be unique."

He added that although many of these songs are banned, many of them are still generally also the most popular: “Many of these popular wedding songs also populate the ‘must play’ list — because they are fun and work on dance floors!”