Now booking · Washington DC
Wedding band Washington DC:
a Motown revue for ballrooms and galas
A wedding band in Washington DC works two calendars at once. There is the wedding season, which fills the historic hotel ballrooms in spring and fall, and there is the gala and association season, which fills the same rooms with black tie and a program. The Velvelettes play both with the same staged Motown and soul revue: three voices, live horns, choreography and an MC, from $3,400 to $12,500.
DC is the most procedural city we play, and that turns out to suit us. Venues here ask for a certificate of insurance naming them as additional insured, they want a W-9 before they will cut a check, and the larger buildings want a load-in window submitted in advance with vehicle details. Our booking office handles all of it as standard rather than as a favor, which is the entire reason a lot of DC planners call us back.
We have played a downtown hotel ballroom with a marble lobby you have to cross with every road case, a Georgetown townhouse garden where the amplified-sound cutoff was 10 pm and enforced, and a waterfront event space where the freight elevator was the only way in and it was booked for the caterer. The advance is the show in this city.
Peak is tight and predictable: April into early June, then late September through October. Those Saturdays are gone 12 to 18 months out, and the gala calendar takes the same weekends from the other direction. If you are a planner working an association or nonprofit gala, the same revue runs with a Net-30 invoice and a single contract covering band, PA, lighting and DJ sets.
★ 200+ shows · Insured & contracted · Backup-performer guarantee
Rooms we have played · The Franklin Square Ballroom · Georgetown Garden Room · The Wharfside Hall
The advance, in plain terms
How a Washington DC date runs
Travel
A drive date, about 9 hours from Detroit. The full production travels with us and we arrive the day before the show.
Setup
90-minute setup, 30-minute soundcheck, two 20A circuits and about 16 by 12 ft of floor for The Revue.
Good to know
DC buildings run on paperwork: COI naming the venue, W-9, and a booked load-in window with vehicle details. We file all three in the advance as standard.
Same packages, every city
Three formats for Washington DC rooms
Private parties · intimate weddings
The Club Set
from $3,400
Three-voice front line with a rhythm trio, two 45-minute sets, PA and lighting included.
Weddings · galas
The Revue
from $6,900
7-piece with horns, three 40-minute choreographed sets, custom first-dance arrangement, DJ sets between.
Large weddings · headline events
The Grand Revue
from $12,500
9-piece with backing singers, a two-act staged show, bespoke segment, lighting design and production manager.
The show adapts to the occasion, not just the room. Planning a reception in Washington DC? See how a live wedding band fits a full timeline, from processional underscore to last dance. Booking for a company? The same revue runs as corporate event entertainment, with COI, W-9 and Net-30 invoicing handled by our booking office.
Before you ask
Washington DC questions, answered
Is there a travel fee to Washington DC?
Yes. DC sits beyond our 150-mile no-fee radius, so travel is quoted per date. It is a drive city for us, which keeps the line reasonable, and the availability check returns the exact figure with your date.
Can you provide a certificate of insurance for a DC venue?
Yes, as standard and at no charge. We carry liability coverage and issue a COI naming your venue as additional insured, usually within one business day of the request. Most DC hotels and event spaces will not confirm a load-in without one.
Do you play association galas and nonprofit events?
Regularly. A gala is a wedding with a program bolted to the front of it: remarks, an award, then a room that badly wants to dance. We build the set around the program rather than fighting it, and the booking office invoices on Net-30 with a W-9 on file.
Do you play both weddings and corporate events in Washington DC?
Yes, and in DC the two calendars overlap more than anywhere else we play. The same revue covers wedding receptions and corporate and association events, on one contract with the same COI and the same crew.
Everything else a host asks first lives on the FAQ page.
The rest of the bill
Other cities the revue plays
Every city page is one stop on the same tour. Start with the Motown tribute band itself, or see everywhere we play.
One night in Washington DC · yours
Give Washington DC a 1960s soul show
Tell us your date, room and occasion. June in our booking office replies within one business day with availability and a straight quote.