MEET YOUR DJ

Eric R. Smith

Eric's musical journey began inauspiciously enough. In early 1992 he purchased a Radio Shack mixer and, with components scavenged from two hi fi stereo systems, began providing music at house parties for coworkers and friends in a small college town in Florida. Three months later he was 'discovered' by an employee of what is still the largest mobile DJ company in central Florida. Over the next four years he was a full time club DJ for a nightclub that served up to 800 patrons five nights per week, while serving weddings and private parties on the weekends.

It was those weekend weddings that became a passion. Weddings are a celebration, pure and simple. Two people coming together for a lifetime of wedded bliss with all of their closest friends and family in one room to help them celebrate. No sweaty, packed dance floor at a nightclub could compete. No filled to capacity stadium hearing Eric's voice could hold a candle. Fortunate to have a radio and wedding veteran of the seventies and eighties as a mentor, Eric quickly learned the ropes. He gleaned from his mentor and other DJs the intentional lessons of what to do, as well as the unintentional demonstrations of what not to do. By the late nineties Eric was the most sought after wedding DJ in the company, and in the area, and a veteran of hundreds of weddings.

One of the key items that makes Eric unique is his commitment to constantly improving his craft. To that end, he has been a regular at national and regional disc jockey conferences, and has sought out activities that have made him a phenomenal master of ceremonies. For eight years he served the University of Florida and Santa Fe College as a public address announcer for several sports including soccer, softball, baseball and basketball. He has also been active in local community theatre honing his stage presence. He has sought leadership positions in local organizations to earn 'stage time' in the business world.

In 2009 Eric formed Coastal Entertainment with the goals of being 'the wedding guy' in the Low Country and Coastal Empire, and doing whatever he could to see Savannah regarded as a world class wedding venue with weddings seven days a week. The company's philosophy is the same philosophy that Eric has lived throughout his career as a DJ over three decades; always elegant, never cheesy. The customer is always right and service is always, always, king.

Headshot courtesy of Azelle Photography (see our vendor page).