Your Bay Area wedding DJ
Serving the greater Bay Area
Service area
Spencer Sutherland
DJ/OWNER
Typically responds within 24h
AWARD WINNER (1X)
Thanks to recommendations from couples on The Knot
Sutherland Entertainment is a wedding DJ service based in Berkeley, CA, serving the Bay Area. The owner, DJ Spencer, is an experienced wedding DJ and classical guitarist who has helped hundreds of couples realize their unique visions. He and his team are committed to making magic with their killer playlists and look forward to bringing your celebration to life.
Sutherland Entertainment is a highly organized setup with multiple DJs to choose from. No matter your needs, Spencer will find you the perfect fit. Their playlists cover smash hits from a wide range of genres, including dance, hip-hop, country, indie, international, and more. MC work is offered in English and Spanish. And you can rely on their DJs to handle the smallest detail so you can relax and enjoy your experience.
In addition to wedding DJ services, Sutherland Entertainment offers decorative lighting, photo booth services, and classical, pop, and Latin guitar. Services can be booked in discounted packages, or you can make your own package.
Speaks English, Spanish
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Caribbean
Classical
Country
Dance
Disco
Flamenco
Hip-Hop
Indian
Polka
Pop
R&B
Rock
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Se Habla Español
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Meet the team
Spencer Sutherland
DJ/Owner
Spencer is a private event DJ, fingerstyle guitarist, and the owner of Sutherland Entertainment. He has performed at and managed talent at over 700 weddings. Weddings he’s performed at have been featured in national publications like Brides and wedding blogs like Style Me Pretty, Carats & Cake, and Wedding Chicks. In addition to performing in the San Francisco Bay and New Orleans areas, he manages the Bay Area branch of his talent agency.
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Reviews
4.9
out of 5.037 reviews
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Review Summary
This AI-generated summary is a snapshot of this vendor's ratings and feedback.
Spencer from Sutherland Entertainment is highly praised for his professionalism, attention to detail, and exceptional DJ services at various weddings in different venues such as Ardenwood, Berkeley City Club, and Brazilian Room. Reviewers commend his communication, organization, and ability to keep the dance floor lively throughout the events. Additionally, his flexibility, helpfulness, and proactive approach in planning and executing weddings have left couples extremely satisfied, making him a top choice for those seeking an experienced and talented wedding DJ.- Top reviews
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Adeline Y
5.0
8/12/2024
Spencer was fantastic at our wedding at Ardenwood this month! I was drawn to working with Spencer as soon as he presented his planning spreadsheet during our first intro call. I'm already a type-A spreadsheet-obsessed type of bride so to have a DJ already have their own spreadsheet with all of the details outlined and thinking 3 steps ahead, it was a perfect match. With all of the information that we shared, Spencer was able to take that with just about a week of notice (because we were a bit delayed :) ), and executed our entire wedding flawlessly. My biggest priorities for the wedding DJ was keeping the wedding on time and keeping people lit on the dance floor - both of which were achieved. Thank you Spencer!!!
Thomas P
5.0
6/19/2024
We reached out to Sutherland Entertainment for our May wedding at the Berkeley City Club, and knew as soon as we spoke to Spencer that we would be moving forward with his company. Spencer was incredibly insightful, experienced, and innovative in ways that challenge standard DJ services. He offered everything from full service music and audio with club-style transitions, to station and bistro lighting, and ensured that his equipment was elegant and well suited to the venue. His style incorporated both our personal music selections, crowd pleasers, and was able to adjust to the crowd. From the time our dance floor opened to the time it closed, it was never empty. Every compliment were received the morning after the wedding included some mention of how great the DJ was, and how our Tuesday night wedding had such incredible energy. Spencer had our wedding guests doing the worm, the splits, dropping it low, and singing like no one was listening. Thank you, Spencer, for making our special day incredibly memorable and a true party!
Any questions?
Haley S
5.0
6/06/2024
Spencer was the perfect pick for our wedding DJ and photo booth contact! He was so communicative and so easy to work with! Of course he also had the best music, we can't recommend him enough!
Daniel M
5.0
2/15/2024
We worked with Spencer directly for our wedding and highly appreciated his attention to detail, responsiveness, and flexibility throughout the planning process. We weren't super timely in delivering our playlists and song choices, and he was understanding and helpfully reminded us when we were getting closer to the big day. Additionally, he did a fantastic time MCing and working with our day-of coordinator to make sure the ceremony kept on-time (since our venue had a strict cut-off time).
Anna B
5.0
11/16/2023
Sutherland Entertainment was one of our vendors at our wedding this past weekend at the Brazilian Room in Berkeley, CA and we cannot say enough good things about Spencer! He was on the preferred list of vendors for this venue and we can see why. Spencer is detail oriented, professional and a great MC/ DJ. He has a variety of packages that offer AV, DJ-ing and even photo booth services. He is incredibly knowledgeable and we had zero mic feedback, great mic volume and clarity. He was able to read the crowd and kept the party going all night long!
Before the wedding he made sure to send over a planning spreadsheet so he knew exactly what it was we wanted. He even helped put up some Chinese lanterns for us on the patio to really bring our vision to life. Day of, he checked in with us the whole day to make sure we were feeling good. We had a small issue with a table falling over and he was the first vendor to come over and reassure us that everything was going to be fine.
Overall, Sutherland Entertainment is the DJ to beat and should be your first choice when looking for a full-service, awesome party.
Samantha S
5.0
10/26/2023
We hired Sutherland Entertainment as our DJ about a year in advance for our wedding at the Brazilian Room earlier this week. From the beginning, Spencer was easy to communicate with and had clear instructions. On our first call, he made me feel at ease that he would help emcee the wedding smoothly and play music to get the guests dancing. Two days before our wedding, Spencer actually got sick, which would have stressed me out, but he was so clear and comforting in his email that we could trust his replacement (DJ Kevin) that I didn't worry at all. The music was great for the range of guest ages we had (haha!), and Kevin helped keep the energy and timeline of the wedding on track.
Steve T
5.0
8/13/2023
Spencer came highly recommended by our venue owner and hiring him for our wedding was the BEST decision we made. He’s thorough, professional, knowledgeable, friendly, easy going and a pleasure to work with. He was patient as we navigated the process and worked closely with us to create amazing playlists. We also had him play guitar during the reception and it was magnificent! Finally, when we asked for some last-minute changes, he accommodated them with grace and understanding. We recommend Spencer with our highest level of enthusiasm!!
Yeonbi C
5.0
7/10/2023
Spencer was great!! Very communicative and accommodating. The wedding went as smooth as it could go, from planning to execution.
Tessa K
5.0
4/16/2023
Spencer was absolutely amazing throughout the entire wedding planning process. His communication and website is so clear, he follows a helpful timeline, and he knows what questions to ask to make your wedding run smoothly. At our wedding, Spencer was professional, kind, and calm. His guitar playing is stunning and his DJing was perfect. Our wedding ran so smoothly because of him. We wish we could get married again just to re-do the party :) If you are going to hire a DJ and/or guitarist, hire from Sutherland Entertainment!
Rachel M
5.0
10/07/2022
We loved working with Spencer and his team for our wedding day. He was professional, organized, and kept the party going all night long. Highly recommend!!
Gina R
5.0
9/18/2022
Spencer was amazing to work with! I really appreciated all the suggestions he gave to us as we had never gone through any of this before. He made our wedding so much fun and so many of our guests kept saying how amazing the music was.
Emily R
5.0
8/04/2022
I would 100% recommend Spencer as a wedding DJ. I have nothing bad to say about him. I've only been to weddings where the DJ is "meh" at best, so I didn't have high hopes. But I was completely taken off guard by how amazing Spencer is! He showed up on time, with a great attitude, and totally set the tone for an amazing wedding. He was also making sure we kept on schedule (we didn't have a day of coordinator). He made great suggestions in a kind, not pushy way. Everyone that attended the wedding raved about how good he was! There were no awkward lulls in the time line thanks to him. And we gave him a list of songs that we liked and he was totally able to pick up the vibe. He was the most organized person there by far, and with the best attitude. His laid back persona made everyone chill a little more, but he was also very structured. We also had him do our lighting, which was amazing (think fairy tale ambiance). And he did microphones and speakers for our family who played violin at our ceremony. Since our wedding on July 7, I've been to 3 other weddings where the DJ seemed lame in comparison. Thank you Spencer! You're amazing.
Alejandra Z
5.0
7/25/2022
DJ Kevin did an excellent job at our wedding. He handled the timeline and speeches perfectly (including a surprise musical element to my dad's toast), he helped me with a unique mix we added to the playlist to surprise the groom, he kept the dancefloor full for a diverse crowd from start to finish and was a pleasure to work with. I would recommend him in a heartbeat!
We also had a great experience with the photo booth. Our guests really enjoyed snapping their pics and our guestbook was full of great shots and nice notes.
All in all, very pleased with the service and would recommend wholeheartedly.
Melissa C
5.0
6/28/2022
Very professional and responsive. We hired Spencer to MC and DJ our wedding and were very happy with his services. Given that our venue did not have the best acoustics, Spencer did a great job making sure that we had the right sound setup. He was prepared for every minute of the reception and was careful to make sure that he got everybody's name in the program correct. With some general direction with regards to musical genres, Spencer picked a repertoire of songs that were perfect for our guests. His equipment sounded great and all of our guests really enjoyed the music and the vibes of our celebration.
Jason G
5.0
6/21/2022
We’re so glad we hired Spencer to DJ our wedding! He handled the audio for the wedding ceremony itself, MC’d the reception, played the music for the dancing, and also provided uplighting for the event space. Everything he worked on just went smoothly. The audio for the ceremony was high quality and just worked. He did a great job as MC, staying on time, announcing what was happening, and making everyone feel welcome. He did fantastically with the music too - we had a few specific requests, and he nailed them all, but most of the night we gave only vague instructions and he made a ton of great picks, keeping energy high on the dance floor. The uplighting he provided was beautiful as well and really elevated the space! Throughout the process, he was easy to work with, timely, communicated proactively, and was always on top of every little detail. We’d definitely recommend him for anyone looking for a DJ!
Haley H
5.0
4/26/2022
I truly could not have been happier with the service provided by Spencer Sutherland and his team!! The live music, DJ, and photo booth were PERFECT and our guests had a blast. Everything went off without a hitch and it was instrumental to our wedding being seamless and so memorable.
The guitarist, David, added a very special element to our ceremony and our DJ Kevin kept everyone dancing until the very end of the night! All of our guests loved the photobooth and I am so grateful for the hundreds of photos taken that I will cherish for a lifetime.
During the planning phase, Spencer was proactive in making sure all details were determined ahead of time. The online planning forms made it very easy. During our initial call Spencer was clear in explaining all of our options and was quite responsive from start to finish.
I would recommend Sutherland Entertainment to anyone I know and I look forward to working with them for future events.
Carmen H
5.0
1/08/2022
We used Sutherland Entertainment for our wedding ceremony. Spencer is a class act - organized, patient and talented. His process from the beginning is very clear with an online portal that was easy to use and communicate our preferences. Throughout working with him, he built my confidence that was executed flawlessly during our celebration. He played the guitar and DJ'ed for us, which each song leading into the next. Excellent selections! Lastly, I once called overwhelmed and he calmly brought me back to Earth. He is someone you want to have in your court when planning a party! Thank you, Spencer.
Laura C
5.0
11/14/2021
Spencer was great! He was very well organized, both during the planning process and throughout the event. He was an excellent addition to our wedding, working smoothly behind the scenes and interacting with our guests. We had a few last minute changes to our wedding, and he handled these changes wonderfully. During the planning stages, he had lots of good advice that we really appreciated. We would definitely recommend him!
Tiffany T
5.0
12/21/2019
Working with Cody from Sutherland was great! Our guests raved about him and many of our friends told us they usually don't join the dance floor at weddings, but did at our wedding because the music was so catchy! We were particularly impressed with Cody's ability to find and mix in specific Chinese songs that we requested. Also all the lights were beautiful, from the warm amber lights along the wall to the hanging lights inside, and along the walkway. I can't say express enough what a great experience we had and are grateful for the easy, responsive, experience we had!
Thank you for making our special day so much more special!
Lea X
5.0
12/15/2019
We are extremely pleased with our decision to work with Sutherland Entertainment for our wedding. DJ Cody took the time to sit down with us beforehand to understand our vision and he delivered exactly what we were hoping for on our wedding day. Throughout the night, his song selections kept everyone engaged (not an easy task given the mix of generations) and energy levels high. We had an absolute blast and received rave reviews from our guests. Highly recommended.
Derek W
5.0
12/11/2019
Sutherland Entertainment made the process to plan and deliver great DJ services seamless. In the "planning stage" leading up to your big day, they have an easy-to-use platform to customize your music entertainment throughout the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception. Everything is reviewed and confirmed to make sure things are set up the way you like. DJ was on time and equipment was set up without any problems.
Michelle L
5.0
10/27/2019
Spencer was great to work with for our wedding at the Brazilian Room this past September 2019. He gave us just the right amount of guidance to recommend how to have our event run smoothly, while still allowing us to make all of the decisions in the planning process. As part of the package, the forms they provided made the planning process and putting together song requests for the DJ super easy. Our DJ, Derek, was so personable and played just the right songs at the end of the night for our crowd. Also, Sutherland Entertainment is a preferred vendor for The Brazilian Room in Berkeley, so if you’re getting married there, they have a special package that’s discounted, which is a great deal. They also offer lighting services, which we took advantage of, and our venue looked absolutely beautiful that night.
Alyssa L
5.0
10/15/2019
We hired Sutherland Entertainment for our wedding and would recommend their services. David, a guitarist, provided beautiful music for our outdoor ceremony and even learned the specific song that I wanted for my walk down the aisle. The rest of the Sutherland team made sure that the sound was perfect for the ceremony and provided mics for the officiant and readers. For our reception, Sutherland provided fantastic, warm uplighting that worked well in our space. DJ Kevin controlled the music for the reception and did a good job. He played quite a few of the songs that we requested, but not a lot of them. In his defense, though, what he did play was a hit with the guests, which is probably why he is a DJ and I am not :). Overall, we had a great experience with Sutherland Entertainment. We found their pricing fair and Spencer, the owner, was very communicative and thorough to ensure that our day went smoothly.
Rachel D
5.0
9/03/2019
We are very happy that we chose Spencer and his team at Sutherland Entertainment for our wedding. When searching for a DJ for our wedding, it was difficult to know who to choose, especially when looking from out of state. My now husband set up a phone call with the owner of Sutherland, Spencer, and felt at ease and confident that Sutherland Entertainment was the right choice. Spencer is genuine and honest. Throughout the many months of planning Spencer was available to answer questions and didn’t miss a detail. Also, Sutherland was our top choice for the array of services they offer and for the reasonable prices. We were able to pick a package that fit all our needs; including, lighting, DJ and photobooth!
The lighting was perfect with amber up lighting in the reception room, string lights on the patio, colorful lights on the dance floor and more. It all looked beautiful and inviting.
DJ Cody was great at his job and kept the party moving. He was easy to work with, took our song requests and was there to help direct guests throughout the night. He was super friendly too! He was engaged with the party and didn’t miss a beat. All his sound levels and timing were perfect.
Lastly, the photobooth was a huge hit at our wedding. We are so glad we decided to add it in our package. The prime placement of the booth within the venue, plenty of fun props and prints available to print right away, email or text helped make this a highlight of the night. It was so fun to look through all the photos of our family and friends after the wedding!
Overall, we highly recommend Sutherland Entertainment!
Pedro M
5.0
6/05/2019
Sutherland was great from the moment of speaking on the phone with the owner regarding our needs. To being able to speak to DJ Derek and get a feel for his style. Spencer at Sutherland was great and he has one of the most organized timelines for the wedding. The uplighting was the great tone of color for our wedding. DJ Derek was able to entertain the dance floor the entire night, he truly was seamless in terms of music transitions and selecting the right songs. Overall, five star experience. Would recommend to anyone as they were affordable and the best. Many of our guests gave us compliments on the DJ and uplighting.
Ivan S
5.0
3/06/2019
Spencer Sutherland, owner of Sutherland Entertainment contracted us with DJ Cody for an incredible dance experience at our wedding. He incorporated a diverse playlist that we mostly created ourselves, but added numerous favorites that kept everyone coming back to the dance floor. Very professional, courteous, and competent - all traits you need for a wedding. They were able to do both classical ceremony, jazz for cocktail hour and dinner, and ultimately a Latin dance floor party. Great uplighting, dance floor lighting, and photo booth options - these add ons are worth it! Some songs I gave them were never played, but I barely noticed.
Cathy P
5.0
6/06/2017
Spencer, the owner was great to deal with. I knew what I wanted and Spencer had really useful, constructive suggestions. DJ Derek stuck to our playlist and everything went off without a hitch. The dancefloor was never empty and he made the announcements as scheduled. They also provided uplighting which was a nice touch. Very easy to work with - I highly recommend!
Kristina S
5.0
10/22/2015
We booked Sutherland Entertainment for our October 2015 wedding reception at The Westin St. Francis. We chose Sutherland Entertainment in part because they were a preferred vendor of the St. Francis and because they were highly rated on Yelp. I can tell you that Spencer did not disappoint, he was responsive, professional, accommodating and very easy to work with. His pricing is fair and competitive. And DJ Cody was fantastic! I had so many guests compliment him, he kept the party going and the music was great! If you need a DJ, then I would highly recommend Sutherland Entertainment, they are the best!
Amanda M
4.0
4/21/2014
He kept the music and dancing going all night. He showed up on time and was dress appropriately. He was able to adjust a bit when we needed him to. Tried to up sell us on a lot of things we didn't want. Played songs off my DO-NOT play list :( and some special songs that were must plays he never played :( He pretty much sticks to popular dance club music, some old but mostly new stuff (think Rap, R and B, Hip Hop). So the couple country songs I wanted were skipped. The dancing was fun though.
Jennifer M
5.0
11/01/2012
One of the tough parts of being the bride is that you don’t get to take in every single aspect of a ceremony. Sometimes you have to trust your groom and guests about how things turned out. Without exception I heard AMAZING reviews on Spencer’s guitar playing for both our ceremony and cocktail hour (I was either hidden or taking photos during both), people thought he was a recording because the sound was so good and his playing was so flawless. I had several guests rave about the song he played during my entrance (which was pretty awesome) – saying it was a fantastic rendition, even commenting about it in my guestbook. He has a great “menu” of song options and is very professional. He also wired the acoustics of our outdoor (very noisy) venue and all my guests said they could hear the ceremony perfectly (I grilled them – with content-specific questions – because I am a nut.). This guy is amazing – live music is 100% the way to go for a ceremony and he definitely delivers.
Deborah I
3.0
9/24/2012
For a DJ and guitarist I would rate him a 4.5, he did get the crowd dancing all night, but the third song he played after our first dance, was definitely not on my list, but has long has everybody was happy and dancing I was Ok with this. Would recommend him for DJ and guitar playing.
Would not recommend the photobooth, it broke down at least three times that I know about. One of my guests had to fix it those three times.
Carmen V
4.0
3/29/2012
Spencer was amazing. We hired him to pay his guitar during cocktail hour and then DJ the rest of the night. He definitely had the party going.
Sarah C
5.0
2/18/2012
Spencer was recommended to us by our venue and after just one meeting, we knew why: he's incredibly talented, genuinely passionate about what he does, and a pleasure to work with. He talked to us about our likes and dislikes, listened to us about the kind of wedding we wanted, and gave us amazing guidance about how to make it happen. My fiancé and I both care about music and wanted what was played at the wedding to reflect our taste; Spencer totally understood where we were coming from and made some great suggestions about how to incorporate what we wanted while still keeping the party going (he's great at feeling out the crowd and playing just the right song to get people on the dance floor). In addition to handling the reception, he played pre-ceremony guitar and people are still raving about how beautiful it was -- it really set the tone for everything that followed. He's a total pro. 5 stars!
Jackie C
5.0
12/03/2010
I hired Spencer on the recommendation of a friend. I thought that the overall VALUE of his services was great. I read the other reviews, and I will say that there were some songs from my "must play" list that I do not remember hearing. Spencer is professional, and accomodating, I think that he did a GREAT job, both in his guitar playing and as a DJ, he was also REALLY REALLY excellent on the announcing/MC part of my wedding. Would I hire him for another event? - ABSOLUTELY! Would I recommend him? ABSOLUTELY! Again, I think that his whole package is a great value and worth the price.
Meghan W
5.0
11/17/2010
Choose Spencer! Spencer was simply fantastic from the planning to the execution! He was extremely professional, punctual and makes the daunting task of planning wedding and reception music really, really easy, and even fun.
He played guitar for the wedding and cocktail hour, and then DJ'd for the reception. The guitar playing was absolutely perfect. My only request for the reception was our guests have a good time! Boy did Spencer deliver. He played songs from our request list, but definitely played music appropriate to the age group. He really pays attention and plays music to the crowd on the dance floor, which was awesome.
He is respectful of your desires for your wedding and does everything he can to make sure his part of your day is nothing less than perfect.
Related to this review is that I planned my wedding and worked with all the vendors. Spencer was consistently the most responsive, and required the least amount of "checking-in". It was an absolute relief to have him as a part of my wedding day. Without any reservations, I highly recommend Spencer Sutherland.
Neela C
5.0
8/31/2010
Spencer played processional and recessional music for our wedding ceremony and he was excellent. Spencer is a fantastic guitar player and very professional. He even managed to play at our ceremony despite having another wedding to DJ later that day. I would highly recommend his services.
Joanna M
5.0
5/10/2010
Very punctual, has excellent equipment, is very professional.
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Sutherland Entertainment
Spencer Sutherland
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