Are you wondering how to choose a song for your father-daughter dance at your upcoming wedding? There are so many ways to approach this. As a wedding photographer and as a guest, I have been to dozens of weddings. One of my favorite wedding moments is the father-daughter dance. It’s often a very touching moment where the father is filled with emotions because his little girl is married. Both bride and dad are flooded with memories and with gratitude for each other as they share a dance at the wedding reception. I have loved seeing the variety of song choices for this special moment. I’d love to share some tips with you for choosing the perfect song for this important dance!

Tip Number 1: Ask your dad!

This one may seem obvious, but since this is a dance you’ll be sharing with your dad, you’ll want to ask him if he has any songs in mind. He may not have any in mind immediately, but as you talk about it he may share with you some of his favorite artists and genres of music. That may help you narrow down a list of options!

Tip Number 2: Consider whether there are any songs in your shared memory

If you’re a music-loving family, there may be songs you grew up listening to together that would make a great dance soundtrack. Did your dad play the Rubber Soul album by the Beatles constantly? Pick a song from there! Or was he more of a John Denver fan? Don’t be afraid of picking a song that isn’t classically danceable. You two can have fun with it and make it a memorable moment. Maybe unconventional, but “Country Roads, Take me Home” would make a fun father-daughter dance song.

Tip Number 3: Share the dance with other fathers and daughters!

This is more of a tip for how to make the dance a meaningful part of your reception. A four minute song can feel long for a dance. So consider asking the DJ to invite any other fathers and daughters in the crowd to join in the dance after 2 minutes of the song have gone by. This is a sweet way to include your guests. Additionally, it helps take the spotlight off your dad if he doesn’t love being the center of attention.

A little story about my own wedding dance with my father:

Growing up, my dad would sing “You can’t always get what you want” by The Rolling Stones when we were disgruntled about something. I called him up and asked if he’d like to dance to this song for our father-daughter dance. He laughed but thought it was a great idea. We promenaded around the dance floor for the long intro and then started dancing together as the song picked up the pace. We had a blast and shared lots of laughs as we danced to this unconventional song. If you know the song, you know it’s quite long, so partway through we had the DJ invite any other fathers and daughters in the crowd to join us on the dance floor.

Choose a song that makes you both smile even if it’s not on one of the classic father-daughter dance song lists.

Are you searching for a photographer who can capture all the important reception moments? Let’s start the conversation today!