Raise the Barr Entertainment
Leawood
(68)
Leawood
(68)
68 customer reviews
Spencer Courtney
To put this simply, James was absolutely amazing and well worth the cost to book him for our wedding.
Do you need someone flexible?
James.
Do you need someone who can entertain your guests with humor, games, kickass playlists, and have that "Hollywood" smile? James.
Do you want someone who will go above and beyond to help create an atmosphere that exudes fun? James.
I have no doubt that there are great DJ's across KC with varying costs for booking, but if I held another event that needed a DJ I would book James without hesitation.
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Alex
I would highly recommend Raise the Barr Entertainment to anyone looking for a phenomenal DJ! James really goes above and beyond to make sure that your big day is perfect! I appreciated the time he took to get to know us and what was important to us on our wedding day. His attention to detail ensured that our reception stayed on schedule and we were able to spend the majority of the time celebrating with our guests! James kept the dance floor full and he did a wonderful job combining our requests with his expertise! We are so grateful to James for helping to make our wedding perfect More...
Reviewed on WeddingWire
Dan Horner
At first we planned to have a friend be our DJ for the wedding. Well that fell through and we decided to find a professional who could ensure our guests were well cared for. We needed not just a DJ but a Master of Ceremonies and James delivered beyond our expectations! James was a pleasure to work with. At our pre-meeting I couldn't believe how we'd say something vague like "I kind of want some 'happy' music" and then he could turn that into specific song suggestions! That helped a ton. Also, on the day of the wedding he wasn't just there to play music - he kept us on schedule, kept everyone engaged and even pulled off a game we requested and our guests loved it! He did all this professionally and enthusiastically. Fantastic energy and I'd definitely recommend him to others. More...
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Jordan Gershon
James absolutely KILLED it this past weekend at my wedding! He is so organized, knows exactly the right flow of things, and got the dance party going the entire night. If you want someone who you can rely on, James is your guy! He even asked our opinion on things throughout the night which I really appreciated. thanks for being SO awesome! More...
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Codie
James was INCREDIBLE! From the very first meeting to the day of the event. He was very attentive to everything we wanted. Our first time meeting him we instantly felt at ease, like he had everything under control and would help our wedding be a fun success
. It was very important to us that the reception was filled with music we loved, moved along at a good pace, and had an easy going fun vibe. James absolutely helped to create this at our wedding. He was able to “guide the show” so to speak, without being overly “showy” like I have experience at other weddings. Everyone commented on how wonderful he was, how great the music was, and how he was probably one of the best DJ’s they had seen at a wedding. He really matched the vibe of my Husband and I, our wedding vision, and then delivered.
What I appreciated most about him was that he was so attentive to details, and so incredibly respectful. Both of my parents had passed away and I wanted to do dances to honor each of them. During all the prep, he made sure to clarify how I wanted things communicated, what the flow was, the songs, so that he was fully prepared to provide what I wanted in the way I wanted. I thought this was simply amazing. He took care of both our ceremony through until the end of the reception and made the day so easy and fun. Truly, one of the best DJ’s out there, in every way!
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Ryan Jones
James was so easy and fun to work with. From ceremony to cocktail to reception, he made everything flow so well. Our guests loved how he kept everyone entertained and having a great time. He is so willing to work with any budget and make sure you have exactly what you want. Down to earth and very cool guy! Best vendor at our wedding by far. More...
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Cassidy Willard
James did such a good job!! He is very detailed and knew all the right questions to ask to make sure the day was perfect. He was professional, punctual, and fun . James made such a good addition to our special day. More...
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Lacey
James is seriously wonderful! He kept our party going and was so accommodating to all of our needs including going back and forth between two huge barns! He MCd the whole time and kept us and our guests informed and on schedule. He even came out to the limo to check on me right before the ceremony started. On top of being so amazing he is very affordable! I don’t have one negative thing to say about him and we are so happy we found him! More...
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Alyssa
ames was INCREDIBLE! He was responsive to all of our needs, questions, and concerns throughout the whole process. He mixed up song selections in the most amazing way and was so great about following our wishes! We could not have asked for a better DJ. More...
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Kati
Super easy to work with from the get go! Our guests literally danced all night and that is thanks to James!
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Allison
James was AWESOME to work with!! We were really worried about not having a wedding planner or coordinator, so we really needed guidance when we were planning out the timeline for the night. James spent hours on the phone with us planning for every single detail. We told him the types of music our crowd would enjoy and he kept people on the floor all night. We have a very specific tradition (the Wedding March) and not only did he execute it perfectly, but he got videos of the event! If you need someone to act as an MC to direct your guests, James is your guy. All in all, if you are picky about your DJ, go with Raise the Barr!! More...
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Kelsey
Raise the Barr Entertainment is amazing! Wedding wouldn’t have been the same without them!
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McKenna
James was absolutely amazing to work with. From the first meeting when we met he was on top of all wedding details from songs, to how to pronounce us as a married couple, to what he should wear to not clash with the wedding party. He was fun to work with, very outgoing and made our wedding day run smoothly. Any time I had a question or song change, James responded to my email within an hour of it being sent. The day of the wedding, James came up with our timeline and made sure everything was on time and that the other vendors were doing what they needed to at the correct times. We did not have a wedding planner so having James guide the night and other vendors was extremely helpful. At the end of the night, our wedding venue informed us that James was the best DJ they had had in a very long time. He played a wide variety of music and even took song suggestions. We had guests of all ages dancing the night away. I have gone to many weddings where guests quit dancing around 30/45 minutes before the end of the night and that was not the case for ours. James had all guests dancing until the very end of the night and people were even sad they had to quit dancing. I would STRONGLY suggest James as a DJ for weddings and cooperate events. He is truly amazing and so much fun to be around and work with! More...
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cindy
James was wonderful to work with. He was very thorough and I appreciated his professionalism through the planning process. Thanks James for a job well done. Cindy Patrick, Wedding Planner More...
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Kristyn
We absolutely loved working with James! He made our wedding reception go off without a hitch and kept everything moving along! He was able to read the crowd (more than the groom and I ever could) and made our celebration even more amazing! Highly, highly recommend him to anyone who is getting married! Thank you so much for everything you did for us! More...
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Leah
James was wonderful! He was our DJ for a social event and he came through. The theme was 80s and he showed up in the best costume ready to rock. His playlist was spot on and he played every song that we asked of him. He was flexible and reliable and most importantly FUN! I plan on hiring him for future events. More...
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Emma
James was absolutely amazing. My husband and I had only a shaky tenative plan for our KS wedding reception (the main one out of state), and coming off our wedding and IN reception we were pretty exhausted and ended up changing around our event like 5 times, but James was a great sport and helped a lot. He even read the main part of our unity candle ceremony with no prior notice or practice. i would absolutely recommend him to anyone—If he could handle our rather thrown together reception, he can handle any reception. He was very friendly and professional throughout. More...
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Breanna
James was awesome! He was always willing to work with us on our needs and wants when it came to a wedding DJ. He kept the party going and everyone having a great time! Cannot say enough, I would recommend him to anyone! More...
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stephanie
James was Great! His responsiveness and customer service was second to none. He is extremely personable and was willing to alter the way he does business to make sure our party was THE BEST. Our party was for our business in our home for over 100 people. We wanted great music and karaoke. He provided excellent entertainment for everyone! He knew what songs to play because he asked appropriate questions prior to the event and followed up repeatedly right up until the event. He knows how to run an excellent business catered to what the client wants. He is listening! The whole next week we were told how much fun everyone had and that would not have happened without James being so awesome. Thank you, James! More...
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Sarah
We had the pleasure of working with James, the owner of Raise the Barr, as our wedding DJ. From the beginning of the process, he was professional, organized, energetic, and passionate about music and entertaining parties. He sat down with us to plan for the wedding and took his free time to get all the little details organized so the reception music and entertainment was flawless. He also has great ideas for games during the reception to involve everyone. At first I was skeptical, but then I witnessed how much fun our guests had, and I was convinced that James was the best DJ ever!! I can’t say enough good things about Raise the Barr!!! More...
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mara
James is incredible. He made our wedding day run so smoothly and went above and beyond. We had the best time and he kept everyone on the dance floor for the whole night. He accommodated my extremely picky and eclectic tastes in music—he is a true professional and knows what he is doing. I would wholeheartedly recommend James to anyone! More...
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Alex
In a day full of highlights, James was absolutely no exception. James was unbelievably responsive, enthusiastic, and an absolute pleasure to work with.
We were lucky with all of our vendors, but James stood out among all of them. We couldn't be happier with the service provided, and we absolutely give James our highest recommendation. James went above and beyond to accommodate all of our requests, and even went outside of his normal comfort zone to give us everything we wanted. He was willing to do whatever it took to give us the best ceremony/reception possible, and he was 100% successful in doing just that. We can't say enough good about James!
Meghan and Alex Singleton
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Nicole
James did an outstanding job at our 8K. He played exaxtly what we needed and provided an unforgettable experience for the runners. His flexibility and enthusiasm set the tone for our time. Thanks James! More...
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Emerald
James is the BEST! He did an amazing job at our wedding. All of our guests could not stop talking about how great he was. Hands down the best DJ!
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Jordan
James was AWESOME!! The whole reason our ceremony went so smoothly was because of him! Our vows were misplaced so during the awkward 5 minutes it took to find them he jumped right in and started playing music AND even ran to go help look for them! ! All of our guests couldn't stop talking about how fun our reception was because of the games he played and his music selection was PERFECT! He made sure to play songs that everyone liked and could dance to! We could not have asked for a better DJ!! Plus the photo booth he brought was a huge hit! We HIGHLY recommend him!! We've been to a lot of weddings and events and in our opinion, there is not a better DJ in the KC area!! Thank you James for helping make our day so perfect!! More...
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Fernando
We had a great experience with James. He was ultra accommodating to all of our requests and made the event flow so smoothly. Adjusted the schedule the day of as well to move a few things around and it opened up more time for dancing, which was non stop until the end of the night. More...
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Carissa
JAMES IS AMAZING!!!! He is super responsive to your emails, he is very professional and is an expert at what he does. If you truly want a host for your wedding, which is exactly how it should go, Raise The Barr Entertainment is your guy. We wanted to try out a fun game we saw at a wedding expo and he was all for it, did some research, and executed it beautifully! He had an entire room of 200+ people engaged, laughing, and having the time of their lives. There were so many unique ideas I had and he went along with it all while adding his twist and suggestions to be sure it went seamlessly (and it did). We had the wedding of our dreams thanks to James and we will be forever grateful to him. We love him to pieces and are also thankful to call him a friend! Thank you for everything James, you are amazing!!!! More...
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Judee
James was an excellent DJ! He was quick to respond to emails during the planning process. His music selection was great during our reception!
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Jackie
He made our night unique and beautiful! It was perfect! Thank you!!!!!
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Jill
James was an incredible DJ for our wedding. Myself and my husband have different taste in music but James did an excellent job mixing the playlist to reflect that. He had friends and family on the dance floor the whole evening. Raise the Barr was amazing to work with and I will highly recommend this company to friends getting married in KC in the future. More...
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Angela
James was wonderful. We were so blessed to have him be a part of our event. I would definitely recommend him to anyone!
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Haleigh
James did a great job at our wedding and was so easy to work with! Our guests did not want to leave the dance floor and a huge part of that is due to James!
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Lisa
Short and sweet: James not only met my expectations but exceeded them. Communication was timely and mostly why we decided to go with Raise the Barr.
He was responsive and genuine. He knows what he's doing and his uplight placing is spot on. I have a habit of being late but James kept us on a timely schedule and made us look like we knew what we were doing in the midst of wedding chaos.
Full impact James made:
We had a close friend booked originally as our DJ, we lost him to an accident two yrs ago. After that tragedy it was very hard to be optimistic looking for a replacement. I had a guy in mind after going to a friend's wedding but communication was an issue. In the time I was deciding James responded a handful of times within a couple hours and the other guy hadn't even replied. Almost instantly I knew his passion for what he does. And if you're on the fence don't be he's a natural. We went with mostly rock music, he balanced it with other genres, and made everything go smoothly. From our entrance to our last songs played, Raise the Barr kept me (the bride) mostly on the dance floor, my bridesmaids and I were all sore the next day, and he even joined in on the dancing late in the night. :) He was better than I could have imagined for our big day, words just can't express how outstanding James is. We were truly blessed to have him as our DJ.
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Emilie
James was so easy to work with and my guests had so much fun! I gave minimal direction and request but James knew exactely how to please the crowd. Highly recommend and would definitely hire again! More...
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Jessica
James from Raise the Barr is an excellent DJ! He came with a smile and left with a smile. When people were reluctant to dance he kindly convinced them that it was the right thing to do! Prior to the event James was responsive to emails and eager to make our wedding everything we wanted it to be. James helped our ceremony and reception run as smooth as it could! Everyone loved the photo booth because of how fun it was and easy to work. Consider him for your wedding or event! More...
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Kristin
James did an excellent job DJing our reception. We received a lot of complements on our music and dj.
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C
James was incredibly accommodating considering we had a 8 hour time difference. We couldn't make it to Kansas City before the wedding, so we did a Skype session to go over all the details.
James developed a thoughtful master plan for our reception--the event flowed perfectly, the timing of activities was to the minute, and the evening was flawless. His music selection kept both young and old on the dance floor the entire night. He was also very cognizant of our requests to not play certain types of music and when some of our guests requested the songs, he politely turned down their requests.
If you are looking for not only a quality DJ, but an excellent plan for your evening--I'd highly recommend James.
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Tiffany
James was a great DJ for our spring wedding. He was attentive and super excited to work with our music choice- even though it was different from the average KS wedding. Would definitely recommend to any couple-to-be. More...
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Carolyn
Our initial meeting with Raise the Barr took all our worries and stress away. It was evident rather quickly that this DJ would click with us and our vision for the day. We are excited to have him as our DJ at our reception in May. More...
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Nicole
We were so happy that we selected James as our DJ. From the moment we first talked, I knew we would be happy with our choice. James was so detailed ensuring that we had music picked out for each part of our wedding. James did our ceremony music, as well as music during the cocktail hour and meal, and he was our DJ for the dance. He had every detail covered, and we couldn't be happier how everything turned out. I received so many compliments on the music--all thanks to James. If I were to plan my wedding over again, I would definitely stick with James as my DJ. More...
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Molly
James did an awesome job with our wedding, from start to finish! He was extremely professional, yet personable and fun! I absolutely recommend Raise The Barr entertainment for any bride!
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Mary
James was very enthusiastic and helpful in promoting our 5K run. He not only was very helpful before our charity event, but jumped in and helped our staff get ready for the event. James was all in and his desire for our run to be a success was evident. He was open to suggestions from our staff and we hope to have James next year. More...
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Rebecca
My husband and I recently had our wedding. Our main priorities were the food and the entertainment. We've been to enough weddings/events where the food is blah/nonexistent, and the DJ/MC/entertainment is uncomfortable or boring.
So we wanted to make sure that our guests had a great dinner and a great party.
When we called James Barr, those were some of the main concerns we had for him. We told him we wanted someone who could provide a fun, party atmosphere, while at the same time be able to gauge the crowd and know when to slow things down for more romantic dances. He did this perfectly.
Hiring James (Raise the Barr) as our wedding DJ was a great choice because he was very easy to reach, and very quick to respond to emails. We gave him a list of songs/music genres that we wanted played, as well as a list of songs for him to "accidentally leave at home", and he did a great job going off our list. The transitions between songs and sections of the wedding felt very fluid and smooth. He also arrived on time, was willing to stay late if need be, and was very professional (fun professional, not boring professional) the whole time.
~Rebecca & Kevin
9.24.16
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KIMBERLY
If you are looking for a fun,organized,thoughtful,kind and personable dj look no further! I had my dj cancel on me two weeks before my wedding and james was the first one to call me he knew before i did that my dj had cancelled on me. James stepped right up to help me. He went over everything down to the last bit of his job and my wedding.I would recommend him in a heartbeat!! I may hire him to do a pool party next year :) for fun!!! he also accommodated me on the price due to other pricing I was given by cancelled dj. More...
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Stanton
James did an amazing job! I would recommend Raise The Barr for any event!
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Savannah
James was very easy to work with and made the whole process stress free. I didn't have to worry about a thing with him in charge. Everyone loved he music and the obit booth was a hit. Very happy with Raide The Barr Entertainment. Would definately recommend them to everyone! More...
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Cory
We had James come out and be the DJ/Announcer for the Bubble Run at Kansas Speedway. He did an exceptional job and had no problem entertaining a crowd of 8000+ participants. Definitely recommend.
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Katy
Very responsive and professional. The guests loved him!
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Chelsea
We highly recommend this DJ. Very easy to work with, great communication skills, and was loved by all the guests! Very satisfied :)
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Kelli
Barr entertainment is AMAZING. He is wonderful to work with and all around a joy to have at your wedding. He is on time and makes everyone have a great time. He knows his music and just gets your wedding a bitchin vibe. Definitely one one the best choices for our weddibg. We loved him. More...
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