Ryan Tilton

First, I will preface my review by saying that Ryan, the primary owner and DJ at DJRT, is professional, astute, and I have no doubts that he is a great DJ and emcee for the events he hosts. However, at the time I booked, only his assistant Jordan was available, and it was Jordan that was the DJ for my wedding. Multiple things contributed to an overall poor experience and satisfaction with the services that Jordan provided. Among them: Jordan did not play nearly half of my clearly delineated play list — including specific songs that were important for me, my family, and my in-​laws to have played — instead, filling at least half the play list with random pop songs that I never specifically requested. He did very little in the way of emceeing — this was primary reason I had hired a professional DJ service in the first place — for example, I had to explain the importance of certain things and reception events to my guests, and he only announced the names of my bridal party, with no music playing in the background, and no additional information regarding their relation to me — despite receiving a document with this exact information. Therefore, my bridesmaids, walked into a silent room, with only their names announced, and no description of their relation to me given — this would have helpful for my extended family, especially since I had two sisters and six dear friends and bridesmaids. Family — including in-​laws much to my embarrassment — noted that songs would completely end, before a next song started, including during the fast paced dancing portion, rather then being mixed or transitioned like a professional DJ service. Finally, the planned shoe game — which myself and family members were looking forward to, and had been discussed & documented with Jordan, was completely missed and not done at all. For all of this, I was sent a $ 100 refund for an hour not played with a non-​disclosure agreement attached. Insulted, I tore it up and wrote this to warn future brides. If its’s DJ Ryan, then by all means book him — I’m sure you’ll get a good service at a good price. But if its Jordan, then forget it — you probably won’t get good service, and you won’t get an refund equal to the poor service.

Ryan from DJRT was the DJ at our wedding. He was punctual, friendly and totally professional. He played every song we asked for and did a great job announcing. The price for the services we got was totally fair. We ended up having people leave a lot earlier than we thought but Ryan totally went with the flow and was super nice the whole time. I actually hired someone else originally and had to fire then because they were horrible and hired DJRT. So glad I did! Everything was seamless. I love that you can pay your invoice online also. Very convenient. I didn’t even actually meet Ryan until he arrived at the wedding venue to set up. Everything was done through email and was perfect. I would recommend DJRT to anyone for any occasion.

Everything went smoothly. We hired Ryan after he DJ’d at my husband’s cousin’s wedding and kept the party going. He was prompt and ready to go, had a mic ready for our toasts, and played everything we wanted to hear. He even offered to give us a «last, last song» haha. I would recommend him, he was personable and we had no issues.

I feel like a super slacker for how long it took for me to get a review in for Ryan. He DJ’d our wedding in July 2011 and was great for the price. We aren’t big on too much touchy feely interaction with vendors and LOVED that we could book online and that he was very open to email communication. We bounced a few emails back and forth and had one phone call before the day. Ryan found the version of the song I wanted to walk down the aisle to and was all cued up and ready to go.
My only critiques fall a bit on my shoulder, he announced us as Mr. &Mrs. Hislastname when I am not changing my name and he let a 4yr old get the microphone… witch is a pet peeve of mine.
Otherwise he was easy to communicate with, the price was right and the package was great.

Overall, good value for the price I paid. He was on time, stuck to the music I chose for the most part (except for one incident where he played this lame country song — my husband and I both hate country music) and gauged the crowd well to adjust his music accordingly.

Dear Seattle Brides. DJRT is the best price in Seattle, trust me I checked… made charts, compared prices… he is it, so stop looking. The processes of booking with Ryan was almost «too easy» but if it works it works. You simply go onto his website and click on all the things you would like to book and then your booked… easy! he also will take time out to instant message you if you have any questions. Over all I had a really great experience with Ryan. Also I went for the party lights cause they weren’t that expensive and it was totally worth it, it made my little barn dance to like a barn club (see pictures)

Dj Ryan was perfect at our wedding. He was very reasonably priced and provided everything we needed from a DJ. He was always prompt and clear in his communications. His contract and invoice were very clear also. He was professional and on time for the event. He played all the songs we requested. Everyone was up dancing and had lots of fun. He made our announcements well and according to schedule. I did not want a cheesy DJ and I am glad that dj Ryan was no where near that. For the budget I had set aside for a DJ, I think he provided more than expected.

UPDATE: After discussing this with my husband, he reminded me that, in the end, Ryan DID give us back our money and that perhaps I should give him more than just a one-​star rating. He’s right (does that sound like a threatening man to you?) and it is on his behalf that I have changed my rating, though I’m still clearly hurt and offended. I encourage all future brides to save all your paperwork and always demand copies of contracts… to protect ALL parties.
I have combined my reviews and responses from Ryan and this is my LAST review regarding DJRT. Clearly, there was a communication barrier and also a failure to understand the difference between a bride-​to-​be under serious family stress and brokenness and someone just trying to pull one over on them. Everything was so emotional and stressful that we were just trying to get as much of our lost money back as possible. I had only ever e-​mailed Ryan and only ever got an invoice for my deposit.
Ryan initially wouldn’t give us our money back unless he got booked. Now, I know that’s common, but the guy should’ve done his best to make sure I got paperwork and writing that said that. It’s not our fault he never sent me a contract and just took my money without backing himself up. When I forwarded him all of our e-​mails and correspondence, he finally said he «changed his mind» and would refund us but was so rude to put in HUGE, bold font that we should «just know» that he lost business for holding our date. I thought it was rude, uncalled for, and very insensitive as all my previous e-​mails were merely pleading for sympathy and were in no way aggressive or rude.
My biggest grievance is that he claims my husband used very bad language and was threatening to him. My husband is a well-​spoken and assertive man who will stand up for himself and those he loves if he feels like he is getting dicked around, which he rightfully felt he was. He in no way was threatening, unless threatening means not backing down and giving educated responses. Ryan’s continued accusations on my husband’s integrity will be why I will NEVER remove this (final) post as he has requested. This all blew up from a review I posted OVER A YEAR AGO and has only continued on because of his continued antagonizing.
Clearly, I can’t review his actual services, only his attitude…
Ryan’s most edited response:
«Abby forfeited her 25% down payment when she canceled her event after booking. Only after many emails from her and a threatening call from her fiancé did I refund the 25% down payment. All deposits are non-​refundable, booking online or the act of signing my contract legally binds this. Regrettably I apologize if my final email seemed harsh to you. It was the whole situation that made things upsetting for me.
(Unfortunately Unilocal is flawed and will not let me respond to each of Abbys comments individually so here is a final response)
For future customers who have any questions about this indecent please let me know I will be more than happy to explain what happened here. I never actually performed for Abby’s wedding as the event was canceled by her request. I promise you I am not a Jerk. I had no intention to slander her husband’s integrity via this response, it was simply the language he used on the phone that was threatening to me.»

Our overwhelming love blew a fuse during our first dance!!! But, DJ Ryan was super professional and it was fixed before I had time to start freestyling to fill the gap (because no one wants to see that). He was totally on point with everything before the wedding, during the ceremony and the reception for our wedding. I really can’t recommend a better DJ for such an affordable price! Thanks, DJRT!!!