Previous
Next
About Us
The best DJs, lighting and photo booth service in DC, Maryland, Virginia, Philadelphia & NYC.
From weddings to corporate events, Marquee Artists combines club-level DJ skills with a decade of event expertise. We pride ourselves on being friendly, professional, fun, communicative and extremely flexible. Most importantly, we know how to throw amazing parties while tailoring them to your tastes.
If this is your vibe, get in touch.
Meet Our DJs
Lighting
Photo Booth
Our DJs
The core of Marquee Artists is the highly-skilled and experienced talent. Each artist has been rocking dancefloors at major club venues, weddings, private and corporate events for years. Our hand-selected crew ensures that you will not only have the highest level of quality and professionalism at your next event but that they will be fun, down to earth and a joy to work with. Contact us to check DJ availability.
Kelton Higgins is a multi-award-winning DJ based in Washington, DC and Brooklyn, NY. Flawless mixing and a vast knowledge of music combined with exceptional technical and organizational skills places him in a category of his own. A member of the lauded Fatback DJs, Radio CPR 97.5 FM DJ and the original La Boum DJ, Kelton has performed in just about every venue in the DC area from house parties to the 9:30 Club all the way up to the 10,000 capacity DC Armory.
Kelton
Chris is a DJ & multi-instrumentalist with a deep love for rhythms & sounds from
around the world and a passport overflowing with stamps to match. His music collection and playing truly covers everything
with a sub-specialization in Afro-Brazilian/Latin/Caribbean genres. Having taught music for many years he is a studio and live audio wizard able to
get perfect sound in any room or location. You can also hear him on WPFW 89.3 FM.
Chris
Gemma has parallel musical paths as a singer, saxophone player and DJ.
Very few other performers can say they have toured Japan with Incognito, are part of the behind the scenes house music scene in NYC
and have had their music featured on MTV. Gemma got her start performing by leading her own Acid Jazz Funk band in Melbourne, Australia
before moving to NYC and recording house music and Jazz in the US & UK. Folks love her for her demeanor, enthusiasm and impeccable taste as much as her mixing.
Gemma
DJ Chizzau has been in the DC nightclub circuit since 2002 and has played in nearly every major venue throughout his professional career. He is now a top tier choice for lounges and clubs in the city, having residencies at the most prominent locations such as The Park at 14th.
Growing up in Europe in the middle of the New Wave boom, then moving to the US at the peak of hip-hop and pop culture and eventually experiencing raves and electronic music events, he has developed an appreciation for all modern music forms. He ultimately perfected his craft as a DJ by learning and respecting the classic artists which preceded today’s top music choices, essentially allowing him to be one of the most versatile DJs in the field.
Chau / DJ Chizzau
Trevor aka Trev-ski is a local favorite having performed at nightclubs, concerts,
weddings, corporate events & private parties for over 10 years. Trevor’s music collection invokes all aspects of Pop, Hip Hop, Soul, Disco, Reggae, Dancehall, and House music. A resident DJ at the cities top clubs: Eighteenth Street Lounge, Flash, Eaton Hotel, Songbyrd Music House, Trev-ski has performed with Questlove, Tony Humphries, Quantic, Natasha Diggs, LCD Soundsystem, Carl Craig, Brian Ellis & Maurice Fulton, The Fatback DJs, 4 Hours of Funk and countless others.
Trevor / DJ Trev-Ski
DJ Chris Burns
Chris Burns has pioneered an original DJ and production style inspired by the dance culture of yesteryear with a modern, eclectic twist. His work as a DJ, music producer, label owner and promoter has been recognized through critical acclaim by local outlets such as The Washington Post, The Washington City Paper, Brightest Young Things and others. Burns is regularly called upon to play at some of DC’s most acclaimed venues, including U Street Music Hall, Flash, Eighteenth Street Lounge and the 930 Club. Collaborations include Italians Do It Better, Mysteries of the Mind and Quantize Recordings.
DJ D-UP
Voted “Best DJ” in the Miami New Times and named in the SunPost Weekly‘s Miami’s “Top Ten DJs”, DJ D-Up is showing and proving that he truly is party-rocking at its finest. With stellar technical ability and a vast knowledge of music, D-Up combines hiphop “turntablism” and house style mixing, bringing forth a unique approach and creating an undeniable energy that keeps the crowd begging for more. Notorious for annihilating dance floors, D-Up incorporates all types of music into his action-packed sets, including house, electro, hip hop, rock, 80s classics, old school, reggae, exclusive remixes and more.
Bobby Jae
Bobby Jae has been rocking dancefloors from New York to Miami and everywhere in between for over a decade. Previous residencies include the world-renowned Buzz nights at Nation, Sessions at Club Five and Blended at Sonar. Along with DJing, Bobby has been the force behind a number of high quality events and an agent for the world’s best artists. He brings years of experience in creating the most memorable events to Marquee Artists.
Neil Payne
Neil Payne has many years of experience as a resident DJ at Eighteenth Street Lounge, Wonderland, Local 16 and other top venues in DC as well as Los Chocoyos, El Cuartito and others in Guatemala where he lived for a year. Neil is a co-founder of the FunkDC collective and TrueGrooves record label. He has been the DJ for numerous weddings and events from Capitol Hill to the Midwest. He enjoys mixing a variety of music genres, always with a focus on keeping the dancefloor hopping and appealing to a wide range of party-goers and guests.
Kristopher Bryant Riley
Kristopher Riley is no stranger to the microphone. He’s been hosting events and making people dance for nearly ten years with experience ranging from corporate seminars to private parties. Kris is deeply embedded in the DC creative community from having co-founded a dance company to co-creating and publishing DC’s own ‘GO Magazine’. His versatility and dedication to amazing events brings new meaning to the words “master of ceremonies”.
Lighting
Our Up Lighting transforms spaces with ease. You can use them to soften the tone of a room from a cold bright white light to a warm inviting amber. At the opposite end of the spectrum you can dial in fantastic bright colors that completely change the energy of a room. When it comes time for dancing, Up Lights can react to the beat to add energy to the dance floor in a way that traditional club lighting never could. We use battery powered LED Up Lights that have the smallest footprint in the industry so you don’t have to worry about seeing them or more importantly planning around them. No power cords, no mess.
Corporate Events
Marquee Artists have provided the soundtrack for numerous nonprofit and for profit parties, fundraisers, team building events and public engagement functions from intimate to massive. We are accustomed to coordinating with production companies both large and small.
Our ever growing list of clients includes:
- 826dc.org
- Advanced Behavioral Health
- Applied Predictive Technology
- Apptium Technologies LLC
- Art Museum of the Americas’s
- Art After Dark
- BAE Systems
- Brownstein Hyatt Farber
- Schreck, LLP
- BYT Media
- Citizens’ Climate Lobby
- Comet Ping Pong
- Compass Realty
- DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities
- DDC Public Affairs
- Delegation of the European Union
- Embassy of Italy
- Embassy of New Zealand
- Embassy of Sweden
- EMC2 Events
- Event Planning DC
- Fat Tire Ale
- Ferrari
- Freer Gallery of Art &
- Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
- Georgetown Business Improvement District
- Gilt
- Harbinger LLC
- Hirshhorn Gallery
- Honda
- iHeartMedia
- Innovative Entertainment (San Francisco)
- JJR Smith Group
- KGD Architecture
- La Boum
- Lamborghini
- Livingsocial
- Marriott International
- Maserati
- McKinsey & Company
- McWilliams Ballard
- Media Matters
- National Association of Home Builders
- National Gallery of Art
- National Geographic
- One Medical Group
- Oracle
- Pico National Network
- Planned Parenthood Federation of America
- PMI Washington DC
- Roseland Residential Trust
- Sibley Hospital
- Sigma Space Corporation (Aerospace)
- St. Patrick’s Episcopal Day School
- Strike Out Slavery
- Tesla
- The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints
- The Dinex Group
- The National Academy of Future Physicians and Medical Scientists
- U Group
- World Wildlife Fund
- YPO (formerly Young President’s Organization)
Live Music
We know what it’s like. You want to make your event that little bit different. Give it your own personal touch. If this is something you’re thinking about, live music might be the way to go. Here at Marquee Artists, we aren’t just DJ’s. We also have a selection of highly curated professional musicians and singers to perform live at your events.
We only hire the best musicians. They have all performed nationally and internationally, recorded on numerous albums, toured with various bands and ensembles as well as have their own solo careers. Having them perform live at your event is guaranteed to be a treat!
So, what possibilities are there?
Barbara O Photography
Ceremony
When you walk down the aisle you want it to be as memorable as you’ve always imagined it to be. You’ve selected your favorite song to walk down the aisle to. Now imagine that song played by a live pianist or sung by one of our star vocalists! Talk about memorable. Our musicians and singers can learn any song to perform for your ceremony. All you have to do is ask!
Cocktail Hour
Cocktail hour is a great time for schmoozing and you want to set the right mood for that. Nothing looks better than some live musicians jamming away for your guests. It looks great for photos too!
We can provide:
• Live pianist (either on keyboard or grand piano if your venue has one)
• Solo Acoustic guitarist
• Duo (a guitarist and vocalist)
• Trio (guitar, vocalist and double bass player)
Our musicians can play any style of music for your cocktail hour but we generally suggest either classical, bossa nova, light jazz or acoustic pop depending on the mood you want to create.
Barbara O Photography
First Dance/Parent Dance
Just like your ceremony, the first dance is an iconic moment when all eyes are on you. Why not make it unique? If your venue has a piano we can have someone play your first dance song with or without a live singer accompanying them. We can also bring a keyboard if a piano is not available. We really can create whatever mood or song you would like in a live cover.
If you have other unique ideas about incorporating live music into your celebration let us know. We are more than happy to help you plan and coordinate any live music for your event.
We found Marquee Artists through WeddingWire when we were looking for a DJ for our reception and are so glad we ended up with much more! We booked not only our DJ through them, but the uplighting, microphones/sound system, AND photobooth as well. We can’t recommend them enough! Kelton and Chau are both wedding pros and were super responsive and professional throughout the planning process. We modified/delayed decision-making on some things – number of uplights, whether we needed ceremony microphones – but that was no issue at all! They also knew our venue space well and gave us suggestions when we needed them.
Kelton did exactly what he promised he would do. He delivered excellent music choices, managed on-the-spot changes when the bridal and grooms party decided they wanted their own entrances, took everyone’s request without question, provided up-lights last minute, made a monogram for us, and somehow became the MC for the night when ours went missing. Super professional. Called two nights before the wedding to confirm everything and answers all my questions when I had no idea what they meant. Overall, highly recommended. You will not be disappointed.
DJ Kelton, without question, was among the best decisions we made for our wedding ceremony. There. Was. So. Much. Dancing… Because Kelton knows how to read a crowd. It was an incredible time, for young and old alike…He made us feel comfortable, and clearly worked to give us exactly what we wanted. The real magic is that he was able to do so based on minimal input from us. We provided a handful of must-plays, and he took it from there… And crushed it.
From the beginning, our primary goal for our wedding was for it to feel like one big party. A crucial part of any party is the music and Kelton knocked it out of the park! We had some complicated requests with different songs played at set times and incorporating both Brazilian and Indian music to reflect my husband and I’s cultural backgrounds. Kelton handled all our requests perfectly, we got a ton of compliments on the music and the dance floor was packed all night long. Kelton was responsive, easy going and a pleasure to work with from start to finish.
Word on the Street
Word on the Street
We found Marquee Artists through WeddingWire when we were looking for a DJ for our reception and are so glad we ended up with much more! We booked not only our DJ through them, but the uplighting, microphones/sound system, AND photobooth as well. We can’t recommend them enough! Kelton and Chau are both wedding pros and were super responsive and professional throughout the planning process. We modified/delayed decision-making on some things – number of uplights, whether we needed ceremony microphones – but that was no issue at all! They also knew our venue space well and gave us suggestions when we needed them.
Kelton did exactly what he promised he would do. He delivered excellent music choices, managed on-the-spot changes when the bridal and grooms party decided they wanted their own entrances, took everyone’s request without question, provided up-lights last minute, made a monogram for us, and somehow became the MC for the night when ours went missing. Super professional. Called two nights before the wedding to confirm everything and answers all my questions when I had no idea what they meant. Overall, highly recommended. You will not be disappointed.
DJ Kelton, without question, was among the best decisions we made for our wedding ceremony. There. Was. So. Much. Dancing… Because Kelton knows how to read a crowd. It was an incredible time, for young and old alike…He made us feel comfortable, and clearly worked to give us exactly what we wanted. The real magic is that he was able to do so based on minimal input from us. We provided a handful of must-plays, and he took it from there… And crushed it.
From the beginning, our primary goal for our wedding was for it to feel like one big party. A crucial part of any party is the music and Kelton knocked it out of the park! We had some complicated requests with different songs played at set times and incorporating both Brazilian and Indian music to reflect my husband and I’s cultural backgrounds. Kelton handled all our requests perfectly, we got a ton of compliments on the music and the dance floor was packed all night long. Kelton was responsive, easy going and a pleasure to work with from start to finish.