It’s the height of wedding season. The sun is shining, we’ve got hen dos booked in for the next eight billion weekends, expensive gifts to purchase (sigh) and plenty of occasion-appropriate frocks to sift through at the shops.

And, for the love birds preparing to say ‘I do’ in front of their friends and family, there’s a lot more to think about, too. From caterers and decorations, to favours and outfits, the list is positively never-ending. But the one that they may forget to pay attention to is the songs that will be played on their special day. 

No, we’re not talking about the ceremonial tunes, or even that all-important first dance song: we mean the DJ’s playlist. The one that will (hopefully) see guests getting down and boogieing until the early hours of the morning, with a whole lot of dad-dancing, bridesmaids transforming into members of Destiny's Child and hopefully some dance-floor knee slides, too. 

Read more: 35 unique and unusual wedding venues from around the UK

So what songs should brides be popping on their list to get everyone feeling funky?

Well, according to this poll by FiveThirtyEight, they might want to give more thought to the songs they keep firmly off the list.

The US polling website sought to find out the songs that DJs refuse to play at weddings (based on negative feedback from brides and grooms) – and they’ve shared their findings in a bid to give us all a heads up on how to avoid awkward, empty dance floors. 

If you’re a fan of the classics, look away now and pretend this never happened, because some of your favourites are potentially in the firing line. From the Macarena to the YMCA, these are the cheesy tunes that they probably won’t be playing at a wedding near you anytime soon…

Chicken Dance 

This was named the most banned wedding song, with a total of 23% percent of  couples culling it from their playlist. 

Cha-Cha Slide

We take this one as a personal blow, the inclusive chart-topper by DJ Casper had us slidin’ to the left and slidin’ to the right for most of 2003 when the song was re-released. But for 22.5% of couples, this song’s dance  move-inspired lyrics have no place at a wedding reception. 

Macarena

We thought weddings were all about getting friends and family together and up on their feet for some cringe-inducing foot tapping, but apparently not according to 17% of poll takers who wouldn’t want this (in our opinion) guaranteed crowd-pleaser playing at their nuptials.

YMCA

If you were sad to lose the Macarena, there’s no telling how you’ll fare with the news that Village People party anthem, YMCA, is also out the window. 15% of couples couldn’t wait to rid their receptions of enthusiastic arm waving. 

Electric Boogie (Electric Slide)

Next up to be bumped off is Marcia Griffiths’ Electric Boogie. 12% of couples regard this song as a serious no-no when it comes to post-wedding bells partying. 

Hokey Pokey

Apparently this much-loved jingle of our youth should stay firmly there, in our youth. In the opinion of 10% of poll takers this song is appropriate for kids birthday parties and pretty much nothing else, especially not a wedding. 

Wobble

If you were intending on wobbling at your wedding, you might want to think again. The V.I.C hit has been outed by 7% of FiveThirtyEight users, making it the eighth most hated song played at weddings. 

Happy

Ironically, on what is often referred to as ‘one of the happiest days’ of a couple’s lives there’s no place for a song all about that very emotion. Considered a bit of a curve ball in the Stylist.co.uk office, Pharrell William’s chart-topping tune is the only 2010’s song to appear in the list, being hated by 5% of lovers. 

Shout

Coming in at number ten is The Isley Brother’s soulful rendition of Shout. After surviving over half a century of popularity, it could be curtains for this catchy tune. 5% of poll-ers saw this song as a big no-no for the big day.

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If all of this has got you feeling down in the dumps, don’t worry: we’ve also got advice on the best wedding songs, to ensure any big day ends happily ever after. 

Images: iStock