Wedding & Event Music: What Australian Venues Need to Know

How function centres, hotels and event venues should handle music for weddings and functions — playlists, BPM, and the Australian licensing rules. VibeBeats is direct-licensed background music for cafés, restaurants, bars, gyms, retail stores, salons, spas, clinics and hotels. No music licensing/PRO fees (*No separate public-performance music licence needed for VibeBeats music.) Other music sources may still require licensing. The AI DJ reshapes each playlist through the trading day.

Wedding & Event Music: What Australian Venues Need to Know About Licensing & Playlists

TL;DR. Australian wedding and event venues need a commercial music licence — usually OneMusic — to play background music for paid events, even when the couple "supplies the playlist". Direct-licensed services like VibeBeats remove the OneMusic requirement for the venue's own catalogue.

If you run a function centre, hotel ballroom, winery, brewery or restaurant that hosts weddings and corporate events, music is part of your product. It's also one of the easiest things to get wrong — both for atmosphere and for licensing.

The three music moments at a wedding

Every wedding has the same three musical beats. The venue is responsible for at least one of them, often all three.

Arrival & canapés (60 min)

• BPM: 80–105 • Vibe: warm, conversational, melodic • Genre mix: bossa, indie-folk, neo-soul, gentle electronica • Volume: low — guests need to hear each other

Dinner (90–120 min)

• BPM: 90–110 • Vibe: cinematic, slightly richer, vocal-friendly • Genre mix: vocal pop reworks, lounge, jazz, melodic indie • Volume: low-medium

Dancing (3–4 hours)

• BPM: 110–130 • Vibe: energy across decades — 80s, 90s, 00s, current • Usually owned by a DJ or band, not the venue • Venue still owns the licence

"But the couple supplied the playlist"

This is the most common misconception in event venues. The licence sits with whoever is publicly performing the music — which, when the music plays on your speakers in your venue, is you.

It doesn't matter that:

• The couple compiled the Spotify playlist • A guest is plugging in their phone • A DJ is "bringing their own music"

If music plays at a paid event in your venue, you need:

• A OneMusic licence covering APRA AMCOS + PPCA, or • A directly licensed service (e.g. VibeBeats) for any music your venue itself supplies

See APRA vs PPCA vs OneMusic explained and our music licensing guide for Australian businesses.

Corporate events & conferences

Conferences, gala dinners and product launches follow the same rule. Any walk-in, break, dinner or networking music played on the venue's system is a public performance and needs to be licensed.

This is where venues most often get caught — a corporate client emails a Spotify link the day before and the AV team just hits play.

What to put in your venue music kit

A function-ready venue typically maintains:

• 5–8 arrival playlists by vibe (laid-back, classy, fun, modern, etc.) • 3–5 dinner playlists • 2–3 walk-out / close-of-night playlists • A house branded venue playlist for non-event hours

All of these should run from a single, licensed source — not a personal Spotify.

Where VibeBeats fits

We power the venue's own music — arrival, dinner, ambient between-event moments — with directly licensed playlists that don't require a separate OneMusic licence. Wedding party still wants Spotify for the dance floor? That's a separate question for the DJ. Your venue's day-to-day music is sorted.

Start a free trial or explore music for hotels and music for bars.

FAQ

Do I need a music licence if the couple chose the music? Yes. The licence attaches to the venue performing the music, not the person who picked it.

Does the DJ's licence cover my venue? Usually no. A DJ's licence covers their performance; your venue's public-performance licence is separate.

What about acoustic performers? Live performance has its own licensing route through APRA AMCOS — separate from your background-music obligation.

Can I use VibeBeats for the dance floor? You can, but most weddings still want a DJ for that moment. We're best for arrival, canapés, dinner, and the venue's everyday music.

Start your 14-day free trial — no credit card required.