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These days it’s commonplace for the ultra wealthy to hire big-name talent to perform at their events. For example, earlier this year Justin Bieber sang at several wedding events for the son of an Indian billionaire. But the price tag for some big names is so high that even superstars won’t pay it.
While appearing on The Skinny Confidential Him & Her Podcast, celebrity event planner Marcy Blum revealed that when she was planning Jennifer Lopez‘s wedding to Alex Rodriguez — back when they were still together — J-Lo expressed interest in having Bruno Mars sing at her wedding.
“I said, ‘We just worked with him and he’s five,'” Blum recalls — and by “five,” she meant $5 million. Blum claimed J-Lo rejected that amount, saying, “Don’t be ridiculous.” Of course, J-Lo and A-Rod eventually broke up, so the wedding never happened anyway.
Blum also clarified that for $5 million, Bruno will only sing for 45 minutes — maybe an hour — plus you have to cover his “rider,” whatever special things he requests to have on-site.
But if you’ve got unlimited funds to hire whoever you want, here’s a pro tip from Blum: Save your celebrity performer for later on in the event. Hire a regular band and DJ, then eventually bring out your star to perform. Any earlier, Blum says, and you risk making your special day “all about them.”
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