A Wedding DJ's Guide to Hummingbird Nest Ranch

I'm Joe, the DJ behind DJ MOJOE. I have DJed three weddings at Hummingbird Nest Ranch between 2015 and 2018, including Corbin Bleu and Sasha Clements's in July 2016 and Lindsey and Tony's 285-guest wedding at the Villa in 2018. This guide comes from those three nights, my own run sheets, and the videos I filmed there, which are further down the page.

This is what I have learned working there, not a sales page for the venue. For current availability, pricing and house rules, the ranch's own site is the source: Hummingbird Nest Ranch.

What kind of venue is Hummingbird Nest Ranch?

Hummingbird Nest Ranch is a private ranch estate in Santa Susana, at the edge of Simi Valley, on 126 acres in the Santa Susana Mountains. It is big enough to give you a different setting for each part of the day, and its main reception space, the Villa, held 285 guests at one wedding I worked.

The look is what people book it for: rolling hills, mature trees, and open-air spaces that photograph beautifully at golden hour and still feel intimate once the sun goes down. It is the kind of property that already feels like an occasion before a single song plays.

Where does each part of the day happen?

The ranch has room for each part of your day to have its own space. At the weddings I have worked there:

• The ceremony was outdoors, in the early evening, with the hills behind the couple.
• Cocktail hour ran close by, so guests were never walked across the property with a drink in hand.
• The reception was in the Villa for the largest wedding and out in the open for the others.
• The dance floor sat next to the bar every time, which matters more than it sounds. When guests do not have to leave the music to get a drink, they stay in the party.

The property is large, so the walk between spaces goes into the timeline, and so does the sound plan: each space gets its own coverage rather than one system stretched across the ranch.

Can the party run late here?

Yes. The three weddings I have worked here ended at midnight, 12:30 AM and 2 AM. That is rare in Southern California, where a lot of venues cut the music at 10.

The 2 AM night had a late-night food truck arrive after midnight, and the room was still full for it. Lindsey and Tony's reception ran from 6 PM to 12:30 AM, and in her words, "Joe was able to keep most of our guests until the very end."

Those are the nights I worked, in 2015, 2016 and 2018. Curfew and overtime terms can change, so confirm the current rules with the ranch when you book. But if a late finish is part of your vision, this is a venue that has hosted one.

How does the layout keep the dance floor full?

The DJ booth and the bar sit close to the dance floor, so getting a drink never means leaving the party. At a lot of venues the bar is a walk away, and the floor thins out every time a group goes for a round. Here, guests drift between the two without breaking the energy.

That is one of the first things I look at on any property, and Hummingbird Nest Ranch gets it right. Lindsey and Tony's 285 guests, from about 20 kids to a big group over 60, were still dancing at the last song.

What was it like to DJ Corbin Bleu's wedding here?

Corbin Bleu and Sasha Clements married at Hummingbird Nest Ranch on July 23, 2016, and I was their DJ and MC. About 160 guests, a 6 PM ceremony, a band and guitarists sharing the night with me, and a reception that ran to 2 AM with a food truck rolling in after midnight.

What I would want you to take from it is not the name. It is that the same preparation went into that night as into every other wedding I work: the timeline built with the planner in advance, every name and pronunciation confirmed, every handoff between the band and the booth planned so guests never noticed a seam.

Corbin said it better than I can. His video is below, after the wedding videos.

What does a Hummingbird Nest Ranch timeline look like?

Here is Lindsey and Tony's night, from my own run sheet. A 285-guest wedding at the Villa on a Friday in June, ceremony at 3, a break for photos, then:

1. Guests arrive for cocktail hour at 5:45 PM
2. Grand entrance at 7:00 PM, parents and sponsors first, then the wedding party
3. First dance at 7:20 PM, then a group photo with everyone already on the floor
4. Dinner at 7:30 PM, buffet, three tables at a time, two lines
5. Toasts at 8:30 PM
6. Cake cutting at 8:45 PM, followed by the parent dances
7. Speeches at 9:00 PM, then a slideshow
8. Sparkler entrance onto the dance floor at 9:30 PM, and open dancing
9. Bouquet and garter at 10:30 PM, with a chair lift before it
10. Last dance at 12:23 AM, end of night at 12:30

They ran about an hour behind after sunset photos, which happens at almost every wedding. Lindsey wrote afterward that "Joe was able to fill in the gaps to make things run smoothly. I don't think our guests even knew we were behind at all." That is the job: the timeline bends, and the guests never feel it.

What should you tell your DJ about this venue?

Four things worth settling before the day, all from working there:

• Power goes through the venue. When I worked there, electrical hookups had to be cleared with the ranch's events director in advance. A DJ who has not asked that question by the week of the wedding is going to have a long morning.
• Vendors get the full day. Load-in started in the morning, which means the setup is done and sound-checked long before the first guest sees it.
• Keep vehicles off the grass. The ranch is strict about it, so gear gets carried the last stretch.
• Big guest counts want more than one speaker zone. Nearly 300 people across the Villa is not one room. The toasts have to reach the far tables at the same volume as the head table.

What do couples say afterward?

Lindsey C. married Tony at the Villa in June 2018 and wrote this on Yelp:

“We had our wedding at the Villa at Hummingbird Nest Ranch on June 22, 2018, abt 285 guests. He had actually DJ'd a wedding there in the past (Corbin Bleu) before which also was another comforting factor that he is familiar with our venue.”

“Joe made everything run smoothly and fit in everything we planned: speeches from 5 people, cake cutting, father/daughter & mother son dance, bouquet and garter toss, chair lift (that I specifically wanted), montage slideshow, sparkler send off while STILL having more than enough time for the Ultimate Dance Party. Our only regret is not booking the venue for a longer time because people did not want to stop dancing!!!”