TOAST & JAM

Toast and Jam DJs are hand-picked. We don't take resumes or applications; we recruit DJs through events or radio shows based on their talent, their personalities, their appreciation of music, and their love of weddings.

We have an extensive knowledge of all kinds of music, so we can design a playlist that fits your tastes and the mood of the event. We can provide music for your ceremony and reception, and we collaborate with caterers and other vendors to time each event with the appropriate musical accompaniment. The result is a beautifully soundtracked event that keeps people dancing and having a good time.

Fed up with the cheesy antics and shameless self-promotion of typical wedding disc jockeys, Mary Nisi founded Toast and Jam in 2005 based on the idea that brides, grooms and guests should be entertained, not overshadowed. Music-obsessed since childhood, Mary parlayed her extensive knowledge into a seven-year run as host of her own show on WLUW 88.7 FM in Chicago and numerous DJ stints at the Hideout, Danny's, The Fireside Bowl, Buddy Gallery, Schuba's, The Burlington, Delilah's and Open End Gallery. In 2008, Mary was invited to DJ at All Tomorrow's Parties, the legendary music festival in Camber Sands, England. She also has provided musical direction and live DJing for the Fashionbender fashion show series, serves as Director of the Record Fair and Other Delights at Chicago's Pitchfork Music Festival and is a founding member of the Chicago Indie Radio Project (CHIRP). Mary is a graduate of DePaul University and a native of Omaha, Nebraska.

Hail Mary's Jam: American Boy by Estelle (featuring Kanye West)

Kate cut her DJ teeth spinning records at the Rollerworld Roller Rink in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and she spent more than ten years in radio as a DJ on WIDR in Kalamazoo and WPHS in Detroit. Currently she is the co-host of Kate & Rachel's Old Style Show on WLUW in Chicago (Tuesdays 12am-2am). Although Kate has a particular passion for punk, soul, and psych, her depth of knowledge and deep down love of music make her DJ sessions pop. An avid pinball enthusiast who never misses the Annual Pinball Expo and a crack hockey player for X-Factor, Kate's subtle humor and Michigan charm will get your guests flying to the dance floor. Kate also works for Home Pet Care and volunteers at the Museum of Broadcast Communications.

Kate's Jam Guaranteed to Get Booties Shaking: Mony Mony (the ORIGINAL version)

Rachel's musical expertise ranges from opera to reggae, but she got a soft spot for the 60s and 70s jams she spins as co-host on the Kate & Rachel's Old Style Show, a popular late night program on Chicago's WLUW 88.7FM. Rachel took to music at a very young age and earned her Bachelor's of Music Degree in vocal performance. Rachel is the Business Manager/Music Programmer for Accuradio.com, a multi-channel internet radio station. Never one to limit herself creatively, Rachel has wrestled for KPOWW (Kalamazoo Precinct of Women's Wrestlers) and helped to choreograph the Miss Kalamazoo County Beauty Pageant. When she is not spending money on records, dancing her pants off, or bowling with her team the Scumballs, Rachel enjoys tennis, cheesemaking, and dessert.

Rachel's Sweetest Jams: Bust a Move and Superfreak

Dustin is happy to be the token male of Toast & Jam, a group he describes as "a bunch of really great DJs who just happen to be female." A self-proclaimed dude with a lot of records, Dustin studied journalism as a means to get paid to write about music. He started DJing at local clubs and bars about a decade ago, eventually landing a radio show Hump Day Dance Party at WLUW. Dustin has worked for the independent label Locust Music and written freelance for publications such as Stop Smiling magazine and Dusted Magazine, and spent a ridiculous amount of time at various local record stores. An obsessive collector of records and comic books, Dustin currently works as a photo librarian for a publications house.

Dustin's Secret Weapon Jam: (He would tell you, but he'd have to kill you.)

Kristin began her love affair with radio at WONC as the traffic announcer, moving on to WNTH with her local punk show "The Backyard", and then WLUW, where she hosted her own show. Kristin works for Carrot Top Records and volunteers reading newspaper articles and novels out loud at CRIS Radio Chicago, a station for people who are blind or visually impaired. A competitive Irish Step Dancer for 12 years, Kristin has danced at The St. Patrick's Day parade, with the celt-punk band Dropkick Murphys and at the Mid-West America Oireachtas and the U.S. Nationals. She has DJed around Chicago at spots such as the Liars Club, The Mutiny, Sonotheque, Town Hall, Fat Cat, Darkroom and Danny's. Kristin's talent for flow is not limited to records; she was also a finalist at the Great Lakes Regional Barista Championship.

Kristin's Get Your Groove On Jam: Come On Eileen

Leslie earned her musical cred working at Chicago's famous Reckless Records and DJing at local bars such as Danny's, Delilah's, Schubas. Originally from Chicago, Leslie bounced around the country, from Austin to Seattle, collecting records along the way. She loves all music ("even country," she says) and has a knack for putting together playlists and making mix tapes. Leslie's hobbies include playing records, shopping for records, staring at records and dreaming of records. Although music feeds the soul, it does little for the tummy, so Leslie is studying nutrition at the University of Illinois-Chicago with plans to become a registered dietitian.

Leslie Loves Cool Jams: Superstition by Stevie Wonder & Don't Stop Til You Get Enough

Laura brings West Coast flava to Toast & Jam. She spent five years in L.A. promoting records to independent and non-commercial radio stations, which she now does here in Chicago. And while her day job keeps her on top of new music, her heart belongs to the old stuff: soul, 60s rock and roll, and punk. Laura majored in English Lit and Women's Studies at Western Michigan University, where she hosted a radio show called Midnight-A-Go-Go with our own Kate Bilinski. When she's not busy trying to make a house (she came to Chicago with only what would fit in her '94 Corolla), Laura enjoys eating food, talking about food and riding around Logan Square on her new bicycle.

Laura's jam to really bring down the house: Do You Love Me by The Contours

Imagine, if you will, a magical place where there are no cover charges. No dress codes. Just a laid back vibe where you can dance your ass off to Aretha Franklin and Britney Spears without even a hint of embarrassment. Dena Masley brought this dream to life when she launched a monthly dance party in her home town of St. Paul, and now she's brought her passion for totally dance-able music to Toast & Jam. Dena kicked off her DJ career co-hosting a radio show The Commute at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, where she majored in Radio, Television and Film. She moved to Chicago to manage online sales for a record warehouse, and now lives in Logan Square with her water-loving cat Rosa. An avid "soundtracker," Dena likes to create playlists for everything from going on a walk to people-watching at Germanfest. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, volunteering and soup.

Dena's Dance-All-Night Slow Jam: Anything from Sam Cooke, especially You Send Me and Cupid

Carrie started DJing six or seven years ago because she loved music (and thought she could do a way better job than the dudes who usually manned the turntables). Turns out, Carrie's got miles of style, with music and beyond. This Detroit native worked for years as a stylist (a job she got because the boss liked her coat), styling ads for glamorous brands like Land's End, JC Penney and Sears. Her passion for fashion took her to L.A., but after just seven months (blame the traffic and smog), she hightailed it back to Chicago, where she's now studying radiography at Wright College. So while she's learning to look at your bones, she's also rocking them, DJing around town at Cole's, the Whistler and Town Hall. Carrie lives in Logan Square and her first concert was The Monkees with special guest Weird Al Yankovic.

Carrie's Couture Cut: Crazy in Love by Beyonce

Cleveland-native Gwen got her start deejaying eight years ago while working at Reckless Records. She and her lady co-workers would take over the turntables at hot spots like Danny's and Rodan, pleasing the crowds with classic rock and old soul favorites. Four years later she started playing weddings and has never looked back. In between weddings, Gwen often accompanies her husband, a recording engineer, while he tours the country with bands like Sonic Youth and Iron & Wine. She lives in Logan Square, loves movies, cooking and amusement parks, and the only thing more exciting to her than a roller coaster ride is the thrill that comes with getting older wedding guests to get down on the dance floor.

Gwen's Guaranteed to Get You Grooving with: Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie

Sarah grew up in Duluth, Minnesota, where she proudly embraced the city's reputation for having the highest voter turnout in the United States. She studied history at Coe College in Iowa, whose caucuses are the first major electoral event of the presidential nominating process. Shortly after graduation, Sarah took the next logical step on her patriotic, all-American journey: she moved to Japan. There she taught English and also started deejaying at a club called the Mominoki House, where she rocked the crowd with old soul, classic rock and dance hits. In 2005 she brought her crazy skills, both at teaching and deejaying, to Chicago, where she teaches English Language Arts to 7th and 8th graders. If she can make diagramming sentences fun to bunch of 13-year-olds, just imagine what she can do at your event!

Sarah's Surefire Golden Hit: One More Time by Daft Punk

DJ Photos by Jeremy Lawson Photography