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More couples than ever are choosing September 21 as their wedding date because of Earth Wind & Fire’s popular song, “September.”
When lead vocalist Maurice White first sang the iconic lyric, “Do you remember the night of September 21st? Love changed the minds of imposters as it chased away the clouds,” he probably had no idea that these words would inspire so many to say “I do.”
According to wedding platforms like The knot and ZolaThere has been a marked increase over the past five years in wedding dates on September 21, 2024.
“This song is a go-to for celebrations, so it might give couples a little push to choose this date for their big day,” Allison Cullman, Zola’s vice president of marketing and brand strategy, told the outlet. The New York Times“Pop culture can influence wedding dates.”
The knot reported that nearly 30,000 registered couples said they planned to marry on that date, with the platform noting that this was largely because it took place on a Saturday rather than in 2023, which took place on a Thursday. Meanwhile, Zola There was a 33 percent increase in couples setting their wedding date on September 21 compared to the same date in 2019, which was also a Saturday.
Couples are drawn not only by the pop cultural feel of the date, but also by the weather, which depending on where you live can tend to be perfect – not too cold and not too hot.
“I think September is the best month in the area because of the mild weather, sunny days and a hint of fall,” Massachusetts native Shauna Sullivan told NYT“I always wanted to get married in September, and the 21st is a weekend.”
However, he added that he also “couldn't help but remember” Earth, Wind & Fire's catchy 1978 hit, written by White, Al McKay and Allee Willis. Before his death, Willis recalled how he told White to change the lyrics “Do you remember/The 21st 'day' of September,” asking him to change the words from “day” to “night.”
“The first thing I said,” he mused, “it has to be during the day. It has to be at night. It’s more romantic.”
Willis had apparently made the right choice, and the song has since been considered the perfect romantic tune for couples in love to walk down the aisle to or dance the night away at the reception. The song has also been used in everything from fictional weddings to the opening of the 1997 film Food for the soulto the soundtracks of television shows, commercials, sporting events and video games.
Earth, Wind & Fire was one of the most important groups of the 1970s and was created by White. The original members included White, Philip Bailey, Verdine White, Fred White, Al McKay, Johnny Graham, Ralph Johnson, Larry Dunn and Andrew Woolfolk, and together they released 11 consecutive gold albums.
