Relationships
6 Newlywed Brides Reveal How They Chose The Song They Walked Down The Aisle To

by Christy Piña
Griffin Photography/Sandra Montalvo

Planning your wedding day can be super overwhelming because you might want everything to feel absolutely perfect. But there's just so much to plan. You have to choose the cake, the dress, the florist, the color scheme, the theme, the songs — and that's just to name a few. If walking down the aisle is something you see in your future, organizing every aspect of your special day can be stressful. But some decisions are easier than others, and when it came time for these brides to chose the song they walked down the aisle to, most of them just had a feeling. The songs had an emotional connection to a part of their love story, a meaningful name that struck a chord (literally), or they just felt right.

It's important to remember that above all else, it's you and bae's special day — not anyone else's. There will be things you choose together, like the cake, your first dance song, or the color scheme, and then there are some aspects of the wedding that are completely up to you. You get to choose your outfit. You get to choose who (if anyone) walks you down the aisle, and you get to choose the song you walk to. If you prefer to go the more traditional route with the "Wedding March," that's great! If you go a more personal route with a song that means a lot to you or to you and your partner, that's also special. You set the rules on your special day. So, without further ado, here's how six brides chose the song they walked down the aisle to.

01
This couple just knew.
Courtesy of Christy Piña
We went to see Crazy Rich Asians, and during the wedding scene, it's this song they play when the bride is walking down the aisle ["Can't Help Falling In Love" by Kina Grannis]. When we heard the song, Joseph and I just looked at each other, and I was already crying, and we just knew that it was going to be the perfect song for our wedding.

Olivia, 24

02
Deciding on a song was hard, but they went with the one that really spoke to their love.
Courtesy of Sandra Montalvo
Choosing a song to walk down the aisle to was hard! I ended up choosing "If I Ever Fall In Love” by Nat King Cole because (first) my husband and I love his music, (second) it was going to sound good coming from the string quartet we had play, and (finally) it was just really how I was feeling. I fell in love, and it’ll be forever.

Sandra, 27

03
This couple took a more classic route.
Griffin Photography
Our philosophy through the whole planning process was that we were planning a marriage, not a wedding. That being said, our ceremony was really important to us and we wanted it be traditional and timeless. For the bridal processional, we went with the "Bridal Chorus" by Wagner. During our ceremony we did communion as a married couple for the first time and played a piano instrumental version of "10,000 Reasons." It was perfect for the moment. For the exit song, we went with the classic, "Wedding March (A Midsummer Night's Dream)" by Mendelssohn. It was so overwhelming to look out into the crowd of our loving family and friends and make our exit to that timeless classic.

Julie, 26

04
This bride also went a more traditional route, but later added her own personal touch.
Courtesy of Jackie Schuck-Abreu
We went with a traditional Catholic ceremony, so I used the bridal march as my song to walk down the aisle. However, our reception was a little less traditional, and I sang "Perfect" by Ed Sheeran after the dances as a surprise to my husband, since I couldn’t walk down the aisle to it.

Jackie, 29

05
And this bride went with the song that she felt a strong personal connection to.
Courtesy of Isabel Calabria-Holden
I walked down the aisle to an instrumental version of "Isabel" by Il Divo, played by my sister-in-law! My name is Isabel, and my dad is Spanish, so the song has always been special to me because it is sung in Spanish and is one of the only things growing up that had my name spelled correctly, so I always felt an affinity to it. The music to the song is beautiful and actually derives from classical music, so even though it meant something personal to me, it still sounded stunning and had the right feel for its purpose. Having my sister-in-law play it on the violin just topped it all off with that personal touch.

Isabel, 23

06
This bride truly embraced the fun aspect of her wedding day.
Catie’s Captures Photography
I chose to walk down the aisle to "Princess Leia’s Theme" from Star Wars. I did not want an incredibly traditional wedding, but I still wanted it to be elegant and extravagant. The best part about this song was that it is so long, and has so many different parts, we used it for our entire party to walk down the aisle as well. We are both big Star Wars fans and felt that this song was beautiful and let us have our fun with a wedding song without it feeling out of place. We also used Star Wars music as on recessional to keep a theme!

Riley, 24

Whether you stick to the traditional "Wedding March," choose a song that holds a special place in your heart, or compromise and do both, it's going to be perfect because you and your partner will have chosen it. In the end, it all comes down to spending forever with the love of your life, and that's what truly matters. Everything else is just the icing on the wedding cake. (Pun intended.)