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Cape Town had been rocked. Social media feeds buzzed with posts of people reminiscing over the time when they they danced to heart thumping music, strobe lights messed with the perfect selfie lighting sweaty faces included. Little streams of joy trickled down cheeks! Whilst Capetonians were still trying to recover from the night before, the whole of Gauteng congregated at the Nasrec Expo Center for the Jo’burg leg of the Ultra Music Festival.
The revelers started in from midday although the performances only started at 2pm. Uber gave a R100 off for the first ride for those going to Ultra (power to the party!). There were shuttle services on offer, parking was spacious, these guys even had portable toilets outside the event venue for those queuing to get in.
Performances on all four stages was at 2pm, with DJs Capital and Speedsta holding it down at the Until Until stage and Pascal & Pearce on the Ultra Main Stage. The run started. We were spoilt for choice. All the stages were beautifully crafted and the Ultra Angels added more spice than #SaltBae!
The Samsung #GalaxyExperience stage was a favourite, led by veteran DJ Euphonik who also had an earlier slot at the Ultra Main Stage alongside his trusted compadre, DJ Fresh.
As nightfall struck those with glow in the dark paraphernalia stood out. The music got crazier, the main stage was filling up and yet the main acts had not played yet. Some had already passed out despite a cheeky sign outside the venue stating that ‘PASSOUTS ARE NOT ALLOWED’!
The heat turned up when DJ Snake hit the main stage, giving a shout out to DJ Fresh, calling him an ‘OG’! Intercontinental bromance brewing? Yes? No? He belted out his top hits including Turn Down For What and Lean On, a collaboration with Major Lazer. He was followed by chart topping, Ibiza playing and panty-dropping master of the decks, David Guetta. Guetta proved why he was the best in the 2011-2012 era in which he collaborated with artist like Nicki Minaj, Pitbull, Lil Wayne, Chris Brown and J Lo.
At least 5 minutes after Guetta began his set, top South African DJ Black Coffee began his at the Resilience Stage. Coffee has managed to make sure that the creates a household name for himself, playing at top festivals around the world including recently in Milan. It is know that when that hand touches the dials, magic is woven (some shisa mpama magic *wink*).
The night however belonged to a 20 year old Dutch DJ who has since created his legacy as the greatest Electronic Music DJ right now. That is Martin Garrix. This young genius confirmed why he was given the task of closing off the show, on the main stage. Dropping crowd favourites like ‘Animals’ and ‘In The Name Of Love’.
The largest Electronic Music showcase on the African concert ended on a high note right in the early hours of the morning. Masses trudged through the streets of Jo’burg looking for a fast food outlet to cure the munchies and a place to lay a very light head. This was an experience like no other. A heartbeat near Soweto for one night turned morning. (*insert nostalgic pause here*)
Till next year Jo’burg, till next year.
