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Winter Music Conference Shifts, Ultra Music Festival Stays Put In 2011

Posted 11/17/10 8:30 am EST by in Music


By Adam Stewart

On Tuesday afternoon (November 16), a pair of press releases went out to fans, artists and industry folk in the electronic dance music universe, informing them that March would either be a really awesome or really confusing month for the community, depending on how you look at it. In a surprising shocker, the official Winter Music Conference press department distributed their 2011 WMC press release indicating that the official dates for the annual Miami conclave would be a full two weeks earlier than expected, starting Tuesday, March 8 and running through Saturday, March 12. That's no big deal, right? Other than the fact that WMC has taken last week in March for all past years in recent memory, the only real damage done was to those who already booked their early bird plane tickets.

Fast forward to around three hours later when Ultra Music Festival distributed their press release indicating that the massive three-day event (which last year drew over 100,000 per day) would hold its ground and remain entrenched in the last weekend in March. That's where the problems begin. With artist, labels and fans now potentially torn between two very different sets of dates (with two huge franchise names behind them), when will the real party take place?

The controversy played out on Twitter almost immediately. Steve Angello of the Swedish House Mafia recently told MTV News that he is moving full steam ahead with his annual Size party for what he thought would be WMC week at the end of March. However, based on his tweets today, his plans aren't changing. "People, I won't be in Miami 8th - 12th," he wrote. "I'm having my Size part the last week of March. And most of the people I know will be there." Kaskade added, "#WMC - R.I.P. - It was a good run, we will miss ya! Now we can just start calling it what it really is: Spring Break. Guidos Unite!"

Scores of other loyal #WMC hash-taggers voiced (and continue to voice) their mostly unhappy take on the situation as well. While most of the chatter right now leans toward the majority making their own unofficial WMC pilgrimage at the end of March, it's still too early to tell which entity will score the biggest acts and hottest events.

What do you make of the divide between the Winter Music Conference and the Ultra Music Festival? Which will you end up going to? Let us know in the comments!

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Dance Week: Above And Beyond Working On New Album, Much More

Posted 4/9/10 2:40 pm EST by in Music


By Sam Hendrick

Fresh off of last month's Winter Music Conference in Miami, British trance trio Above and Beyond have a big year to look forward to. Not only is their summer calendar stacked with tour dates across Europe, but they are currently working in the studio on another album. We spoke with members Jono Grant and Tony McGuinness at WMC, who let us know that third member, Paavo Siljamaki, was busy in London overseeing both the production of the new album and the birth of his second child.

Though it doesn't seem U.S. fans will get to see Above and Beyond spin stateside at all this summer, the boys assure us they do enjoy their shows here and are consistently impressed by the ever growing crowds that come out to see them while on tour here.

"We've found that we can go to almost any town in America with a good road system around it, and people will come out of the woodwork," Tony said. "It's just a fantastic place to come to play because we're pretty much guaranteed to get somebody to come wherever we are."

As encouraging as it has been to see American audiences for dance music grow, the numbers still pale in comparison to Europe and South America. In fact, Above and Beyond recently secured themselves a place in dance music history: On New Year's Eve 2007, the trio played for a staggering one million fans in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil.

"It was absolute madness," exclaimed Tony. Read More...

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Maya Vanya Gear Up For A Busy Year

Posted 4/5/10 12:50 pm EST by in Music


By Adam Stewart

Just a few weeks ago, we profiled up and coming New Zealand natives Maya Vanya as they were about to embark on their whirlwind trip stateside to Miami's Winter Music Conference. Winners of the Next Generation DJ competition (hosted by Let's Mix, Pioneer DJ and Beatport), the duo made waves all over Miami and converted a number of fans along the way. But standing on the threshold of worldwide success was not something that happened overnight.

"We submitted a first mix and we had to get all of our friends to vote for us. We did quite a good job with that," Maya told MTV News. "Then the judges got us to do a mix with 'The New Sound of Miami' as a theme, so we put together a 30 minute mix."

Whether because of genetics (their father was also a DJ) or raw skills, the ladies seem to have a sixth sense for playing great records at exactly the right time.

"Vanya is a real house head, I grew up listening to more to hip-hop," Maya said.

"We sort of work off each other," Vanya added. "We get ideas from each other off of our sets, so it's great."

Their blend of hip-hop and house music has turned the ears of industry giants like David Waxman and Swedish House Mafia member Sebastian Ingrosso, who has big things lined up for the girls.

"They're going to move to Europe for the summer. We're going to work together and they're doing tracks in the studio and getting ready to launch their tour," Ingrosso told us. "They're doing stuff with me and with deadmau5 as well. Hopefully we can get them into Pacha Ibiza [this summer]."

With a packed schedule and huge collaborations on deck, it's impossible to tell just how far they'll go — though there's no doubt it'll be light years away from the rural, sheep-grazing hills of their native soil.

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Sebastian Ingrosso And Steve Angello Close Out WMC 2010 With Beatport Party

Posted 3/29/10 2:15 pm EST by in Music


By Akshay Bhansali

Following a stellar set by 22-year-old Dutch WMC phenom Afrojack, Swedish House Mafia members Steve Angello and Sebastian Ingrosso unofficially closed out WMC 2010 at the Beatport Beach Party (presented by Beatport, Pioneer and Armani Exchange) at the Gansevoort South in Miami on Sunday (March 28). Sure, other parties lingered on throughout the night, but none that were as explosive.

Swedish House Mafia performed for close to 100,000 people at Ultra Music Festival on Saturday (March 27), but at the Gansevoort — which was free to the public and a much smaller production — it seemed that the gents were really able to let things loose and get grimey. Ingrosso and Angello played many of the hits from the Swedish Mafia's combined catalog, including "Leave the World Behind" and a house mix of the Eurythmics' classic "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)." Then there was "Sweet Disposition," a remix of a Temper Trap song that literally had the devoted fans in attendance in a rabid frenzy. But the biggest hit was their new as-yet-unnamed single, which had been WMC for its duration. In fact, the crowd demanded they bring it back a second time later.

Toward the end of their set, Ingrosso and Angello thanked the audience before opening two bottles of champagne during the crescendo of one of their songs and spraying it on fans, who seemed eager to drink it all in (literally). After ending their set (with the Supermode hit "Tell Me Why"), Angello told MTV News that he loved the folks who came to WMC and that he hoped to see them again soon. Of course, Ingrosso fell right in line with the sign-off every Swedish House Mafia fan has come to know: "I think I f---ed this party in the p---y!" he said as he waved goodbye.

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WMC Friday Wrap-Up: Swedish House Mafia And Ultra Music Festival

Posted 3/27/10 12:30 pm EST by in Music


By Adam Stewart

Friday's (March 26) interview slate may have been littered by torrential downpours and flash floods on Collins Avenue, but sure didn’t damped the spirit or pace of the MTV News team as we dove head first into day three of the 2010 Winter Music Conference.

We started off chatting with the Italian duo Crookers, made famous by their remixes of both Kid Cudi ("Day and Night") and Timbaland ("The Way I Are"). Then we moved on to Deadmau5, the winner of the Best American Producer award at Thursday's International Dance Music Awards (despite the fact that he is actually Canadian). Tommy Lee even joined Mau5 and provided us a history of how they met.

Later, trance world leaders and creators of the legendary Anjunabeats collection Above & Beyond joined us and chatted about their explosion over the last 10 years and their historic performance to a crowd of one million people at Barra de Tijuaca beach in Brazil back in 2007. After a quick lunch, we jumped right into a very busy afternoon kicked off by massive DJ trio Swedish House Mafia.

SHM is compose of Axwell, Sebastian Ingrosso and Steve Angello, and they are arguably the most sought-after ticket at this year's conference. We're extremely excited to hear them unveil their newest records as they owned WMC last year with "Leave the World Behind" featuring Deborah Cox. Directly following them, we finally had chance to sit down with another Swede, rising star Agnes Carlsson, just after she took the stage at the Raleigh Hotel Pool to perform an acoustic rendition of her smash single "Release Me."

It was then time to hop in a cab and headed over to Bicentennial Park (along with nearly 100,000 others) to catch some huge sets at the Ultra Music Festival. We scored some time with Will.I.Am and LMFAO backstage before they stormed the main stage with David Guetta, got down with Kaskade as he spun a killer set in the Ibiza Tent, and then wrapped up the night with none other than Tiesto, who captivated the ocean of people with his sight and sound spectacular. Stay tuned to MTVNews.com and MTV Newsroom for all of the latest from WMC and day two of the Ultra Music Festival, which will feature spots from Armin Van Buuren, Swedish House Mafia and DeadMau5.

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WMC Anthem Alert: Dennis Ferrer's 'Hey Hey'

Posted 3/26/10 3:00 pm EST by in Music


WMC has the ability to breathe new life into a tune that isn't necessary hot off the presses. For Dennis Ferrer, a killer track the he produced back in November is all the rage here in Miami. We caught up with Ferrer this afternoon to discuss the track's success and his whirlwind WMC tour.

"Hey Hey" is a dance floor filling sing along crowd pleaser that is being dropped by DJs all over South Beach. What's the magic formula you ask?

"'Hey Hey' was released in November actually, and I really didn't expect it to do what it did, to tell you the truth," Ferrer told MTV News. "It's like a lottery ticket, but music is always a lottery ticket!"

The DJ Mag party at the Shelborne Pool kicked off Ferrer's weekend and featured his partners in crime the Martinez Brothers. Together, they have been tearing up the New York club scene for the past four years, and more recently have been gaining momentum and attention within the global electronic music community. Read More...

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WMC Recap: DJ AM Tribute, Tiesto And David Guetta Headline Memorable Day Three

Posted 3/26/10 10:30 am EST by in Music


By Adam Stewart

The third day of WMC 2010 proved to be monstrous. We started our afternoon with a chat with DJ A-Trak, whose highly anticipated Fool's Gold showcase would ultimately close out our night. From there, the day snowballed into controlled insanity as we caught up with Calvin Harris, up and coming artist Burnes, NGDJ winners Maya Vanya, industry sage DJ Dan, rising star Dennis Ferrer, prolific producer/DJ Kaskade, electro rockers Shiny Toy Guns and of course the insanely huge David Guetta. And that was all before lunch.

The afternoon temperatures soared into the 80s and our interviews only got hotter. We had the honor of hosting a long chat with the godfather of all dance music Tiesto and followed that up with chats with Deep Dish member Sharam, fresh and funky DJ Riva Starr and finally the legendary Paul Oakenfold.

After briefly regrouping, and a quick shower, it was time to rally the troops and head to two of the most anticipated events of this years gathering. First was the DJ AM tribute party (headlined by A-Trak and Travis Barker) at LIV nightclub in the recently renovated Fountainbleu Miami Hotel (the former stomping ground of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and the rest of the Rat Pack). Tiesto, Oakenfold, Lil Jon, Steve Aoki and "The Situation" from "Jersey Shore" were all in attendance and rocking out to a truly memorable set.

From there we jumped in a car with A-Trak and rolled up to his anxiously-awaited first live set with mega DJ Armand Van Helden and their new collaboration that they've dubbed "Duck Sauce." They were joined at the Fool's Gold showcase by acclaimed producer Just Blaze (Jay-Z, Fabolous). It was an incredible show that had the crowd going insane. Even our friend Tommy Sunshine showed up (and sends a big hello to his new MTV family). How on earth can we top this day?

We certainly plan on trying on Friday (March 26). Our lineup includes Swedish House Mafia (Axwell, Sebastian Ingross and Steve Angello), DeadMau5, Ferry Corsten, Above & Beyond, rising star Agnes Carlsson, the Crystal Method, LMFAO and Will.I.Am. Then we head to Bicentennial Park with approximately 100,000 other dance music lovers to help kick off the Ultra Music Festival headlined by Tiesto, David Guetta, WMC breakout artist Afrojack, Kaskade, Dirty South, Laidback Luke, Carl Cox and Passion Pit.

What wild stories will come of this years bash? Keep up with our crew and all of the action at MTV News and on Twitter @MTVNews.

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WMC Anthem Alert: The Cube Guys' 'Scarcube'

Posted 3/25/10 5:30 pm EST by in Music


By Adam Stewart

One of the most exciting parts of attending WMC is hearing that one track that echoes in all of the lasting memories of your festival experience. Over the course of the next few days, MTV News will be catching all the acts that are generating a lot of buzz and catching our ears at the same time. The one that jumped out right away? "Scarcube" by the Cube Boys.

"Scarcube" just might eclipse LMFAO's "I'm in Miami Trick" as the unofficial theme song of Miami and WMC. In fact, "Scarcube" could easily be the sinister b-side to "I'm in Miami Trick," and it samples one of the greatest movie characters (and southern Florida icons) of all time: Tony Montana of "Scarface" fame. When you sample Al Pacino in a killer house track, that might just be the perfect storm necessary for success at WMC 2010.

But said success takes a bit of work, and sometimes that means skipping sample clearance. "Al Pacino called us to say 'What? You used my voice? Why? Who are you!'" Cube member Luca Provera joked. "Maybe the clearance is too difficult to have it, but maybe if you know him personally, give him the promo and tell him to call us!"

We'll give it our best shot Luca, though we can't promise anything — except that we'll continue to crank up "Scarcube" while we float from party to party for the remainder of the Winter Music Conference!

What wild stories will come of this years bash? Keep up with our crew and all of the action at MTV News and on Twitter @MTVNews.

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WMC 2010: MTV News Is On The Ground In Miami

Posted 3/25/10 2:05 pm EST by in Music


By Adam Stewart

WMC 2010 is underway and the MTV News experts are on the ground bringing you all of the action. Thanks to our friends at Ultra Records and BMF Productions for hooking us up with a sweet poolside setup at the swanky Raleigh Hotel, right in the heart all of the wildest parties and hottest DJ sets. Our inaugural coverage of the insanely popular global affair's 25th anniversary will find us getting the lowdown on the latest and greatest from the dance music world from some of the biggest names in the bizz, including Tiesto, DeadMau5, David Guetta, Swedish House Mafia, Paul Van Dyk and Armin Van Buuren.

Each year, over 200,000 hardcore electronic music fans join 2,000 DJs, producers, musicians and A-list celebrities flock to the sandy beaches for the seaside soiree. The party rarely lets up, with plenty of events continuing well into the daylight hours (shows ending at noon that began the night before are not unusual). Miami Beach itself transforms into one giant dance club for six straight days.

On Wednesday (March 24), we caught up with Tommie Sunshine, Robbie Rivera, Cedric Gervais, Oscar G, the Cube Guys and Spanish power duo Chus and Ceballos. Later in the afternoon, we caught up with a Lil Jon (a house music aficionado in his own right) as he threw down at a killer set at sexy party hotspot Nikki Beach dubbed "The Flying Circus." We finally wrapped the day up at Gansevoort Beach to catch the Cube Guys' huge set as they unveiled "Scarcube," an early favorite for the title of "Official WMC 2010 Anthem."

Thursday's (March 25) lineup includes Sharam, A-Trak, Calvin Harris, Eric Prydz, Shiny Toy Guns and Riva Star, just to name a few. Stay tuned for more hot news from some of the biggest names in the electronic world and beyond.

What wild stories will come of this years bash? Keep up with our crew and all of the action at MTV News and on Twitter @MTVNews.

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WMC 2010 Flashback: Armin Van Buuren Joins MTV News For Indian Food

Posted 3/24/10 1:20 pm EST by in Music


By Akshay Bhansali

We seldom interview trance DJs at MTV News, but back in 2005 we managed to interview the big three: Paul Van Dyk, DJ Tiesto, and Armin van Buuren. And while our conversations with each of them were stellar, our encounter with with the Dutch van Buuren is the one that stuck with us most. With his album Shivers (featuring the hit single "Who Is Watching" featuring Nadia Ali) having just dropped, we decided to take things to Devi in New York to chat about dance music's past and present over some Palak Paneer, Tandoori lamb and warm roti. There is a certain pleasure one can definitely take away from treating a DJ to his first Indian meal.

"Dance music was a reaction against song structures," van Buuren told MTV News in 2005. "People just got tired of it. Dance music goes back to a magic feeling that's in every human being, and the only thing you have to do is open your mind for it. If people don't like it, then fine. But I think if you really invest in getting to know dance music and take the time for it, you'll be surprised at how euphoric it can be."

Anybody looking to catch his set this Saturday (March 27) at WMC will be in for a treat, as one of the reasons van Buuren is considered one of the greats is because he really goes out of his way to connect with the masses dancing in front of him. "For me, it's essential that the crowd feels I'm part of the crowd," van Buuren said. "I don't like the phrase 'God is a DJ.' I like to feel like part of the crowd. I don't like those clubs where the DJ is way high above the dance floor. I like to feel the people and communicate with them. I'm enjoying the night as much as the people are."

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