Miami Welcomes The Dance Community At The End Of March

Miami at the end of March is the place where every dance music fan should aspire to be. From March 21 through March 30, the Winter Music Conference lands in Miami bringing with it the industry’s top executives, DJs and technology companies to prognosticate the industry’s future. The last weekend of the month also ends with the invasion of Miami Music Week and Ultra Music Festival – two of the biggest parties North America offers for the dance community.

Obviously, just by thinking about it, this week can seem overwhelming. Basically, every DJ in the world is in town, which means their sets are bound to be epic plus you never know who will make surprise appearances. Before I get into the logistics of it all, keep in mind the following:

-Make sure to have a basic schedule mapped out for your day, but don’t feel obligated to stick to it. The best times happen when you improvise.

-Be patient. There will be a lot of traffic, intoxicated people and long lines. Chill and be nice to the bouncers.

-If you find a good party, stay there. Why leave a perfectly good party for more long lines and annoying drunk people?

-Stay safe. Plenty of pedicabs and cab services in Miami. If you’re willing to spend money on partying, you should be willing to spend money on getting back to your hotel safely.

Now that we got the basics out of the way, lets start with Miami Music Week. From Tuesday, March 25 through Sunday, March 30, the city of Miami will be partying day and night at some of the world’s hottest clubs. Parties start as early as 11 a.m. and end as late (or early, however you like to see it) as 8 a.m. the next day. DJs like Sydney Blu, Bob Sinclar, Benny Benassi, Flux Pavilion, Nick Warren, Carnage, Cedric Gervais, Zedd, Cosmic Gate, Bro Safari, Luciano, Laidback Luke, David Guetta, Markus Schulz, John Digweed, Dubfire, Richie Hawtin, Skrillex, Annie Mac, Solarstone, Dusky, Chris Lake, Kaskade, Gareth Emery, Sander Van Doorn, Ferry Corsten and more will be hosting their own parties.

Juicy Beach Miami 2013 (Official Recap Video)

Dance music labels like Nicky Romero’s Protocol, Spinnin’, Toolroom, Sudbeat, Nick Warren’s Hope Recordings, Deadmau5’s Mau5trap and Eric Prydz’ Pryda Recordings will be hosting their own parties with incredible lineups from their label roster. A party fans shouldn’t miss is the Road to Ultra party series with headliner hosts Tïesto, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Nicky Romero and Laidback Luke happening on March 25 through March 27.

Miami Music Week’s website lists all of the parties happening throughout the week with ticket links. Grab the full party lineup here.

While there are more than 100 parties to choose from during this week, some of you may be interested in getting an insider’s look into the dance music industry. Winter Music Conference gives fans the opportunity to rub shoulders with the industry’s elites in various presentations, seminars, workshops and networking parties.

On the schedule, WMC will host panels for various topics including representation of the LGBT community in EDM, PR and publicity panels, DJ Boot Camp, digital distribution, remixing fundamentals, examining NYC’s nightlife, gear demos, DJ Spin Off battles, brand identity, visual performance, artist management plus other topics. During the conference the only longstanding award ceremony in dance music will host its 29^th anniversary. The International Dance Music Awards (IDMA) recognizes outstanding achievements in 57 award categories. You can also catch Hardwell hosting a Q&A session on Friday, March 28 at 3 p.m. or sit in a panel hosted by MTV Latin America exploring Paul van Dyk’s charitable efforts. For more information and a schedule of all of the events happening at WMC, check out the official guide to the festival, The List.

The last week in Miami ends with one of the most anticipated music festivals in dance music, Ultra Music Festival. Happening March 28 through March 30, Ultra is the culmination of the week-long party with headliners Above & Beyond, Armin Van Buuren, Carl Cox, CirezD, David Guetta, Diplo, Hardwell, Alesso, Afrojack, Avicii, Jamie Jones, Kaskade, Loco Dice, Luciano, Marco Carola, Nicky Romero, Solomon, Steve angello, Zedd, Tïesto, New World Punx and more. The festival is every superstar DJ’s launching pad for releases of brand new singles, mash-ups and collaborations.

ULTRA MIAMI 2014 – Phase One Teaser

This week, the festival announced that it was close to selling out, which is surprising since it has sold out much quicker in previous years. The $399.95 plus $90.05 service fee price tag is probably hard to justify for many fans of the festival. With all the ticket pricing drama plaguing the festival in 2013, Ultra still managed to deliver a solid lineup of stars and artists debuting on the Ultra stages including 3LAU, Gesaffelstein, GTA, RL Grime, Stafford Brothers, Vicetone, Martin Garrix, Blond:ish, Audien, Blasterjaxx, DVBBS, New World Punx, Julio Bashmore, Henry Fong, Just Blaze, Brillz, Dannic, Dyro and many more! Check out the daily schedule below! Purchase tickets here.