Miami Music Week destroyed us. From the pool parties during the day, to Ultra, to ending each night with countless options around the city, it was impossible not to be doing something EDM-related at any given moment. One of the highlights of the week was without a doubt the super-exclusive Red Bull Guest House. Making its round for the second year in a row, guests were invited to attend a number of showcases from 2 p.m.-8 p.m. on the rooftop pool, 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. in the backyard and from 2:30 a.m. to 6 a.m. at the Breakfast Club. The major labels present were Mad Decent, OWSLA, Hot Creations, Minus Records, PMR vs Luckyme, Solomun and A Club Called Rhonda.
Beginning on Thursday all the way until Sunday, we were in for a treat. Upon entrance into the elevator to go up to the roof, an energetic character is waiting to bring you to your destination. A brightly dressed woman in a 50’s style flight attendant uniform couldn’t wait for us to start the party and cracked jokes with us as we journeyed up. Once we got out of the elevator, we were greeted with a lush area surrounding a pool that was straight out of old-school Miami. The ambiance was incredible, complete with servers in the most outrageous costumes carrying bright grapefruit drinks to the tables. Nobody was in the pool yet…but it wasn’t long before the beats started to heat everyone up and there was a mad dash to get to the water.
The kickoff was perfect, with Richie Hawtin and Minus Records filling the after hours Breakfast Club with sweet techno vibes and music and Hot Creations taking over the rooftop pool. The venue was as laid back as you could possibly imagine: you could find Steve Aoki playing ping pong with other celebrity guests and could even find Paris Hilton lounging by the pool. Red Bull is an incredible host and the catering is unwavering. The name says it all: Guest House, and that’s what it is.
Another cool feature of the House is the swag that they were giving out. Those in attendance were encouraged to take pictures and upload them to Instagram with the hashtag #RBGUESTHOUSE. Once you did that, you could go downstairs from the pool and see two giant LED screens that displayed all the pictures with that hashtag. You then selected your picture and printed it out with a neat frame. Other goodies included special tank tops and shirts, as well as ear plugs for the mayhem that soon ensued.
Friday brought with it the OWSLA showcase and Skrillex, Kill the Noise, Jack Beats and more, playing nonstop to the intimate crowd. The venue reached capacity every single day within the first few hours of opening, of course. Saturday was Mad Decent’s day to show off their lineup, and while the weather wasn’t too stellar, a surprise back to back set with Diplo and DJ Snake raised the temperature. Shout out to Dillon Francis who was holed up with his laptop putting the final touches on his closing Ultra set a mere couple of hours before the show. So chill. From then on, Zeds Dead, Waka Flocka, Riff Raff and more dominated the crowd. The final day went out with a bang with A Club Called Rhonda and the legendary Giorgio Moroder. From dusk till dawn, nobody was ready to end the party anytime soon and we were treated to a special event in the Rec Room with Diddy and Guy Gerber giving us an exclusive listening of their new album.
We thank you, Red Bull Guest House, for continually being a must-see for anyone coming down to Miami Music Week. The hospitality was excellent, the showcases and surprise performances were unmatched and until we meet again next year, we’ll keep the memories.