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| A performance at last year's Seoul World DJ Festival/ Courtesy of organizers |
By Kim Ji-soo
Music festivals ― rock, jazz and electronic dance music (EDM) festivals ― are increasingly calling Seoul its host city as young Koreans annually trek to them.
In particular, EDM festivals are gaining traction as the genre enters the mainstream globally as well as in Korea. Many a Korean celebrity, such as top comedians Park Myung-soo and Park Na-rae, has professed love for EDM and DJing, further familiarizing the art to the public. Younger Koreans in their 20s and 30s are the main festival-goers of these festivals, festival industry insiders note.
One of the first EDM festivals to cut the tape is the Seoul World DJ Festival, which takes place May 26-27 at Olympic Stadium in Jamsil, southern Seoul.
The festival, which marks its 11th edition this year, announced that top British talent Mura Masa will take part.
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| Top British music producer Mura Masa will take part in 2018 Seoul World DJ Festival. / Courtesy of organizers |
The 21-year-old music producer, born Alex Crossan, has been receiving attention for his music since 2014. Known for his hit "Love$ick" with ASAP Rocky, he is already well-regarded for his genre-blending sounds.
The Seoul World DJ Festival made the announcement as part of its second lineup. Artists also included in the second lineup are Norwegian DJ and producer Matoma who rose to stardom with the 2016 release of "Hakuna Matoma," as well as DJ Seven Lions and the Los-Angeles-based melodic-house genre DJ Gryffin, who is also a former student of electrical engineering student at USC.
In addition, the festival announced a joint collaborative performance by Oliver Nelson and Tobtok, and Julian Jordan and Tymen. The latter, Jordan and Tymen, recently released the collaborative single "Light Years Away."
These top DJs and producers join the previously announced first lineup, which includes American self-taught prodigy DJ/ producer Porter Robinson and French DJ Kungs. Other top artists include Boys Noize, Atmozfears, Wildstylez, Zatox and Black Tiger Sex Machine and MC Villain.
Organizers said the main stage at the Seoul World DJ Festival will be 1.5-times bigger than last year, measuring 80 meters. The sub-stage will also be bigger as well.
The Seoul World DJ Festival has grown in popularity. In 2010, Lonely Planet selected it as one of the Korean festivals to see in May. DJ Mag then voted it as Korea's representative EDM festival in 2012 and 2013.
To rev up anticipation ahead of the festival, organizers have been holding pre-parties starting at Club Burning Sun in Seoul, late March.
The pre-parties then continued through Busan, Gwangju, Daegu and Ulsan before returning to Seoul. Tickets to Seoul World DJ Fest can be purchased on Interpark, Yes24 and Melon Ticket among others.
Another big EDM festival, Ultra Music Festival Korea (Ultra Korea) will take place next month in Seoul. The Miami-born festival, which marks its seventh edition in Korea this year, is scheduled for June 8 to 10.
The festival added one extra day this year, as it was wildly popular last year with nearly 120,000 attendees.
Ultra Korea organizers announced the lineup of artists that included Zedd, American EDM Duo, the Chainsmokers, and such progressive house mainstays as Above & Beyond, David Guetta. Also top artists including Ice Cube, RLGrime, Nicole Modaber and Carl Craig will be part of the festival. More acts are expected to be announced as there will be some 100 teams featured at this year's festival.
Tickets for Ultra Music Festival will be sold on Melon Ticket.
The 5Tardium, a conceptual EDM festival, will take place for the fifth consecutive year in Seoul on July 7 and 8. The festival joins hands with Mercedes-Benz this year as it seeks another sold-out program.
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