As tens of thousands of electronic dance music fans descended on Miami for Ultra Music Festival, Winter Music Conference, and other festivities connected to Miami Music Week, brands sought to curate that crowd for their own events. Two events—the Music Lounge by BMF & iHeartMedia and a gathering for Smirnoff Sound Collective—showed different approaches to attracting the right guests.
Located at the W South Beach hotel, the Music Lounge by BMF & iHeartMedia provided a daytime play space from March 17 to 19 and offered a select group of guests private shows from new and established talent, brand activations, and cocktails. The concept celebrated its 10th year and had an expanded footprint that took over a private lawn, a private pool, and two bungalow suites at the hotel.
“This is the only chic, cool thing going on at Ultra. Everything else on the beach is a rave beach party—you buy tickets, you buy bottles, and it’s crazy music,” said BMF Media co-founder Brian Feit, whose company produced the lounge. “You can’t buy tickets to this event. You can’t win tickets. You have to be invited.”
About 1,200 people came through over the course of the three days, Feit said. Guests included media, social influencers, celebrities, and artists including all musicians on the Ultra lineup or signed to major record labels. Sponsoring brands such as 7Up and Swatch invited people, as did the W South Beach, which is a partner in the event.
“Our event is meant to be a place where tastemakers and influencers and media and brands can come together and hang out and get exposed to each other in the midst of crazy music festival madness,” Feit said. “It’s meant to be an oasis, a controlled comfortable environment for people to come together.”
For Smirnoff, Miami Music Week provided an opportunity to introduce its Sound Collective platform for emerging electronic dance music artists. The vodka brand took up residency at the Gale South Beach hotel for a number of fan-facing events March 16 to 19, but it also carved out an exclusive gathering on March 18 at the hotel’s rooftop. Host Gary Richards, who performs as Destructo, helped create the guest list, which brought together about 100 music industry insiders, artists, and media and also served as a soft launch of Smirnoff Ice Electric Flavors, a low-alcohol beverage designed specifically for music festivals.
“It’s a more fun version of a networking event,” said Douglas Brundage of Team Epiphany, which produced the event. “Everyone gets connected with each other but also to the brand. The idea is to show there are real people behind this brand. They’re all about collaboration to the point that they created a product based on it.”
Team Epiphany changed up the rooftop decor for the event with living walls of greenery, oversize logos, and only-in-Miami touches such as plastic pink flamingos.
“The idea is not to have a ton of loud music or lights flashing,” Brundage said. “Take the people working here all week and give them a couple hours to meet important people in the room. It’s fairly intimate and low key, which is an interesting approach to Miami Music Week.”
BMF created a custom Lucite ping-pong table for Swatch. The watch company also had a gifting suite within the lounge in the same bright pink and orange hues.
Steve Aoki was among the big-name talent who came through the lounge. The DJ booth sat upon a stage that had trussing wrapped in graphics and topped with a leafy green canopy.
For its 10th edition, the lounge footprint at the W South Beach hotel grew to include a private pool, two bungalow suites, and a private event lawn.
7Up branded a private pool with a 3-D logo that floated on the water's surface.
BMF also created a decor piece for 7Up made from plastic bottles. It proved a popular backdrop for photos.
In another new element at the lounge, DJs could stop by the lounge to pick up their Remix Awards from iHeart Radio.
About 100 people—a curated list of music industry insiders and artists—attended a networking-style event. The intimate setting and low-key decor contrasted the spectacle of the shows during Miami Music Week.
Decor at the event included garlands of plastic cups in Smirnoff's signature red color.
The event doubled as a soft product launch for Smirnoff Ice Electric Flavors, a low-alcohol beverage designed specifically for music festivals.
