MIAMI – Electronic dance music fans worldwide were descending to Miami in search of three days of happiness. They will invade a waterfront complex that will include a spider-shaped stage designed to suspend the DJ booth up in the air, while its legs are throwing fire.
The Ultra Worldwide brand continues to innovate. Under the glow of complex LED lighting systems and seven other elaborate stage designs, the Ultra Music Festival spreads out parties in the fenced 32-acre Bayfront Park in downtown Miami.
Despite the event's clear bag policy and other strict measures, law enforcement expects recreational drug use. Paramedics are scheduled to respond to health risks. Last year, 21-year-old Adam Levine, a University of Miami student from Virginia, was rushed from the park to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he died.
Miami police officers reported 67 arrests last year. Locals who don't care enough to pay anywhere from $300 to $1,250 to attend Ultra can expect both hellish noise and traffic jams. Biscayne Boulevard residents have already been dealing with the construction of the temporary sets.
Although water taxis and Uber are encouraged, some 160K will crowd downtown, Wynwood and South Beach. As part of the simultaneous Miami Music Week, there will be popular parties at The Raleigh, The Delano, The RC Cola Plant and SOHO Studios.
This year Ultra is also taking VIP to another level with their Social Floating Platform. It will feature lounging areas and goodies by chefs and mixologists. If all goes as planned, aside from the weekend live stream, those with virtual reality headsets will be able to experience Hardwell's live stream in 360 degree video.
UMF's mobile app and social media posts were still updating set times at the last minute. The festival's range is unlike no other in South Florida. Indie electronica has a presence with Bag Raiders. Techno has ANNA. Trance has Purple Haze. Death metal has Slipknot's Sid Wilson. Hip-hop has A$AP Ferg, Cypress Hill and Ice Cube.
TRAFFIC ALERT: Police officers will begin to reroute traffic at 9 p.m. on Thursday until 12 p.m. on Monday. Biscayne Boulevard's northbound lanes will be closed from Southeast First Street to Northeast Fourth Street. The northbound traffic will flow on the southbound lanes of Biscayne Boulevard.