A festival can be cancelled, but a community cannot. The events following the cancellation of Defqon.1 proved better than ever why the hardstyle scene is so special. From spontaneous raves at holiday parks to free events, livestreams and collaborations between organizations, the hardstyle community came together everywhere to keep the Defqon.1 spirit alive.
ALSO READ: Defqon.1 has been cancelled for the remainder of the weekend
After the first festival day kicked off with The Gathering on Thursday, Defqon.1 came to an abrupt end during the night from Thursday to Friday. Due to the extreme heat, the festival was cancelled for the remainder of the weekend. Tens of thousands of Weekend Warriors had to leave the Holy Grounds, while many had already booked accommodation for the entire weekend. What followed was perhaps the greatest display of resilience the hardstyle scene has ever shown.
From holiday park to pop-up rave
At holiday parks around Biddinghuizen, where many Weekend Warriors spent the rest of their weekend, spontaneous hardstyle parties started popping up. At locations including EuroParcs Zuiderzee and Landal Veluwemeer, hundreds of fans gathered to create their own improvised POWER HOUR, dancing with their feet in the water. Videos quickly spread across social media.
Organizations joined forces
Organizations also sprang into action almost immediately. In Cologne, the Free Bootshaus Rave was organized within a matter of hours by Musical Madness, Inurfase, AR Gang, Bootshaus and DJ Mag Germany. The free event gave stranded Weekend Warriors a place to come together.
In Amsterdam, MC Villain, Korsakoff and MeWe Amsterdam also organized a free gathering. Afterward, Villain wrote: “I refused to let that silence define our weekend.” According to him, the evening proved that the Defqon.1 spirit is not tied to one location. “They can stop our parties, but they can NEVER STOP OUR DEFQON.1 SPIRIT.”
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FOR THE CULTURE
Five organizations in Utrecht also joined forces. Classified, Harder Industries, NSE, FestiGo and True Identity teamed up for FOR THE CULTURE at De Werfkelder.
According to the organizers, the event was arranged in just four hours and sold out within thirty minutes. Due to overwhelming demand, a second nighttime edition was immediately added, which also sold out quickly. Visitors even received their first drink on the house.
Breda also stepped up
DWAAS quickly organized a free event in Breda for rawstyle and uptempo fans. Due to the overwhelming interest, not only was a second area added, but an extra day as well. The line-up featured several artists who were originally scheduled to perform at Defqon.1, while visitors could cool down thanks to the venue’s air conditioning during the hot weekend.
The community also came together online
Not everyone was able to travel to an alternative event, which led to several online initiatives as well. Da Tweekaz hosted a special TweekaTV livestream with a secret line-up, The Smiler went live, and Sound Rush paid tribute to Defqon.1.
One comment under the TweekaTV livestream perfectly captured the feeling shared by many fans: “I find it so heartwarming how all of these DJs from all over the world casually come together. Thank you Da Tweekaz for creating these opportunities.”
Vertile also brought a piece of Defqon.1 to fans at home. The artist shared a studio recording of part of his Vertile LIVE show, which was originally scheduled to take place on the BLUE stage. The video also features last year’s Defqon.1 anthem, performed together with his live band. “This one is for Defqon.1 and all the Weekend Warriors,” Vertile wrote. “Consider this my way of bringing a little piece of Defqon.1 to you.”
From Sunrise to the sauna
The community continued to come together in many other ways. Large numbers of hardstyle fans travelled to Sunrise Festival in Belgium, where Sound Rush hosted a spontaneous meet-up during the Hardstyle Daily hosting.
Even Sauna Drôme in Putten joined in with a unique initiative by offering free entry to everyone holding a Defqon.1 ticket. During a special Defqon-themed sauna session, dozens of visitors sang along to the anthem together.
Meanwhile, several community platforms, including Festival Season, helped stranded international visitors with information, transportation and even accommodation. Various cafés and clubs across the Netherlands also organized last-minute hardstyle events to give fans somewhere to celebrate together.
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Forever One Tribe
The cancellation of Defqon.1 will undoubtedly go down in history. But perhaps this weekend will be remembered even more for what happened afterward. Within hours, dozens of initiatives emerged that proved one thing: the strength of this community lies not only in its festivals, but in the people who make it what it is. It was no coincidence that one message echoed across social media throughout the weekend:“Forever One Tribe.”
