Tomorrowland

There are few festivals that speak to the imagination just as much as Tomorrowland does.

Tomorrowland

There are few festivals that speak to the imagination just as much as Tomorrowland does.

In the last editions of Tomorrowland the event gave an unforgettable weekend to over 400.000 visitors, but that’s not the only mindboggingly high number that makes the festival so special. There’s also these: 240 planes, 920.000 meals, 1.200 toilets, 990 bartenders, 38km of fencing and 2.000.000 ‘pintjes’ (beers). A production this big in a country as small as ours is fantastic. The last number that I want to put your attention to: 1.000 DJs in two weekends. And one of those DJs, for many years now, is Mark With a K. But when Mark played mainstage, that was an entirely different experience for the team!

“Welcome to Tomorrowland Mainstage! ”

When Mark’s manager called the whole team together in Kapellen, everyone rushed to the meeting. A clip had to be recorded for a so-called sponsor, and the meeting afterwards was intended to discuss the summer. Mark and Chucky were put in front of the camera, had an envelope pushed into their hands with the instructions: “Read this out loud”, and when they read the sentence “Welcome to the Tomorrowland Mainstage”, they fell silent at first, because they had not yet realized. Afterwards, they celebrated, as they should. Mark with a K would be occupying the ever-impressive mainstage at Tomorrowland 2019 in front of the largest audience he had ever stood before. His tour manager for that experience: Sebas.

Surreal experience

The backstage experience is often very changeable, because there are very good backstages, but you also have some that are quite basic. You may have to catch four shows in one day and not even see the backstage areas of those festivals. Tomorrowland stands out from other festivals in this respect as well, with a backstage that feels like a small village. You get food from top chefs, see very famous DJs and VIPs pass by, have a place to completely relax… And then you have to perform.

Sebas tells us how long he felt it took before they went through the stage and arrived at the mainstage. The way to get to the mainstage was already nerve-racking, because it’s so far away from the Artist Village. The stage is over 130 meters wide, so you have to walk half of that to get to the actual stage. Such a long way always takes longer than normal, but if you are a little ‘stressed’, every step you take takes almost a quarter of an hour. The team then sets up at the DJ booth that is available. All this time the other DJ, who is still playing on the other panel, is busy cherishing every minute in front of their rabid audience.

Sebas at the controls

During the show, Mark has to be able to focus on the music, the atmosphere and the audience. Sebas then makes sure that the confetti, fire and other effects are fired at the perfect moment. Photos, videos and everything to do with social media are also in good hands with Sebas and the team knows that. Everyone can focus on their own speciality and the whole production works like a well-oiled machine. When you walk off such a stage afterwards, it still feels like a dream.

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Written by Cédric