It’s now been over a week since the 2016 edition of Tomorrow Land ended. The Belgian EDM festival concluded with a bang last Sunday night, with Martin Garrix headlining the final night’s festivities. That leaves us looking ahead to next year. The Brazilian edition, which was already held for its first year in April, was also a success; it attracted the best EDM record labels to host, including Revealed, Dim-Mak and Protocol. Top DJs such as Calvin Harris, Steve Aoki & David Guetta were also in on the fun weekend.
But while the fame of arguably the most popular EDM event in the world is set in stone, its American spin-off, Tomorrow World, is facing an uncertain future. The festival, traditionally held during the last weekend of September in Chattahoochee Hills, 25 miles southwest of Atlanta, was officially cancelled after SFX Entertainment filed for bankruptcy earlier this year.
Making matters worse, its latest edition in 2015 was marred by issues surrounding heavy rain showers that ruined the terrain of the festival grounds and blocked entrances. Fans were stranded after shuttle service back to Atlanta was cut back, forcing them to take taxis at high prices.
SFX Entertainment, the parent company that organizes Tomorrow World, was purchased by Disney. The founder, Robert Sillerman, stepped down as CEO back in March. He was replaced by Randy Phillips, a former music executive, who has attempted to spark optimism about the future of Tomorrow World. The electronic music conglomerate has holdings in other event brands including Electric Zoo and Life In Color. SFX has also put its ownership in the online music store Beatport and the social media/marketing firm Fame House up for sale.
The biggest differences between Tomorrow World and Tomorrow Land have been the quality and quantity of stages. In Europe, there are 16 stages pouring mostly mainstream EDM, including hardstyle and deep house in particular by applicable DJs. In America, eight stages make clever use of trap music and other genres, that won’t be played in Belgium, to blend in with its EDM. Also, our Top 40 songs are among those that crowds eagerly await to jump at in Belgium.
While the Belgian version is used to tickets selling out within minutes of going on sale, that is not the case in America where tickets are often available in the months and weeks leading up to the festival. Lots of fans at Tomorrow World “are just there to experience the party,” according to Fest 300, whereas the fans at Tomorrow Land tend to dance “for hours on end, making new friends and exploring the land.” 1
Of course, no two locations of different music festivals are exactly the same, but given what has happened with similar events — EDC pulled out of Chicago and L.A. three and five years ago respectively — it is safe to assume that Tomorrow World is by no means out of trouble. CEO Phillips has repeatedly expressed optimistic attitudes regarding the festival and fans from all over the country are hopeful that he turns out to be right.
