Ultra Music Festival has announced its acquisition of the Winter Music Conference (WMC) and the International Dance Music Awards (IDMAs). Bill Kelly, WMC’s co-founder, will remain involved to ensure the conference’s original spirit is preserved.
Now in its 33rd consecutive year, WMC has a long and storied history as the preeminent conference for the dance music industry. However, with the size and exclusive artist performances of the event, the Ultra Music Festival has eclipsed the week-long WMC event, diminishing its currency in the market. Ultra hopes the acquisition will reboot WMC’s status as a leading conference by expanding and innovating the format and by working together with WMC’s founder, Bill Kelly.
“For over thirty years, WMC has been integral to Miami’s storied relationship with dance music. The conference was where some of the biggest deals in dance music history were made and we look forward to working with Bill to pair WMC and Ultra into one extravagant Miami Music Week.” — Russell Faibisch, Ultra Co-Founder, Chairman & CEO
“I’ve been astounded to watch Ultra grow from a small, local festival on Miami Beach into the largest festival brand in the world. Russell and I are lifelong dance music fans who both call Miami home and we thought it made a lot of sense to finally combine efforts.” — Bill Kelly, Co-Founder Winter Music Conference
Although the Winter Music Conference will never equate to the poolside at the Fontainebleau during its heyday where you could simply walk up to Armand Van Helden, Carl Cox, Josh Wink or any other top ten DJ to exchange vinyl and talk shop, the merger makes a lot of sense for Kelly who has witnessed his conference get crushed under the weight of the Ultra Music Festival over the last decade. Gone is the “industry” part of Miami Music Week, but there are now European events that aim for that all-access vibe.
The 2018 edition of WMC is currently in progress at the spectacular Faena Forum located in the heart of Miami Beach. The IDMAs, which generate thousands of votes annually from music enthusiasts in 209 countries and territories, recognize and honor exceptional achievements in various award categories, are running concurrently with WMC.
WMC will be the official presenter of the 2018 Ultra Music Festival Live Stream — an insiders’ look at the sold-out festival featuring a combination of quality production and the world’s best electronic acts.
The Live Stream is available March 23-25, 2018.
