How Dirtybird CampINN Showcases the Magic of Impartial Festivals

In a scene the place competitors is usually the default, home music manufacturers may seem to be they’re battling for a similar territory, chasing comparable followers, bookings and market share. However for Dirtybird’s Label Supervisor and Expertise Purchaser, Deron Delgado, and House Bass’ Founder, Brian Thomas, a shared imaginative and prescient is an open door—not a dividing line.

That ethos laid the muse for this yr’s Dirtybird CampINN, a resort-takeover competition taking place over Labor Day Weekend in Orlando, Florida. As Dirtybird celebrates its twentieth birthday, CampINN will supply stage takeovers to Defected, Desert Hearts and FriendShip.

Delgado stated the collaborations replicate Dirtybird’s aim of reclaiming certainly one of EDM’s core values: inclusivity. After twenty years within the scene, he sees that worth slipping away, changed by a tradition of competitors pushed by business giants like Dwell Nation.

In a panorama the place impartial occasions have gotten an endangered species, Delgado says group and collaboration matter now greater than ever.

“Dance music usually has all the time been inclusive, however typically on this world of festivals and live shows, it is like, ‘I’ve my radius and you may’t play inside it.’ It may be very aggressive and unique,” Delgado tells EDM.com. “However impartial festivals can type of do what they need. We will all dwell in the identical universe collectively. It does not should be so aggressive. And that is the place these takeovers got here in.”

Delgado, who minimize his enamel within the San Francisco scene with Dirtybird originators Barclay Crenshaw and Justin and Christian Martin, calls this collaborative mindset “increasing the flock”: the model’s mission to unite fanbases and foster cross-brand partnerships.

With roughly 60 artists having launched music on each Dirtybird and Defected, Delgado stated it was “a pure factor to work collectively.” That very same synergy extends to FriendShip, whose offbeat vitality and roster usually overlaps with that of Dirtybird. Relating to Desert Hearts, Delgado put it merely: they’re “two peas in a pod” who share West Coast roots, a loyal following and a aptitude for the wild.

Whereas some could view these manufacturers as rivals, Delgado believes their shared DNA is exactly what makes these partnerships work so nicely.

“Whereas the branding may be completely different, the imaginative and prescient continues to be the identical,” Delgado defined. “While you peel the layers of the onion again, you may see we’re all minimize from the identical fabric. For us, it’s making an attempt to return to the roots of being inclusive and making it about everybody, quite than, ‘we have to have our part of the pie, and you may’t have any chew of it.'”

For Thomas, who first pitched the resort-takeover idea to Crenshaw over dinner pre-pandemic, the liberty to curate actually numerous lineups is one more reason why boutique festivals like CampINN have such an edge.

“That is what’s so nice about impartial festivals: we get to create issues how we would like,” he stated. “We’ve that flexibility and we actually take into consideration the group. That is what I really like.”

Anchor festivals like Extremely and EDC usually function a gateway for brand spanking new ravers, however as soon as followers get that first style, they begin in search of one thing extra private. That’s the place impartial occasions like CampINN shine.

“We get lots of people who’re exploring new music,” Thomas stated. “As soon as individuals get hooked on festivals, they ask, ‘what else is on the market?’ [CampINN] is what else is on the market. That is the place we get to ship that have to new individuals who need to do one thing completely different.”

With the inventive freedom comes a way of duty, and a deep belief between the group and the expertise shopping for group. However that belief hasn’t been constructed in a single day—it has been 20 years within the making.

Recognized for curating genre-bending lineups that merge home, bass, hip-hip, techno, lure and extra, Dirtybird has lengthy embraced its position as a tastemaker. As a substitute of following traits, the label focuses on uplifting rising expertise and betting on sound over standing.

“We have all the time been the underdog in a way, and folks dismiss the foolish guys,” Delgado says. “For our festivals, we do not go and signal artists who’re the primary particular person on Beatport proper now. We simply really feel the music is nice and we need to give that shot.”

Lots of Dirtybird’s tracks come from artists who’ve by no means had a launch earlier than, Delgado defined, and that very same spirit carries over to their occasion bookings. As a substitute of recycling the identical ticket-selling names weekend after weekend, Dirtybird lineups hardly ever repeat.

“It is not one huge fowl on the prime of the helm. It’s extra about giving individuals the chance to to be part of one thing, and to make use of that model energy to raise individuals up, quite than chasing hits,” Delgado explains. “The ability of what individuals really feel is necessary to us. We have been fortunate, after 20 years, to nonetheless be capable of have that freedom to place individuals on, and to be generally known as a curator, within the sense that folks belief the model.”

As CampINN prepares to make its return after a two-year hiatus, it’s as soon as once more leaning on the belief and loyalty of its fanbase. For Thomas, who secured a brand new, bigger resort venue 2025, staying true to the competition’s “unique values,” together with their iconic summer season camp-themed actions, is a vital a part of the method.

“It is crucially necessary to maintain the core: the group leaders, the Gator Gangs, the Flamingo Fams, and the Scuba Squads, whereas not altering an excessive amount of else of what the group values,” Thomas explains. “We’re enhancing the surroundings, the venue, the staging, the manufacturing, and all these items correlate with the expertise. However, it is the group that enhances it a lot extra.”

Placing the steadiness of staying true to CampINN’s quirky roots whereas delivering one thing contemporary and thrilling is paramount for the organizers. As EDM tradition expands past the membership into daytime events in coffeeshops, pizza joints and different unconventional areas, the music panorama and fan needs are rapidly evolving.

Delgado embraces this shift, recognizing the necessity to “create one thing that is distinctive, that individuals are going to need to spend their hard-earned {dollars} on.”

“In instances like these with uncertainty, excessive costs and recessions, individuals are like, ‘why would I need to go have the identical expertise, once I can have one thing completely different?'” he displays. “What we’re making an attempt to do is create an expertise, as a result of the followers now need extra out of their ticket value.”

Dirtybird has all the time had its feathers on the heartbeat of evolving fan expectations, from internet hosting barbecue events to delivering their signature summer season camp-style video games, all within the identify of serving up actually distinctive experiences. The manufacturers color-wars actions have been born from a want to push the boundaries of what a competition might be, past the music.

In fact there will likely be music programming all day and night time, Delgado defined, however what in regards to the downtime? What occurs when followers want a break from dancing for 3 days straight? That query sparked the creation of Dirtybird’s now-iconic video games, that are playful, ridiculous and designed to ship a heavy dose of childlike marvel.

Thomas stated he appreciates how the video games encourage followers to “meet any person new, have enjoyable and let unfastened, and do one thing new that you just would not have tried for those who hadn’t come to CampINN.”

“The music is what introduced us collectively, however the video games and actions is what grows the group deeper and higher,” he says.

Along with playful absurdity of speed-walking contests, sack races and egg tosses with festival-goers, the video games additionally contain the artists themselves. As a substitute of a typical meet-and-greet with artists signing merch behind a desk, Dirtybird takes a distinct method.

Followers may discover themselves taking part in dodgeball with Sacha Robotti or teaming up with Will Clarke in archery. By weaving the artists into the video games, the expertise transcends past a handshake and a whats up, to shared laughter and real connection.

Delgado stated Dirtybird fosters “group and camaraderie between the followers, the artists and the manufacturing group” all through each side of their festivals. This sentiment extends all the best way to their stage design. Relatively than constructing towering, unapproachable levels that starkly separate artists from the group, Dirtybird deliberately invitations followers nearer.

“We like individuals proper there, the place you’ll be able to contact them and shake their fingers, as a substitute of followers trying up in awe and worship,” Delgado says. “It’s extra like, ‘we’re on the identical group right here. I can not carry out with out you guys dancing, and you may’t dance if I don’t carry out. So how will we break that barrier down?”

This immersive, up-close expertise is a part of CampINN’s magic. The competition’s signature wackiness contributes to a vibe that feels each wild and deeply private, a pure extension of the competition’s dedication to breaking down boundaries and protecting issues human.

In a time when followers are craving experiences that really feel contemporary and distinctive, CampINN delivers. While you combine all that freedom with floaty races within the pool, comedy exhibits and all-night resort chaos, the result’s some actually unforgettable recollections.

For Delgado, one of many prime highlights was seeing GRiZ—simply forward of his hiatus—taking part in a b2b DJ set with Justin Jay at CampINN 2023 after their solo performances. Whereas the distinction between their respective artistries is hanging, the surprising efficiency labored completely. To Delgado, it was “the epitome of precisely what we’re making an attempt to do and attain.”

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Thomas, who has a selected love for CampINN’s playful prank tradition, shared a standout reminiscence when he was on the receiving finish.

“I acquired a name on the safety radio to go to the ladies’s restroom as a result of there was one thing occurring over there,” he recollects. “I stroll in, and it is the Flamingo Fam dressed up as shrimp, handing out shrimp cocktail. It was one of many wildest experiences, seeing individuals singing, cheerleading and consuming cocktail shrimp within the toilet.”

Whereas the competition panorama is more and more dominated by the predictable, CampINN is proof that occasions can nonetheless shock you, particularly after they’re constructed on inclusivity, variety and pure silliness.

Scheduled for August twenty ninth to September 2nd, Dirtybird CampINN 2025 will function performances by Destructo, VNSSA, Eats All the things, Kevin Saunderson, TroyBoi, Rusko, The Glitch Mob, Mikey Lion and EDM.com Class of 2022 star ACRAZE, amongst many others. Tickets can be found right here.