EXIT Festival welcomes over 42,000 music fans as it returns for 2021 edition
In partnership with EXIT Festival.
EXIT Festival kicked off its 2021 edition yesterday (July 8) as it welcomed 42,000 festivalgoers from over 70 countries during its opening day.
The four-day Novi Sad, Serbia-based festival has returned this summer to celebrate its 20th anniversary.
EXIT’s organisers have worked closely with the Serbian government this year to organise a coronavirus vaccination drive for international artists and visitors to the festival, which follows on from Serbia’s own “successful mass vaccination programme and significantly decreased number of new Covid cases”.
Speaking after EXIT opened its gates yesterday, Dušan Kovačević, EXIT’s founder and CEO, said: “I believe this is our destiny. 20 years ago, after all the misery that happened in the Balkans during the ’90s, EXIT was a symbol of returning to normal life for the region. And in 2021, EXIT Festival is again a sign of normal life after the pandemic – but this time on a global level.”
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“The energy created in the [Petrovaradin Fortress] when thousands of us were united again elevated us to the highest possible level and opened a new dimension of the festival experience. I believe that each of us had to rub our eyes to make sure we’re not dreaming.”
Main Stage headliner DJ Snake proclaimed “we are back!” during his performance last night, while Belgian DJ Charlotte de Witte, another one of yesterday’s EXIT headliners, said that “reuniting with tens of thousands of fans from all over the world was an emotional occasion”.
“EXIT’s mts Dance Arena is one of the most incredible open-air stages in the world and has such an atmosphere, especially in the early hours of the morning when the sun is rising over the fortress walls,” de Witte added. “It is truly magical.”
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EXIT Festival is continuing today and runs until Sunday (July 11), with live sets from the likes of David Guetta, Sabaton and Sheck Wes all promised.
You can find out more information about this year’s festival, including details of livestreams from the festival, here.