The Tropikali Festival is set to return to the NDSM wharf in Amsterdam this year for a whole weekend of celebration. After a successful debut in 2018 as a one-day festival, Tropikali promises an even more exciting experience for its visitors, with four stages set to showcase a range of musical genres and cultural influences. Spanning from June 22 to 23, the festival expects around 5000 visitors per day at the unique and repurposed venue, which features shipyards and warehouses across the site.
Tropikali is a queer-owned and produced festival, emphasizing diversity within the LGBTQIA+ community. Each stage is designed to highlight different musical cultures celebrating various regions and genres, marking a clear contrast to other festivals with similar lineups. The Rosario stage focuses on Latin-inspired music, with popular acts such as ketia, Nala Brown and Populous. At the Latinichta stage, DJs such Ben Santana and Maura V present Caribbean and South American-inspired beats such as reggaeton and Latin music.
On Sunday, the festival takes visitors on a journey through uptempo Balkan rhythms and Middle Eastern sounds on the Kalinichta stage, with KasbaH headlining. They also added the Secreto Stage, which features house and techno showcases along with emerging artists from the queer underground club music scene, including Cashu and Slim Soledad. Here, The Planet, an Amsterdam-based FLINTA* club night, will also take over with their artists like DIORA and Sukubratz.
The festival isn’t only about music, as attendees can expect a range of exciting performances from theatre dancers, drag queens, oriental belly dancers, and even rope art. Tropikali emerged as a result of the partnership between the Amsterdam queer parties Rosario and Kalinichta, which focused on Latin/electronic music and Balkan/Middle Eastern music, respectively. Co-founders Diederik Broekhuizen and Nicola Rinaldi connected with local LGBTQIA+ communities in these regions during their travels, and upon returning to Amsterdam, launched their parties to platform the city’s electronic music scene to these genres and international queer communities.
With a diverse and exciting lineup, Tropikali is definitely one of the must-visit festivals for fans of varied musical genres and general merrymaking. Tickets can be purchased on their website
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