The legendary festival known for its bohemian crowd, stages up on hills, on the beach and in jungle clearings now brings those lush Caribbean influences to the White Isle several times between now and September at Akasha/Las Dalias, a venue chosen for its exceptional sound quality, exquisite design, and boutique size.
The headliners for this trilogy are some of the festival’s favourites and are acts to be featured in the next edition of SXM Festival, which plays out March 12-16, 2025.
Here we speak to the founder Julian Prince about the thinking behind the event series and much more ahead of him performing at Akasha Ibiza for the next Destination SXM event on 9th August, tickets here
What made you want to do an event series in Ibiza, did you see parallels with where SXM Festival is hosted?
The SXM Festival consistently delivers pure and exciting vibes by blending experienced and new artists, decorations, performers, and great sound. Inspired by the early 2000s Ibiza, we saw an opportunity to create a similar atmosphere at Akasha, a club known for its intimate and tasteful setting. We share many values with Akasha, and having a presence on the top island for our product has been a long-standing goal. This summer, with the help of Kadosh, a regular at our festival, we realised this dream. He highlighted how Saint Martin’s isolation from European and eastern markets made it a perfect location for fans who can’t travel in March to experience our brand.
The event series, heading into its second event, is hosted at Akasha. Why this venue?
Akasha was chosen because of its intimate 400-person capacity, tasteful design, and welcoming staff. The venue’s custom-built sound system and its off-the-beaten-path location resonated with us, making it the ideal place to start our journey on the island.
The lineups have been carefully curated, and the next event on August 9th will feature Magit Cacoon. Could you tell us more about the curation process?
We aimed to have a mix of residents and guest artists who have either played at the festival or are scheduled for next March. Our residents include Kadosh, whose sessions are always filled with laughter, and Sander Kleinenberg, an old friend and major influence who I convinced to return to Ibiza after a break which felt like a full circle situation for our friendship as much as in our respective careers. Magit Cacoon was invited because she delivered one of the best sets at our last edition, and we wanted to honour that by bringing her back.
Can you tell us more about the debut show in July? How was the atmosphere?
It was fantastic! The event came together beautifully, with a crown of natural wood and local flowers adding to the ambiance. Nico Masseyeff and Oxia, two of our favourite festival acts, delivered incredible performances. There were many familiar faces and past festival attendees, making it feel like a family reunion. It left us all eagerly anticipating the next event!
The residents, including yourself, include Kadosh and Sander Kleinenberg. What was the decision process for including these artists?
We had the freedom to choose the people we worked with. Sander and I spent a lot of time together between 2000 and 2015, and I know his capabilities—few acts in history are as exciting as him. Kadosh represents a new generation of artists who carry the values of the scene’s pioneers. I thought this trio would be fantastic, representing the brand well: the creator, the inspiration, and the one pushing it forward.
It’d be impossible to not discuss the SXM Festival with you. How was the most recent edition earlier this year, and can you reveal any early details for 2025?
Consistency is key to our success, and SXM delivers a steady experience that has been a consistent adventure for fans, artists and everyone involved, with unmatched beauty, music and vibes. It’s a playground that continually inspires us to work with a passion for art, music, and bringing people together. Next year, we’re featuring exceptional artists who haven’t played the festival before, along with incredible emerging talents we’ve discovered. We’re also inviting experimental art projects and introducing new venues and exciting concepts. Notably, we’re eliminating the VIP lounge, offering private areas for bottle service instead, but opening the entire site to everyone. We believe VIP is a thing of the past; undeniably, people come to SXM to connect and be together as one and we felt like catering to this was the right move.
For your plans away from festival planning and on a more personal focus of DJ’ing, what else do you have your sights on in terms of shows?
Founding the festival and my family has kept me busy, but I’ve always found time to make music, often as a soundtrack to my life. For instance, I even made a song using the heartbeat of my first son that I recorded with my phone on the echograph. Creating music has been a way to relieve pressure and envision beautiful moments. Instead of watching TV or spending time on social media, I focus on making music, digging for records, or discovering new talent.
Although I’ve continued DJing, I’ve taken gigs only once a month or when I felt ready. My tracks accumulated over time, but I rarely sent them out. The process of signing and finalising records took time I didn’t have, so I was content playing them during performances. A few editions ago, I shared some music with Doc Martin, and after he heard my productions, he encouraged me to share more. This led to the release of the “Dayum EP” a couple of months ago, motivating me to share more with friends who run record labels.
This year, I have several new releases lined up: “Running out of Time” on Sublevel, a remix of my own song “Origin” from my 2019 EP on Loot Recordings, and a house tune called “Still Miss You Frankie” as an homage to Frankie Knuckles, set to be released on Kadosh’s label 01FRBL. Additionally, I collaborated with Wild Dark on a double EP for Diversions, making this a year with six releases. My last music releases were on Abracadabra, Kindisch, and Loot back in 2019. It’s also translating to more gigs but my aim is not to play every weekend, it is to reunite with true friends, artists I respect and I can’t predict how often this will happen as I decide to play when all these elements are reunited.
If there’s one track you’d like to share which truly holds the Destination SXM vibe, which would you choose and why?
The anthem of the summer is definitely Sander Kleinenberg’s new record “Cuts Deep,” set to release early next year. It’s a powerful, emotional track that will resonate widely. Sander has consistently produced big records over the last 3 decades, and “Cuts Deep” is no exception. Being part of this movement for so long and having the best soundtrack for life is a rare gift. Doing what I love, expressing myself artistically, and collaborating with those who inspire me is an honour for which I am truly grateful.