REMIX HOTEL TURNS UP THE HEAT IN MIAMI

Over 4,500 attend PRIMEDIA’S Music-Technology Showcase of the Year

Emeryville, CA: March 31, 2005—PRIMEDIA’s Remix magazine hosted the third annual Remix Hotel Miami 2005, presented by Apple and attended by thousands of urban-electronic music enthusiasts last week at the Eden Roc Resort and Spa on Miami Beach, Florida.

The three days of Total Technology Immersion, from March 24-26 and free to those who registered, attracted some of the world’s leading producers, DJs and industry elite as well as top international talent such as DJ Rap, Junkie XL, STS9 (Sound Tribe Sector 9) and Murk, to name just a few. Avid enthusiasts experienced the future of music technology through a world-class series of workshops, seminars, product demonstrations and groundbreaking live performances courtesy of today’s cutting-edge manufacturers.

The Remix Hotel’s family of Technology Partners demonstrated some of their latest tools for the trade and brought onboard some of the biggest names in the business to help educate the audience. Drum ’n’ bass legend Photek talked about his relationship with E-mu’s Emulator samples; world-renowned remix artist Richard Devine gave a spell-binding demo of the M-Audio Ozonic hardware; and Digidesign hosted exclusive interviews with the likes of Grandmixer DXT, Carmen Rizzo and Junkie XL.

Apple, one of the event’s Presenting Sponsors, showcased its latest iLife pro application and offered passers-by the chance to win an iPod Shuffle every hour. Microsoft, also a Presenting Sponsor, gave Remix Hotel guests a taste of its new Crossfader online educational community, and Stanton gave one lucky winner a complete FinalScratch 2 system at the end of the week. These were just some of the exciting giveaways on offer at this year’s RHMIA.

Remix editors Kylee Swenson and Erin Hutton led in-depth Q&A sessions each day in front of an audience of eager enthusiasts with the likes of Adam F, Photek and Ken Jordan of the Crystal Method, among others. Other leading artists were also spotted talking to fans including Roni Size, Hybrid and DJ Rap, who demonstrated some of her drum ’n’ bass mixing skills in the Stanton room.

“The Q&A sessions were an integral part of this year’s Remix Hotel Miami,” said Joanne Zola, Remix associate publisher. “This is the type of informal atmosphere we encourage as part of the program for all our Remix Hotel events. We even had ?uestlove from The Roots checking out the technology during his visit to Miami. The interactive appeal of the Remix Hotel is an extension of what we do in the magazine.”

URB Magazine hosted the URB Village with two outdoor sound stages and live daytime and nighttime performances from the likes of Fabio, DJ Johnny Knight, Boom Bip, Diplo and Z-Trip. STS9 brought the house down with an explosive live performance in the grand ballroom on Friday evening, with URB’s headline act Esthero living up to everyone’s expectations with an end-of-week grand finale performance on the main stage.

Claudia Curcio, manager of worldwide marketing programs for Digidesign, said: “Remix Hotel is a great opportunity for Digidesign to interact with Pro Tools enthusiasts and provides a great forum for professionals in the electronic-music genre to share their Pro Tools experiences with our customers. Remix Hotel events continue to grow and attract a wide range of attendees that come to learn from both manufacturers and users alike. Digidesign is pleased to be a part of it.”

More than 4,500 people registered at this year’s RHMIA, a figure that matched last year’s attendance, and with leading music-media brands such as Apple and Microsoft co-existing under one roof, the Remix Hotel continues to bring added value to the Remix magazine readership.

This year’s RHMIA Presenting Sponsors were Apple, Guitar Center, URB and Microsoft. Other Technology Partners included Akai, Alesis, Allen & Heath, Digidesign, E-mu, KV2 Audio, Mackie, M-Audio, Novation, Numark, Pioneer, Propellerhead, Rane, Roland, SAE Miami, Serato, Stanton and Vestax. RHMIA 2005 was also sponsored by Arturia, EKS, Mixman, Tascam, Universal Audio, Sonicbids, Edirol and Disc Makers.

The Remix Hotel NYC returns June 3–5, and events are now held annually in Chicago, Miami, NYC and Los Angeles.

For details on future events and for a review of this year’s RHMIA 2005, visit www.remixhotel.com.