Kaskade’s second annual SUN SOAKED beach party in Long Beach was definitely one for the books. Where do we begin? It’s kind of hard to put everything into perspective considering so much happened this past weekend all within 24 hours. Well, let’s start with the arrival in LBC. My rave fam and I were all hyped as fuck for this massive beach party. All of them but one did not attend the first Sun Soaked in 2017 so I kept telling them how FUN last years party was. I probably rambled so much to them they could have sworn I was working for Kaskade himself, but I was that excited for this party. California hasn’t seen too many beach parties over the years so this is kind of a big deal. After a few Modelos my friends and I walked into the VIP entrance and to our surprise, there were 0 people in line. We zoomed right into VIP and WOW. I was shocked at how much they upgraded the VIP area. The first thing I noticed was the risers they had for everyone, it was elevated by six or so feet so you could see over the heads of GA and straight to the stage. With your VIP tickets, it included an exclusive Sun Soaked string bag, Kaskade dad hat, and Electric Family wristband so we all thought that was pretty bomb.

Now, here comes my one and ONLY complaint. You guessed it, the infamous bar lines. We’re going to make this short and sweet. The beer prices were really good, a 24oz cost you $13 and a 16oz was $10, which are really good prices considering you pay $16-$20 for a 16oz at other festivals. Unfortunately, here’s where things get salty. It took us about 45 minutes in line to order our drinks, and this was inside VIP. People were cutting in line the entire time so you know people started getting heated. It was whatever. We all grabbed 3 beers each, found a table, and danced to the vinyl set as we all encouraged each other to chug. Haha!

5:30pm hit and Cazzete was tearing up the stage. More and more people were pouring into the area. I got excited that we all decided to ditch the VIP area to go party with the GA crowd. I walked around the area and noticed how insanely huge this year had become as compared to 2017’s. The stage production was insane as it looked legit out of an Insomniac festival so I was happy to see it received a huge upgrade. As we continued to walk I noticed they had a massive 51 ft, waterslide and shade tent with misters across the beach. They’re doing it right!

The sun starts to set and we’re all anticipating the arrival of the dance music icon Ryan Raddon bka Kaskade aka El Kaskade. 8PM finally hit and the man of the hour finally goes on. The crowd erupted as if MJ himself was there to perform. Everyone starts jumping up and down to the sounds of Kaskade’s incredible, and timeless, music. I started getting flashbacks of EDC 2010 when he played. I got that same old feeling back when I first fell in love with this music and community. The vibe was truly perfect. The lights, visuals, loud music, all of the people there made this beach party…. amazing. For the next 2 hours, everyone became one and you’re probably thinking to yourself “This is cheesy AF” but it’s really not. I’ve been attending EDM events for years (since I was 15 and now 28) so I know when something is real and truly magical. Of course, Kaskade played all his classic cuts that had everyone smiling from ear to ear. Nobody was standing still, everyone danced the entire time. It was such a dope visual to see 31,000, yes thirty-one thousand people, all dance to the same groove.

And then Kaskade played that new track…

FUN!

I wanna go out
Dress up real nice and find someone
Who’s ready to run
But, most of all
I wanna have some fun

And that’s exactly why all of us were there. To have FUN and forget about the bullshit in our lives for a few hours. I can’t stress enough how fun this Sun Soaked was after bragging to my rave crew for months. Sure! There may have been a few hiccups out this event but people need to understand it takes growth in order for these things to become perfect. That 2-3 hour wait at the bar will eventually be fixed, but don’t let that stress you out.

Unfourtantly, the show was coming to a close. Kaskade ended his set with an EPIC firework show that had us all in awe (insert EDC fireworks are better here). Haha!

I can’t wait for Sun Soaked 2019 and the surprises Kaskade and his dedicated team has in store for all of us next Summer.

Well, what was next for us? The after party at both Exchange LA and Avalon Hollywood, but that’s another story for another time.

Don’t believe how epic Sun Soaked 2018 was? Well, luckily for you we have collected over 20+ videos from that night. Shout out to all our GDE fans for sending us these dope videos from YOUR experience. You’re appreciated and loved.

 

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