Ticket Giveaway: Xi Festival's Immersive Music, Arts, and Culture Experience Takes Over Longfusi, May 1-5

If there were any lingering doubts that spring is in full swing and – dare we say – already giving way to summer, the recent unveiling of Xi Festival’s mind-boggling five-day lineup blew those doubts up in a sweetly sticky explosion of arts and culture, like a bouquet of firecrackers stuffed into an ice cream sundae. Between May 1 and May 5, a dizzying array of DJs, musicians, artists, designers, entrepreneurs, and creatives will take over the ninth-floor rooftop of Longfu Cultural Center in what can only be described as an ambitious and immersive kaleidoscopic playground, fit for a city still thawing out after the harsh winter.

During its first four days, the event carries on from 1pm to 2am – music ends at 7pm on day five – and features both an indoor and outdoor stage. With more than 60 Beijing-based DJs and musicians coming to the fore, Xi Festival’s lineup is a masterclass in genre-blending and inclusivity, as cold wave gives way to ambient, minimal, and disco, electro-funk embraces conceptual soundscapes, indie bands walk hand-in-hand with techno, acid, and house, and a whole host of other mischievous sonic creatures come out to play.

In addition to the tunes, there will be workshops centered on music production, dance, meditation, and self-defense, as well as a series of art installations, seminars, and film screenings. The whole thing is anchored by a dedicated urban camping section, and while you can’t spend the night there, you can sure as hell unwind for a bit before throwing yourself back into the cosmic expanse. Likewise, not only is it a space to recharge your batteries – both physical and technological – but it represents a microcosm of the city’s creative communities, a place to exchange ideas, forge new collaborations and friendships, and simply bask in the renaissance spirit that is Beijing’s spring.

Xi Festival is the entirely legitimate lovechild of music label ByeByeDisco co-founders Pang Kuan and Pei, and creative agency UID/AMA co-founders Wang Chenyu and Ma Ning. Over the years, few people in the capital have had such a deft hand at curating both a visual identity and soundtrack for 21st century Beijingers, and the legacy of both groups’ work as party promoters and cultural innovators has been felt everywhere from the city’s club scene to its television screens.

Now, for the reason you're all here: We're giving away one free ticket for each day of the festival. All you have to do is leave a comment on this post on the Beijinger's WeChat account (ID: theBeijinger) telling us your favorite genre of music. It can be real, fake, fact or fiction, short, long, pretentious, full of hyphens, hip, tacky, ridiculous, whatever you want. Comments with the most likes win (read, the more creative the better). We'll do our best to accommodate whichever day you'd like to attend, but we aren't miracle workers and can't promise anything. The competition closes at 2pm on Thursday, Apr 15, and we'll notify winners within 24 hours.

Xi Festival takes place May 1-5 at Longfu Cultural Center. Pre-sale tickets cost RMB 240 for a single-day or RMB 680 for all five days, with a few single-day tickets available at the door for RMB 280. To find the full lineup, schedule, and purchase tickets, click here.

Read: Quick! Early Bird Tickets for Hot & Spicy Fest 2021 on Sale NOW

Images courtesy of Xi Festival