The editorial team of the Art Box portal was officially accredited again this year at one of the most significant music festivals EXIT held in Novi Sad. EXIT Universe made a full circle from July 6th to July 9th, starting with the festival opening at Pachamama powered by Rosa, featuring meditative music and an ancient cocoa ceremony in the spirit of the Ada Divine Awakening festival. It continued with Vylane Marcus’ performance at the mts Dance Arena and the first-ever festival opening from space at the Gorki List Main Stage. The grand finale took place at the mts Dance Arena, accompanied by a sunrise, emotional melodies, and tribal percussion brought by Keinemusik.

„We can contribute to the creation of a better world that will endure for our children and our children’s children—a world characterized by peace, love, dance, and joy. Together, we have the opportunity to construct this world,“ stated motivational speaker and philanthropist Aubrey Marcus during his speech at the festival’s opening. „The reverberations of this moment will echo for centuries,“ he greeted the crowd at Petrovaradin Fortress, marking the beginning of four nights of festivities.

The audience at Novi Sad’s Exit festival experienced a deeply emotional reunion with The Prodigy, while the 50th anniversary of hip-hop was commemorated with a performance by the legendary rap group Wu-Tang Clan.

The Prodigy commenced their set with their iconic song „Breath,“ evoking memories of their first encounter with the local audience during their live performance in Serbia in 1995.

„EXIT never fails to deliver, but the previous night exceeded all expectations,“ proclaimed The Prodigy band members on their official Instagram profile.

On the same evening, the all-female concept at the mts Dance Arena spontaneously united two influential women from the electronic music scene—Nina Kraviz and Indira Paganotto.

On the second night of the festival, Skrillex surprised tens of thousands of fans at the Gorki List Main Stage when he played the iconic local schlager „Zvižduk u 8“ by Yugoslav music legend Đorđe Marjanović from 1959 as an intro to his set. Simultaneously, the audience danced to the long-awaited performance of Eric Prydz at the mts Dance Arena, a set that fans had been eagerly anticipating for a decade!

On the second night of the festival, Skrillex delighted tens of thousands of fans at the Gorki List Main Stage with a surprise. He played the iconic local schlager „Zvižduk u 8“ by Yugoslav music legend Đorđe Marjanović from 1959 as the opening to his set. At the same time, the audience at the mts Dance Arena danced to the highly anticipated performance by Eric Prydz, a set that fans had been eagerly waiting for over a decade!

On Sunday, crowds of people streamed across the Varadinski Bridge to secure the best spots in front of the Gorki List Main Stage for the performance of the greatest hip-hop group of all time, Wu-Tang Clan. „EXIT was amazing, and we hope to have the opportunity to come back,“ they conveyed.

„The connection is hip-hop, everyone loves it, knows it, understands it, lives it, and breathes it,“ concluded the members of Onyx. „We’re performing after the legendary Wu-Tang Clan, can it get any more exciting?“ shared their impressions of Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike just before taking the stage.

The closing of this year’s festival was specially prepared by the collective Keinemusik – Adam Port, &Me, and Rampa, with emotional melodies and tribal percussion. The founder and director of the EXIT festival, Dušan Kovačević, described the dawn over this stage as the „most magical moment in electronic music“!

Claptone, Chase & Status, Hot Since 82, Viagra Boys, Epica, CamelPhat, Burak Yeter, Mahmut Orhan, Mind Against, Agents Of Time, The Toasters, Cockney Rejects, along with over a thousand performers and more than 200,000 visitors, connected, intertwined, and supported each other, sending out the energy of love and freedom from the four-day EXIT Universe, whose motto this year was „love and freedom.“

What was very important at this edition of the Exit festival was the focus on mental health. From the main stage, tens of thousands of people listened to speeches by globally recognized speakers who emphasized the importance of caring for others, as well as compassion, understanding, and acceptance of our differences.

„One of the festival’s values is undoubtedly the tremendous potential to globally create a different awareness of overall psychological health among entire new generations of young people. It is crucial to consistently send the message that seeking help is perfectly okay and that it is impossible for people to always be in a good mood at every moment of their lives, even though we all strive for it. Taking care of oneself, caring for others, and the world will be a much more beautiful and fulfilling place to live!“ stated the organizers of Exit.