"We are going to announce a number of things that nobody knows yet"
A brand-new Q-dance New Year’s Eve party takes place on December 31 at Amsterdam’s Ziggo Dome: WOW WOW - The New Year’s Extravaganza. What can you expect from us during the last night of 2018? Time to explore this new concept together with Rogier Werver and Jonas Schmidt, the creative masterminds at Q-dance.
December 31, Ziggo Dome Amsterdam. It’s the end of the year, but also the start of something new: WOW WOW. What is WOW WOW exactly?
Rogier: WOW WOW is Q-dance’s traditional New Year’s Eve party, just completely redefined. Ever since the beginning, we’ve organised parties on December 31. From Qlubtempo in the early 2000’s till the last Freaqshow in 2017, we’ve always ended the year together with our loyal fans and DJ’s.
Jonas: And that’s a tradition that we wanted to maintain, but we do like to switch things up every now and then. Breaking the conventions, and sometimes even our own rules. For instance when we come up with a name for a new event...without a Q!
This came as a surprise for many people, a Q-dance event that doesn’t contain the letter Q. Why did you choose for WOW WOW?
Jonas: Because it’s our sound logo. For 18 years, we have been ending every party with WOW WOW, and now we’re ending an entire year with the ultimate WOW WOW. You could say that this night contains the complete 2018 Q-dance experience.
Rogier: Exactly, we’re closing the year with the one sound that defines us. Last year, we decided that we wanted to provide the people with a new experience during New Year’s Eve. This meant saying goodbye to Freaqshow, a concept that we loved. But sometimes, we just need to go for something new to keep it fresh. That way, we stay motivated and driven, while providing our fans with new experiences throughout the years.
When the first information about WOW WOW was released last week, we were told that it was going to be about reliving the best moments of 2018. Will we also get a sneak peek of the future?
Jonas: An important part of WOW WOW is providing you with information about the future of Q-dance. For instance, we will reveal which artists are responsible for next year’s Defqon.1 anthem.
Rogier: It’s a mix of the old and the new. The Q-dance Hardstyle Top 10 of 2018 will return, including the best hardstyle track of the year and the golden record ceremony for the winning DJ. The show will also be bigger and bolder than ever before, call it a 2.0 version.
And will the special moments of 2018 be integrated into the line-up of WOW WOW?
Rogier: Definitely! Without spilling the beans to much, we’ve invited the X-Qlusive 2018 artists to do a ‘Best of X-Qlusive’ set. This is not an event where artists are just going to do a regular ‘one hour DJ-set’. No, it’s all about collectives, moments, show elements and spontaneous actions. It’s even possible that an artist that’s not part of the line-up will make an appearance on stage just because he or she has made a huge impact this year.
Jonas: The line-up is much more than just artists. It’s also about a POWER HOUR moment for instance, where we will let you relive the 60 minutes of POWER HOUR in just 10 minutes at WOW WOW. Another example is that we’ll pay one final salute to Q-BASE together with its final anthem maker. It’s a complete year of hardstyle in one night, where we’ll reflect on all those amazing moments for one last time.
Rogier: Expect moments and acts that are connected with the highlights of 2018, combined with multiple surprising 2019 sneak peeks.
Jonas: And man, do we have a lot of INSANE things in store for you in 2019.
It’s no secret that there’s a lot going on at the moment. Many Q-dance events are being livestreamed, Q-dance.com has been completely renewed, people can become a Q-dance member and of course the end of Q-BASE. We all know that one of the Q-dance catch phrases is ‘we’ve only just begun’. But what’s going to happen exactly in the future?
Rogier: We’re going to do something ground breaking next year. Something big and permanent.
Jonas: We’re creating something that we’ve never done yet. And it will be revealed during WOW WOW. Of course, the Q-dance core will stay intact: X-Qlusive, QAPITAL, Defqon.1 and Qlimax, and a lot of other new things await us.
Rogier: One of the things we’ll be doing next year is ‘infecting’ new countries with the hardstyle virus, bringing the Q-dance experience to never before seen places. And of course... Defqon.1 3.0. A monumental change.
Jonas: In 2019, we’ll be creating the ‘home of hardstyle’. Everything will be revealed on 31 December.
You’ve mentioned earlier that Q-dance has been organising events during New Year’s Eve ever since the beginning. What’s the elemental difference between WOW WOW and previous concepts such as Freaqshow, Qountdown and Qrimetime?
Rogier: WOW WOW contains much more surprises than any of these concepts combined. Expect the unexpected. Besides that, we won’t just be celebrating one moment during WOW WOW, we’ll be going all-out during the entire night.
Can you give us a taste of what to expect from these surprises?
Jonas: If you really get the concept, you can already fill in some of the moments. Counting down to POWER HOUR, counting down to the RAW power of QAPITAL together with last year’s anthem maker, counting down to the orange madness of X-Qlusive Holland for one last time together with one of its artist ambassadors. 80% of the event is part of an amazing 2018 throwback, while 20% consists of intense surprises that you will never see coming.
Rogier: And another important aspect of WOW WOW is that we’re integrating our Q-dance members into the complete experience.
Jonas: More than ever, it will be a ‘popular on demand’ event. What’s our member’s favourite track, artist or even video? It will all be integrated into WOW WOW, so we can truly end the year with you guys as one big hardstyle family.
Rogier: We’re creating so many countless memories with our fans each year, so for us it’s really important to make them part of 2018’s final night.
Jonas: One last time reliving those amazing moments, before we head into a new adventure. Even if you don’t see us, we’re just like you standing in the crowd with a glass champagne. That’s why we hope that you will be there to join us during New Year’s Eve.
WOW WOW.
Tickets for WOW WOW go on sale this Saturday at 13:00, here at Q-dance.com. See you at New Year's Eve!
Hotel Packages are already available, you can check them out here:
http://bit.ly/WOWWOW-Travel.
Jonas: In 2019, we’ll be creating the ‘home of hardstyle’. Everything will be revealed on 31 December.
Mijn gok: Mits mijn geheugen me niet in de steek laat: Ik kan me herinneren dat ID&Q Holding naar een toren in Amsterdam ging verhuizen? Volgens mij zat daar ook een 24uurs vergunning bij. Home of Hardstyle dus als een clubsetting in Amsterdam?
Geplaatst op 10 okt 2018 12:11 
dus hopelijk gaat Q wat doen hier.
