No Sleep Festival


No Sleep is an autumn music festival which is held at 11 locations in the city of Belgrade, Serbia.
The festival was founded in 2017 in Novi Sad as a part of the EXIT Festival, influenced by the festival's No Sleep Novi Sad stage, which was introduced in 2002 as HappyNoviSad stage. The first edition of the festival was held during the first day of the EXIT festival, at the festival's Dance Arena, and it attracted 20,000 visitors. In 2018, it became a stand-alone festival, as it was moved from the Petrovaradin fortress to Belgrade.

History

The festival began in 2017 as a part of the EXIT Festival. During its existence, No Sleep has been visited by over 45,000 people from more than 60 countries. Resident Advisor, DJ Mag, XLR8R, Data Transmission and many others have on numerous occasions praised No Sleep.
The initial idea was created with EXIT's No Sleep Novi Sad stage which quickly gained international fame. Each year, EXIT partners through No Sleep with some of the world's most popular clubs which are showcased at the festival and make launch events. The list includes Fabric, Tresor, Sub Club etc.
In January 2019, No Sleep Festival won the Best New Festival award at the European Festivals Awards held In Groningen, Netherlands.

Location

No Sleep takes place at 11 locations in Belgrade, including the central mammoth warehouse, known as the New Hangar in Port of Belgrade, next to Danube river. It also includes lineups at city's well-known clubs like Drugstore, Club 20/44 and various other spots, with some of the world's most popular electronic music acts, alongside local talents.

Key Venues

Main Hangar

Main Hangar is a mammoth warehouse located in Port of Belgrade, next to Danube river. It's located on 39 Žorža Klemansoa Street. It was introduced as the festival's main venue in 2018, along with other nightclubs, such as Drugstore, 20/44 etc.
New Hangar hosted Fatboy Slim, Nina Kraviz, Cassius, Lee Burridge, Amelie Lens, Bicep, Terry Francis and many more.

Drugstore

Drugstore is one of the more popular nightclubs in Belgrade, along with 20/44 etc. It is located on 115 despot Stefan Boulevard Beside the main events, Drugstore also features afterparties.
Drugstore hosted Olof Dreijer, Gassivity etc.

20/44

20/44 is one of the more popular nightclubs in Belgrade. It is located next to the confluence of the Danube and Sava rivers.

half

Half is a nightclub located on 10 Vojvoda Bojović Boulevard. It was introduced as a new venue in 2019.

Marsh Open Space

Marsh Open Space or Marsh Creative Production is a cafe located on 15 Cetinjska Street, along with another venue, Yugovinyl. It hosts workshops and exhibitions, along with a music conference with popular international and local speakers. It is yet to be announced if it will be the venue for the 2019 edition of the No Sleep Festival.

Mladost

Mladost is a cafe located on 44 Karađorđeva Street in Belgrade, along with three other venues, Gadost, Gajba and Taman.

Gadost

Gadost is a cafe located on 44 Karađorđeva Street, along with three other venues, Mladost, Gajba and Taman.

Gajba

Gajba is a nightclub located on 44 Karađorđeva Street, along with three other venues, Mladost, Gadost and Taman.

Yugovinyl

Yugovinyl is a vinyl record store located on 15 Cetinjska Street in Belgrade.

DOT

DOT is a nightclub located on 6 Francuska Street in Belgrade.

Discontinued Venues

Dance Arena

's Dance Arena on the Petrovaradin fortress was the venue of the first No Sleep festival in 2017. It is widely considered one of the best electronic arenas in the world. It can host over 25,000 people.
The show on the Dance Arena starts in the evening, and plays all night long, until dawn.
Dance Arena has hosted some of the most influential DJs and producers in the world, such as Jeff Mills, Ellen Allien and many more during both No Sleep and EXIT festivals, and David Guetta, Eric Prydz, Boris Brejcha, Fatboy Slim, Robin Schulz, Amelie Lens, Black Coffee, Nina Kraviz, Paul Kalkbrenner, Tale Of Us, Maceo Plex, Solomun, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Carl Cox, Lee Burridge, Underworld, Danny Tenaglia, Groove Armada, Luciano, Avicii, Richie Hawtin, Afrojack, Quintino, Deep Dish, Disclosure, Faithless, Hardwell, Martin Garrix, Dixon, Jamie Jones, Duke Dumont, Nicole Moudaber, Adam Beyer, Ida Engberg, Carl Craig, Guy Gerber, Joseph Capriati, Axwell, Steve Angello, Sebastian Ingrosso, Sven Väth, Sharam, François K, Tiga, Laurent Garnier, John Digweed, Darren Emerson, Chris Liebing, Frankie Knuckles, Erick Morillo, Green Velvet, Dubfire, Steve Lawler, David Morales, Sander Kleinenberg, Marshall Jefferson, Roger Sanchez, Timo Maas, Felix da Housecat, Kerri Chandler, DJ Hell, Scuba, George FitzGerald, Seth Troxler, Matador, Marco Carola, Recondite, Booka Shade, Hot Since 82, Jackmaster, Hernan Cattaneo, Nicky Romero, Oliver Heldens, Dave Clarke, Leftfield, Francesca Lombardo, Kölsch, Octave One, Ben Klock, Marcel Dettmann, Eats Everything, Steve Aoki and many more during the EXIT festival.

Drugstore / Mali klub

Drugstore also features a smaller nightclub which hosted acts during the night until morning. It was discontinued as a venue in 2019.

Mint

Club Mint is a bar located on 7 Đušina Street in Belgrade. It was discontinued as a venue in 2019.

Pržionica D59B

Pržionica D59B is a coffee shop located on 59 Dobračina Street, hence the name, in Belgrade. It was discontinued as a venue in 2019.

Tranzit

Tranzit is a bar located on 8 Braće Krsmanović Street in Belgrade. It was discontinued as a venue in 2019.

Taman

Taman is a nightclub located on 44 Karađorđeva Street, along with three other venues, Mladost, Gadost and Gajba. It was introduced as a new venue in 2019, and discontinued after the first day of the festival, because of the controversy surrounding an attender.

History by years

No Sleep 2017

The inaugural installment of No Sleep was held during the first day of the 2017 edition of the EXIT Festival on the festival's Dance Arena.
No Sleep Festival 2017 took place 5 July 2017. It was attended by 20,000 people.
The headlining act for No Sleep 2017 included Jeff Mills.
No Sleep Festival presented a combination of various electronic acts, ranging from famous techno and IDM acts to noise music.

No Sleep 2018

On 15 July, it was announced that the No Sleep Festival would move from the Petrovaradin Fortress to Belgrade, where it was held at 12 locations.
No Sleep Festival 2018 took place 15–18 November 2018. It was attended by 25,000 people.
The headlining acts for No Sleep 2018 included Fatboy Slim, Nina Kraviz, Cassius and Lee Burridge.
No Sleep Festival presented a combination of various electronic acts, ranging from famous big beat and house acts to synth-pop and electronic dance music.
Besides its two main events, No Sleep Festival also featured daytime parties, workshops and exhibitions, along with a music conference with popular international and local speakers.

No Sleep 2019

No Sleep Festival 2019 took place 8–9 November 2019. It was attended by more than 7,000 people during its first day.
The headlining acts for No Sleep 2019 included Amelie Lens, Bicep, Terry Francis and many more.
No Sleep Festival presented a combination of various electronic acts, ranging from famous techno and dance acts to electronic music.

No Sleep 2020

No Sleep Festival 2020 will take place in November 2020.

Festival by year