The World Electronic Music Festival has become a tradition for thousands of dance music fans everywhere.  The 3-Day long festival has been bringing talented DJ's from around the globe to Ontario, Canada for 14 years.   

I had the opportunity to experience WEMF first hand back in 2005.  I have been trying to put my experience into words to share with you, but it is hard to describe;  when you get thousands of like-minded people together with 300+ DJ's from around the world, it is an experience unlike any other.  For 3 days you're expected to camp and laugh with friends, meet new people, and experience styles of music new and old.

With the final event coming up in July, I thought it best to share the thoughts and experiences of someone who has been there since the begining.  I contacted Ryan Kruger of Destiny Productions, who graciously agreed to talk about WEMF and what it has meant to him over the past 14 years. 

To start things off, how would you describe WEMF to the electronic music fans out there that have never had the opportunity to experience the festival first hand? 

An opportunity to escape everyday life and experience something different with their friends and 1000's of other like minded individuals. With over 300 performers from around the world bringing every style of electronic music to one place, it can't get any better for a true fan. Add over the top audio-visual production, art and live performances, it's a feast for the mind, body and soul. 

What was the inspiration behind the creation of WEMF?

The whole electronic scene was a series of firsts in the early 90’s. A whole new genre of music and type of event had arrived on our shores from Europe and we were part of its start in Canada. We had heard of the big 24hr outdoor events happening in the UK and Germany and wanted to try something similar. Since it was all so new and unique we figured why not create a whole weekend camping experience instead of just one day! 

What were some of your biggest challenges you came across when trying to locate a venue?

While there is a lot of open space in Ontario we’ve always tried to find something unique. We feel that each of the past 13 years has offered something different to our patrons and has kept the event fresh. As the final year we wanted to go out the way we came in – big open spaces in the countryside with scenic views in all directions. Surprisingly that’s not as easy to find as you may think!

Once a venue was chosen, how did the communities react to having a 3 day music conference in town?

Our goal is to benefit a community rather than a single location. With a smaller community, we are able to have a major impact with regard to tourism and event spending.

Our post event research has indicated that there is an influx of $750,000-$1,000,000 in direct and indirect spending in the local community as a result of our event each year. This comes from the obvious industries that supply tourists such as hotels, restaurants, gas stations, tourist attractions, retailers and grocery stores as well as the less obvious contractors, staff and suppliers that we always source locally to produce the event. Spin off from all these areas creates indirect income for many members of the community long after the event is over.

Further, with people traveling from across Canada and the US for this event, there is obvious benefits to introducing them to a community many have likely never been to in the past. A certain percentage of these people will return for travel unrelated to our event and create an additional benefit that many people overlook.

As a small example, we have already booked over 75 hotel rooms in hotels, motels and resorts from Barry's Bay to Whitney for our staff and artists. On top of this, we have posted more than 50 additional accommodation options on our website so that our ticket holders can follow up on their own. We have since been told that in just a week most are almost fully sold out, many of them from people coming up for the event. 

What was your most memorable WEMF experience? What was your worst experience?

Our first event likely answers both questions. At around midnight on the first night a tornado ripped through the area destroying the circus tents and flattening the sound system. We were obviously devastated and figured our lives were over but come Saturday morning our sound people had put enough equipment back together to get one stage going. This fact went out on the Toronto radio stations and people flooded into the event. It was one of the most memorable experiences of my life! 

Years from now, how do you hope people will remember WEMF?

Simple – a great party! We’ve always tried to push the boundaries of what a concert was all about. We were the pioneers of something completely new and all that but at the end of the day we are happy if people just had a good time and created some lasting memories they will talk about for the next 20years! 

What has WEMF meant to you over the past 14 years? My view on it has evolved as I’ve gotten older. At 21 it was a chance to establish myself in the music business, promote a music I loved and do something cool. At 36 it’s a labour of love – almost like a child I’ve nurtured for many years who’s now ready to leave the house and move on and do its own thing.   

There had been rumours for the past few years that WEMF was coming to an end.  What was it that finally made Destiny Productions decided this year would be the last festival?

It’s a pretty well known fact that the event is not something we make much money doing. With over 300 artists from around the world performing on multiple stages and all the expenses that goes into creating a small city for 3 days its been hard to justify the risk as we get older. We still love the music and people still come to the show in the thousands but unless we increased ticket prices by 50% its just not possible to continue. 

How was the final line-up for WEMF decided?

This one is all about us! We chose the acts that we like and combined them with hundreds of names from the past 13 years. If nothing else its going to be the best weekend of music I’ve ever produced! 

With this being the final WEMF, what events, if any, do you have planned for the near future?

We all have day jobs so obviously that will continue however we also started a new festival a few years ago called the Cutting Edge Music Festival (CEMF.com). Its more Canadian indie rock focused but also includes an electronic element. It runs 4 days Aug 1-4 in Grand Bend, ON. It’s the only multi day camping festival of its kind in Ontario so I guess we just can’t help ourselves when its comes to doing things the hard way!

Dancenode would like to thank Ryan for taking some time out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions for us.

For more information on WEMF and it's final event you can visit Destiny Productions or click here