pandemic. From festivals held online — Earth Night, Room Service, Club House and Desert Hearts are among those that took place just last weekend — to rooftop events headlined by the likes of David Guetta and Martin Garrix to living room sets by major names likes Diplo and by complete unknowns with little more than a pair of CDJs, a USB stick and an internet connection..
To be fair, in observing the webcast, it seems some social distancing protocols are in place for the virtual events every Friday and Saturday. Interaction between the DJs and Rotella appears brief. And by many accounts, Insomniac is diligent about maintaining a highly sanitized environment. Upon arrival at Insomniac HQ, the DJ is greeted by a single staffer and then ushered into a sterile area where they are briefed.
“It’s just not safe,” argues Marci Weber of MDM Artists, whose client MK is one of the artists who turned down the opportunity to participate in Insomniac’s Rave-A-Thons. “We wanted to do it and we were assured of all the safety measures, but MK has a family and we don’t know enough about what COVID-19 is and how it actually works. It’s too risky.”