Sefa wraps up Fresh Friday with The Spotlight on the RED

One of the most magical moments at Defqon.1 Weekend Festival is The Spotlight. Beginning in 2022, the events ends its Fresh Friday with two exciting The Spotlight performances filled with the best show and fireworks at the RED and BLACK. This year, Sefa took over the RED stage, while Spitnoise rocked the BLACK stage simultaneously. Hardstyle.com was present to experience the electric atmosphere at the RED.

With each passing moment, the sky grows darker, but the brilliance of the fireworks brightens the night sky with every explosion. Lost in the moment, people close their eyes, fully immersed in the experience. Sefa commands the largest stage at the world's premier harder styles festival, providing a journey through music, to close down the first full day of Defqon.1 Weekend Festival.

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Out of all the artists, Sefa definitely earned his spot on the mainstage with The Spotlight for this year. His Defqon.1 journey started in 2017, when he captivated the audience with his refreshing Frenchcore tracks at a packed yellow stage at 13:00. Only two years later, in 2019, he closed the RED stage as the anthem maker on his 19th birthday. His success continued in 2022, when he opened the RED mainstage in style. On top of that, last year, he delivered a memorable performance in the intimate Defqon.1 Theatre. Now, closing the RED stage with a special The Spotlight set is a fitting highlight of his journey.

Defqon.1 Gods watch over the RED

Earlier that Friday, around 12:30 PM, the RED stage gates opened for the first time, and eager fans flooded in to see the iconic mainstage. Although no music was playing yet, the anticipation was high as fans shouted with excitement, happy to be back after a year away. 

The crowd's reaction to seeing the RED for the first time was phenomenal. “That’s the most insane stage build I’ve ever seen,” says a Weekend Warrior with tears in his eyes. This year, Q-dance decided to utilize the entire width of the terrain for a massive stage. Five Gods join you on the battlefield that’s called Defqon.1. With references to past stages, such as the 2011 Warrior, it immediately brought Defqon.1 attendees back to previous editions. The Phoenix head from 2022, the helmet from 2015... with all the details in this immersive stage, there was always something new to find.

When evening arrived, the stage looked more powerful than ever. Sub Zero Project, Rebelion, and Rejecta filled the air with their powerful hardstyle music, utilizing the speakers' full capacity to warm up the crowd for The Spotlight. Colorful lights, lasers, the most beautiful fireworks… it was the perfect buildup for The Spotlight.

RED reaches its full potential during This Is Sefa

At the end of the day, the harder styles DJ mesmerized the audience with  "This is Sefa." The first drop sent a thrilling wave of excitement across the crowd. The many Sefa fans gathered at the stage sang every melody at the top of their lungs. He included the 2022 Defqon.1 Weekend Festival anthem in his set, alongside several collaborations with D-Block & S-te-Fan, Vertile, and a brand-new track with Dutch rapper Joost.

In the midst of This Is Sefa, the RED realized its full potential. The twinkling stage lights moved precisely to the rhythm, while the stage gods observed the crowd with glowing eyes. They looked upon a sea of Warriors, ready for battle. 

Sometimes, breaking from the norm and thinking outside the box is necessary. Sefa must have embraced this philosophy when he came up with This Is Sefa, his personal take on harder styles music. By merging Frenchcore with a full orchestra and choir, as well as mesmerizing dance performances, he gave the audience full-body chills during the entire set. Combine that with the most beautiful fireworks, and you’ll understand how Sefa truly created a magical ambiance while closing the RED stage. Villain summed it up well: "magical".

With The Spotlight by Sefa on the legendary RED mainstage, the first full day of madness has come to an end. But there's no time to be sad - we have a whole Saturday and Sunday ahead. When will we see you at the Holy Grounds? If you're not in Biddinghuizen right now, tune in to Q-dance’s YouTube channel to catch all the action happening at the RED this weekend. You definitely don’t want to miss POWER HOUR and the endshow today!

To enjoy all other sets, sign up as a DEDIQATED Member. DEDIQATED Members have the privilege of listening to every stage at Defqon.1 Weekend Festival on Q-dance Network from Thursday to Sunday. All sets from every Defqon.1 stage are available, from BLUE to BLACK, YELLOW to INDIGO. Note that these sets will only be streamed in audio.

Images via Defqon.1 Weekend Festival