I Survived Partying Nonstop Through Miami Art Week

On a Tuesday afternoon, as I hopped out of my Uber to go to Chance the Rapper's "Writings on the Wall" experience in Wynwood, I immediately bumped into Skepta. It was a harbinger of what this week had in store for me as one of the most entertaining, celebrity-filled weeks of my life.

The cool breeze that hits Miami once in a blue moon was in full effect as I ran over to the Design District to check out the art exhibit at Dale Zine. It was nice to see some out-of-towners exploring and appreciating a locals' favorite spot for unique publications, zines, and artist's books.

Across the street, at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami, I checked out the recently open exhibitions "Keiichi Tanaami: Memory Collage" and "Lucy Bull: The Garden of Forking Paths" before heading to Cartier's Trinity 100 party. After multiple portions of caviar chips and beef Wellington, I bumped into Miami Heat player Jaime Jaquez Jr. Being a bit starstruck, all I could do was awkwardly say hi. Janelle Monáe eventually hopped on the decks, kicking off her set with Prince's "1999."

Since I was already in the neighborhood, I made my way to Jungle Plaza to check out the Jaguar installation. Timbaland was walking out as I walked in but was kind enough to stop and take pictures. That was only day one.
On Wednesday, the Art of Hip Hop hosted a panel featuring Rolling Loud CEO Tariq Cherif and Allison Freidin and Alan Ket, cofounders of the Museum of Graffiti. Afterward, I interacted with the different activations. One, in particular, was a Rolling Loud merch and ticket claw machine that I eventually won after an hour of playing. Of course, later that day, I lost the general admission wristband I had won.

I consoled myself by heading to the rave sponsored by 400 Conejos at Tacombi in the Design District. While most people were leaving work at 5 p.m., I was drinking mezcal shots, eating tacos, and rubbing elbows with influencers like Daddy Wellness while Major Lazer's Ape Drums was spinning on the decks. Also in attendance was Walshy Fire, who gave a killer ass introduction for A-Trak that made the crowd excited for his hour-long set. Even though it lasted about two hours, this was easily one of the best parties I attended during the week.

The Messi x Stanley event at the Panther Coffee in Wynwood was perfect for a post-party break. I tried maté for the first time and indulged in free steak with chimichurri. Everyone who attended was also given free Messi Stanley cups and tote bags.
I left early to attend the J Balvin x Design District magazine party. I hoped to speak to the cover star to gauge his mood during another hectic Miami Art Week, but he was visibly busy, so I had to settle for a quick hello and photo.

The night was still young, so I made my way to the Experts Only party at Toejam Backlot in Wynwood to see if John Summit would show up at his own event, as he had teased on social media that he might. I caught sets by Marte, Damian Lazarus, Max Styler, and Azzecca as partygoers slowly filled the venue. By 1 a.m., Toejam was at capacity, with everyone wondering if Summit would appear. Suddenly, I saw him walk right by me, and I instinctively dabbed him up and said, "Yo, Johnny, you showed up!" Do I know Summit personally? No.

I tried staying for his set for as long as possible, but the combination of exhaustion and being packed like a sardine in the crowd wasn't really the vibe I was aiming for. It's something that got noticeably worse over the weekend as parties were filled to the brim with Art Week revelers.

Finally, on Thursday, I made my way to Miami Beach. I hopped onto the water taxi, which took me to my first stop of the day: Complex's takeover of the Faena Forum with Verdy. If you're unfamiliar with Japanese artist Verdy or his Girl's Don't Cry brand, just know it's super popular with kids, leading to collaborations with Nike SB and Futura Labs, all of which were available for sale at the party.

I bike to the Kimpton Surfcomber Hotel, where Chance the Rapper was scheduled to perform at Paramount's Creator House. It was such a blast watching Chano take over the stage and perform a quick medley of "I'm the One" and "No Problems" right after he had done a freestyle.
Now, I had to figure out how to make it to Brickell to catch Hugel at Delilah amid the traffic brought upon the city during Art Week. I did the only thing I knew I could do to get over there quickly: hitchhiking a boat ride. Luckily, it made it in time to watch the French producer play bangers like "I Adore You" and edits of Weeknd songs like "Take My Breath" and "Timeless."

Afterward, Hugel's crew invited me to Factory Town to check out the on-site art exhibit by artist Trippy and the pop-up shop Hugel had for his brand Tafari. I stayed around for a bit to watch Dennis Cruz go back-to-back with Pawsa before finally calling it quits.

On Friday, the evening's party was perhaps Nylon House, which took place at a mansion on Star Island. Unfortunately, the traffic to get onto the island was insane, and by 9:45 p.m., the fire marshal and police showed up to enforce the capacity limit. This led to a one-in, one-out situation that occurred not just at Nylon House but at many other Art Week events throughout the weekend. The word is that parties hosted by Audemars Piguet and Creators Inc. were shut down by code enforcement, so it's a miracle that Nylon's was still happening. VIP guests like Camila Cabello and Janelle Monáe struggled to get inside, while expected guests, like Big Sean and DJ Khaled, didn't even show up. (Rumor is Carmelo Anthony waited outside for a while but eventually gave up.)

Once inside, it felt like you had left the chaos behind. During the party, Hugel played another banger set, but it was Ludacris who stole the show, giving Gen Z partygoers a fat hit of Y2K nostalgia, playing tracks like "Act a Fool," "Yeah!" and, of course, "Move Bitch." The most entertaining part had to be when a group of young women requested that he play "Baby," which he obliged.
While Nylon House certainly lived up to the hype, I had to head to Factory Town again.

Quick side rant: Being secluded in the VIP during Art Week borders on torturous when it's flooded with clout-cashing influencers who are mostly there for the bragging rights rather than the music. It's like how people felt when Coachella was oversaturated with influencers in the mid-2010s, but this is worse because many Gen Z influencers lack any distinct personality trait beyond being conventionally attractive.

Don't get me wrong, I had a blast watching Fisher, especially with pyro and on-screen visuals adding to the experience, but the atmosphere felt off. It got better the next day during Circoloco with the Martinez Brothers doing an incredible back-to-back set with Seth Troxler. It was genuinely the best performance of the weekend. I stayed until sunrise as the crowd gave the trio a standing ovation.

Elrow didn't disappoint on Sunday, not because of the DJs but because of the ambiance and atmosphere. Confetti and streamers rained on the crowd as everyone lost themselves in the trippy, psychedelic art adorning Factory Town. It was the best way to end a week of absolute fun and mayhem.

Oh, wait — was I supposed to look at art? Maybe next year.