Mar 28, 2016
On April 28, Wynn Las Vegas will be opening its newest nightclub, Intrigue, and in doing so they may be changing the entire look of Vegas nightlife.
Sean Christie, chief operating officer of Wynn Las Vegas, described the new club by explaining, “It is the opposite of a big DJ-driven club,” to The New York Post’s Michael Kaplan. “The DJ is no longer the most important part of the recipe.”
The gambling capital of the world has celebrated high-profile DJ residencies at its many clubs for years. Just last year, Calvin Harris signed a three-year deal with the Hakkasan Group that earns him $400,000 per show.
“People are sick of the DJs in Vegas," said the founder/owner of Drai's nightclub, Victor Drai.
"It’s ridiculous to have the same five or six guys, pay them a fortune and lose money. It will reach a point where DJs are totally irrelevant.”
An insider for PageSix paints a grim future for the high-price DJs in Vegas. “When they renew, offers are expected to go down, some by as much as 50 percent.”
“We created a monster,” said Jesse Waits, who runs all things restaurant, club, and lounge related for the new $4 billion casino-resort, Alon Las Vegas. Waits had previously run Wynn’s EDM mecca XS, which is right across the strip from Alon.
“People who just want to see DJs don’t dress up, they don’t have style, they don’t even want to be in a nightclub,” said Waits. “They’re not cool. Nightclubs are cool-people clubs.”
Image: Hakkasan Nightclub / Angel Management Group