▼ Music Fallout Zone Rvdiovctive continues to find its groove in Miami. BY KAT BEIN forever home in the 305. “Whatever we were doing,” James says, S “however active we were throughout the year, we were always together for Miami Mu- sic Week, so that’s why it’s really special.” In the past ten years, Rvdiovctive has evolved from a scrappy, DIY multimedia con- cept to a focused and successful touring event brand. In March, it branched into the world of music releases, launching the Rvdiovctive Records label with a compilation featuring longtime friends and collaborators, including Miami’s own Ian Allen and Alex Cecil. Now, Rvdiovctive is set to mark its tenth anniversary with a big night of music and community at Oasis Wynwood, bringing with it some of the most familiar faces in the Rv- diovctive crew, headlined by Los Angeles- based party king Destructo. “It just feels really surreal and very special to be celebrating our ten-year anniversary this year, and especially in Miami with this event just because of everything that we’ve gone through,” James says. “We did survive the pandemic and it seems we’re doing better than ever, which is really just amazing be- cause we really do anything streaming-wise. We’ve always been about gathering in person, welcoming the community and stuff.” The pandemic wasn’t the first trial for James and his gang. Rvdiovctive’s first Miami party and third-ever event almost fell apart before it started. ome artists and events start in Miami and take that energy around the world, but Devon James and his Rvdiovctive crew from New York City found their “We just almost got totally screwed over,” James says, laughing. “We had Felix Da Housecat, Junior Sanchez, [and] Lazerdisk Party Sex. We were all excited to get in there, started doing a sound check, and [the hotel staff ] was like, ‘See this one LED light on the mixer? This is how loud you can be.’ We were like, ‘What? No one’s going to stay here. This is like background music.’” That was during Miami Music Week 2013, but Felix and the rest of the acts somehow pulled it off, and by 2015, Rvdiovctive had found a new home at the Congress Hotel and turned the party up to 11. “We had Jauz, Mija, Djemba Djemba, As- “IT JUST FEELS REALLY SURREAL TO BE CELEBRATING OUR TEN-YEAR ANNIVERSARY.” tronomar, Codes, J Paul Getto, Meaux Green,” James adds. “When Jauz was playing at the end, code compliance showed up, and we had to be quiet for a couple of minutes. I tried to be brave in those situations. Like don’t get in their face; ask what the reading was. In the end, it was all good. We got to finish the party, and Anna Lunoe showed up with a bunch of random people to jump on the decks.” “All these parties that we used to do in Mi- ami at first were free parties,” he continues. “I look back on it, and I’m like, ‘How the fuck did we do this?’” Sunday night’s soiree at Oasis will get back to these roots, delivering a solid lineup of dance music slayers totally free of charge. While the full lineup has not been an- nounced officially, you can bet Miami will be in full effect. Photo by RADskillZ “One of our principles when we go into a new city is that we try to work with people that are doing stuff there in their communi- ties and are active in whatever they’re doing,” James says. “We’re not just trying to come in and highlight ourselves. It’s about coming in and working with people that are already do- ing stuff, strengthening what we’re doing with what they’re doing, and overall creating more community and strengthening the scene that we’re all in.” Last year for Miami Art Week, Rvdiovctive returned with a new concept called “Paint Jam,” setting Miami-based visual artist Clau- dia La Bianca up to do her thing at 1-800-Lucky alongside a lineup of DJs that included Miami producers Danny Daze and Jubilee alongside Felix da Housecat and Jus- tin Martin. The crew followed that up with another 1-800-Lucky takeover during this year’s Miami Music Week. “Our relationship with the people that own 1-800-Lucky, Oasis, and Coyo — they’re just some of the best people,” James ex- plains. “We feel like we’ve found our home with them in Miami, and we’re going to do everything with them. I’m really excited Will OB (left), Devon James, James Ellington, and Pierce Flaherty that they’ve trusted us with this huge space. We really want to bring it and do something awesome because we fucking love what they do.” “It’s just really nice to keep that trend go- ing, going into these places and finding peo- ple that are the movers and shakers of their communities and working with them to strengthen our scene in general,” James says. “And it’s really awesome to be working with someone like Destructo because his vibe is all about keeping things very close — a family kind of vibe. It’s motivating that our little company that I started with my friends — that we could have lost a couple of years ago — is getting one of the major movers and shakers of the American scene.” Rvdiovctive 10 Year. With Destructo, Devon James, and others. 6 p.m. to midnight Sunday, November 13, at Oasis Wynwood, 2335 N. Mi- ami Ave., Miami; oasiswynwood.com. Admis- sion is free with RSVP via oasismiami.tixr.com. 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