Smirnoff Ice’s Stage at Dominator Festival Proved Hardcore Will Never Die
Celebrating the evolution of the music genre with headliner DJ AniMe.
Last weekend, Smirnoff Ice returned to Dominator Festival in the Netherlands. Hosting a dedicated stage at the vast hardcore event, the brand focused programming on the evolution of the Dutch dance music scene, which the original premix has been connected to since the ‘00s.
Over two days, the Cold Classics stage became a meeting point for like-minded hardcore dance fans. With a curation of DJs who have famously championed the genre over the decades, they gathered to rediscover sounds from as far back as the ‘90s. Headliner DJ AniMe was one of the several artists featured on stage. Coming off a gabber techno set on the Satellite stage and a Hardcore set at the Main stage of the event, her performance at Cold Classics saw the DJ return to her roots in the music genre.
“Hardcore is where it all started for me,” says DJ AniMe as she explains the curation of her set. “The sound has evolved so much over the years, so going back to the classics feels really special. In the Netherlands, they say, ‘Hardcore will never die.’ I really believe that’s true. It will evolve, but it will never die.”
Revisiting her personal music archives, the DJ played her most popular classics, such as “Detonate,” “A-Bomb,” and “Hardcore Machine,” which boldly went against the grain of the melodic hardcore music released at the time. She adds, “As an artist, I always try to put my feelings into my music, and I’ve noticed over the years that people really catch what I wanted to say. It’s something that goes further than words. You feel it inside, and then you have that click.”
With attendees connecting over this shared experience on the dancefloor, Smirnoff Ice set out to supercharge interactions through its Freeze Point activation. The immersive moment brought a collective cooling effect to crowds through a combination of wind, lighting, smoke, and special effects. Elsewhere, attendees also got to sample products at the Smirnoff Ice bar and explore other interactive displays across the space, tying into its overarching Cold Classics theme.
Reflecting on the Smirnoff Ice stage, DJ AniMe shares, “When brands support artists, they’re not just sponsoring an event, they’re helping create opportunities, bring people together, and keep the scene evolving. The best collaborations happen when there’s a real connection between the artist, the audience, and the brand. In this case, it felt like a natural fit.”
To find out more about Smirnoff Ice at Dominator Festival, check out the post above or head to the brand’s Instagram page now.
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