Tiësto is taking his turntables to Resorts World Las Vegas.
The Grammy winner on Thursday was announced on social media as the newest headliner for Zouk Nightclub and Ayu Dayclub inside the in-progress mega resort on the north end of the Strip. Performance dates will be announced on April 19, according to a separate announcement from Singapore-based entertainment brand Zouk Group, which conceived the clubs and is overseeing their music programming.
Tiësto has been a mainstay in Las Vegas nightlife for nearly a decade and, in many ways, an ambassador for the city. The DJ earned the “Key to the Strip” in 2017 and was among the headliners at an OMNIA Nightclub benefit concert in the wake of that year’s mass shooting at theRoute 91 Harvest Festival concert. He also donated $200,000 to a fund for the shooting victims.
“Las Vegas is like home to me and I can’t wait to feel the energy as we all make our triumphant return to this electric city.”
Tiësto, press release
At Resorts World, Tiësto joins fellow headliner Zedd, whose residency was announced April 7; a one-two punch orchestrated to make the biggest splash during the property’s anticipated summer debut. At the same time, the Zouk Group signings – the first to be announced but certainly not the last – deal a blow to rival nightlife groups on the Vegas Strip, notably Hakkasan Group, which for years had hosted both artists at its namesake club inside MGM Grand, as well as OMNIA and the Wet Republic dayclub.
We’re lighting up the night! Our rooms, signs and LED screen are shining bright under the evening sky, which means we’re one step closer to opening our doors to you this summer. pic.twitter.com/5n4UWql29c
— Resorts World Las Vegas (@ResortsWorldLV) April 9, 2021
It’s not uncommon for competing nightlife brands to lure big time DJs across (or in this case, up) the street, but it’s rare to have two artists of this caliber make the move simultaneously. If earnings are indicative of popularity, Zouk Group can at least boast of having two of the Top 10 highest paid DJs in the world on its grand opening roster. Tiësto, 52, has racked up as much as $170 million throughout his decades-long career; and Zedd, more than 20 years his junior, has earned $45 million.
While 2020 was, by most accounts, a lost year for Las Vegas clubs, Tiësto did manage to keep his EDM fandom bumping with a new track, “The Business,”which has racked up more than 352 million plays on Spotify. Zedd also stayed busy, working with Jasmine Thompson and Griff on the tracks “Funny” and “Inside Out,” respectively.
In drawing both DJs to an enticing, but still unproven, property, Zouk Group is playing a game of “shock and awe” with competitors; one that hasn’t been seen since The Palms paid ex-Wynn Nightlife star Marshmello $60 million to headline its KAOS nightclub in 2018. That signing, which accompanied the resort’s $620 million renovation, has been severely criticized in hindsight, as the DJ’s salary was seen as the impetus for the club’s closing, and a $26.8 million loss for owner Red Rock Resorts, just one year later.
While Tiësto and Zedd’s salaries haven’t been publicized, signs point to a brighter immediate future at the $4.3 billion Resorts World. Though owner Genting Group is a newcomer on the Strip,it has a number of things going for it, including the benefit of a global reputation and guest list, a city that will be fully open and operational come June 2021, pent-up demand from a vaccinated and eager-to-party public, and, last but not least, Las Vegas’ penchant for showering love on the Strip’s shiniest new objects.
If you’re looking for a sure thing in Vegas nightlife, your odds don’t get much better.
