Untold Festival is the largest[2] electronic music festival held in Romania, taking place in Cluj-Napoca at the Cluj Arena. It is held annually[3] and has been designated Best Major Festival in the European Festival Awards 2015.[4] Guests come from a vast range of European countries, as well as Asia and North America. Untold has other versions of the festival special concepted for different places: Neversea, a beach-dedicated festival which takes place in Constanța since 2017, Massif, a mountain-dedicated festival which takes place in Poiana Brașov since 2023 and Untold Dubai, an international version of the festival which takes place in Dubai from 2024.

Untold Festival
GenreEDM (main), trance, techno, house, electro house, progressive house, pop, indie pop, hip hop, drum and bass, dubstep, reggae, jazz, R&B, soul
Dates8–11 August 2024
Location(s)Cluj-Napoca, Romania
Years active2015–present
Attendance420,000 (2023)[1]
Organised bySHARE Cluj-Napoca Federation
WebsiteOfficial website
People holding the Romanian flag at Untold 2019

History

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Untold's official website refers to editions as chapters.

Untold: Chapter 1

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The first edition of the festival took place in 2015 mainly on Cluj Arena, when Cluj-Napoca was appointed the European Youth Capital. The main artists that performed were: Armin van Buuren, Avicii, David Guetta, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and ATB. Other performing artists were: Duke Dumont, Fedde Le Grand, Lost Frequencies, Sasha, Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano, Tinie Tempah, Tom Odell, John Newman, Fatman Scoop, Tujamo, John Digweed, Patrice, Boney M, Culture Beat and East 17, among others. During the four days of the festival, more than 240,000 people attended the concerts held on several stages in the centre of Cluj-Napoca.[5] It pulled in €20 million in revenue.[6]

Untold: Chapter 2

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The second edition of Untold took place in 2016, from 4 to 7 August mainly on Cluj Arena. It welcomed the top 5 DJ's of the world polled by DJ Mag that year: Tiësto, Hardwell, Martin Garrix, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike and Armin van Buuren, along with Afrojack. Other performing live artists were: Dannic, Fedde Le Grand, Naughty Boy, Lost Frequencies, Faithless, Parov Stellar, Scooter, Ella Eyre, James Arthur, Kwabs, Labrinth, John Digweed, Sasha, Nneka and Tujamo.[7] It took place during four days in the centre of Cluj-Napoca and involved 10 stages. Over 30,000 foreigners attended the 2016 edition. The festival itself attracted a crowd of 300,000 over four days.[8]

Untold: Chapter 3

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The third edition of the festival took place from 3 to 6 August 2017 on Cluj Arena. There were seven DJ headliners who were announced in January 2017: Afrojack, Armin van Buuren, Axwell Λ Ingrosso, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Hardwell, Martin Garrix, Marshmello and Steve Aoki. In March the live acts were announced, these being: Ellie Goulding, Example, Hurts, Jasmine Thompson, , John Newman and Tinie Tempah. The festival took place during four days in the centre of Cluj-Napoca and involved 10 stages. Other performing artists were: Alan Walker, Don Diablo, Dillon Francis, Charli XCX, Redfoo, Era Istrefi, The Avener, Dannic, Lost Frequencies, Sander van Doorn, Dubfire, Kadebostany, Jamie Jones, Loco Dice, Solomun, Sven Väth, Andy C, Borgore, Pendulum, Chase & Status and GTA, among others. It sold over 330,000 tickets for the four days of Untold and reported record profit (more than in 2015).[9] Untold organisers invested more than €10 million in the festival.[10]

 
Untold 2018 stage

Untold: Chapter 4

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The fourth edition of the Untold festival was held from 2 to 5 August 2018. The first artists announced for the 2018 edition are: Black Eyed Peas, KSHMR, The Prodigy, Bonobo, Afrojack, Armin van Buuren, Alesso, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Diplo, Kygo, The Chainsmokers, Jason Derulo, Tiësto, Fedde Le Grand and Steve Aoki.[11][12]

Untold: Chapter 5

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The fifth edition of the Untold festival was held from 1 to 4 August 2019. The first two rounds of ticket sales sold out within respectively 3 and 10 minutes, each having 15,000 festival tickets available.[13] Amongst the first artists announced for the 2019 edition were: Robbie Williams, Martin Garrix, David Guetta, Bastille, James Arthur, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Timmy Trumpet, Boris Brejcha, Silenzio and Tale Of Us. Armin van Buuren released the official anthem of Untold Chapter 5, "Something Real", on 12 July 2019.

 
Untold 2019 mainstage at night

The festival, in conjunction with YouTube Music, officially released 6 playlists exclusive to the service, which are the UNTOLD Main Stage, UNTOLD Alchemy, UNTOLD Fortune, UNTOLD Forest, Daydreaming Experience and UNTOLD Galaxy

This edition gathered a crowd of 370,000[14] over four days, making it the most successful chapter in history.

Untold: Chapter 6

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The sixth edition of Untold is planned to take place in 2021, 9–12 September, event was postponed due to COVID-19 outbreak. Announcement on the 2021 festival will be posted December 15, 2020, Refunds and tickets to the next 3 festivals are available to 2020 ticket holders.https://untold.com/faqpostponement

Untold: Chapter 7

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The seventh edition of the festival took place between 4 and 7 August 2022. The main headliners were J Balvin, Anne-Marie and a wide range of DJs: Kygo, Lost Frequencies, David Guetta, Steve Aoki, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Tujamo, Paul Kalkbrenner, Kasia Sobczyk.

 
Irina Rimes on Untold 2023 stage

Untold: Chapter 8

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The eighth edition of the festival took place between 3 and 6 August 2023. The edition surpassed the 5th edition in attendance numbers, with over 420,000 people in four days. The main headliners included major acts like Imagine Dragons, Ava Max and Bebe Rexha and it marked also the return of Armin van Buuren after 4 years at Untold. Other artists were Martin Garrix, Eric Prydz, Alok, David Guetta, Topic and Steve Aoki. After this edition, the festival took 6th position on DJ Mag Top 100 Festivals.


Untold: Chapter 9

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Untold 2024 stage

The ninth edition of the festival took place between 8 and 11 August 2024. On 7th December 2023, it was revealed the first 2 major acts of the festival: Swedish House Mafia and Sam Smith. On 21st March 2024 new artists were revealed including Alok, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Lost Frequencies, Martin Garrix, Purple Disco Machine, Timmy Trumpet, Carl Cox, Fisher and Solomun. On 4th April 2024, a new major act was revealed: Lenny Kravitz. Other artists include Louis Tomlinson, Steve Aoki, Jax Jones, Burna Boy, Zerb, Tujamo, Nicky Romero, Milky Chance, Mahmut Orhan, Tom Grennan, Blasterjaxx and Salvatore Ganacci. In 2024, the festival took 3rd position on DJ Mag Top 100 Festivals. Over 427.000 persons attended at this edition.

 
Steve Aoki at Untold 2024

Untold X: Chapter 10

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The tenth edition of the festival will mark the 10th anniversary of Untold. The first tickets were put on sale on 10th August 2024, been sold over 40.000 tickets. It will take place between 7 and 10 August 2025.

Awards

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Year Awards Category Work Result Ref.
2015 European Festival Awards Best Major Festival Untold Festival Won [15]
International Advertising Association Romania Brand of the Year Untold Festival Won [16]

Tourism

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In a bid to support local tourism, 2016 festival goers benefitted from a 50% discount on the admission price for several tourist attractions from the historic region of Transylvania. The festival bracelet allowed visitors to visit at a discounted rate a series of major sights such as Bran Castle, Corvin Castle, the Merry Cemetery, the Mocănița Steam Train, the Turda Salt Mines.[17][18]



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References

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  1. ^ "Organizatorii Untold: Peste 70 de milioane de euro au rămas în Cluj Napoca, după festival / Cei veniţi din afara judeţului Cluj au cheltuit, în medie, în cele 4 zile de festival, cel puţin 700 euro. Aceşti bani au fost cheltuiţi pentru cazare, transport, mâncare, plimbări şi cumpărături în oraş".
  2. ^ romania-insider.com. "Largest music festival in Romania brings 300,000 spectators to the heart of Transylvania". Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  3. ^ ziardecluj.ro. "Untold Festival va avea o a doua editie, in 2016". Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  4. ^ Raluca Tanasă (14 January 2016). "Untold a fost desemnat cel mai bun festival european". InfoMusic (in Romanian).
  5. ^ agerpres.ro. "Cluj: 240.000 de spectatori în cele patru zile ale UNTOLD Festival". Retrieved 5 August 2015.
  6. ^ viata-libera.ro. "Untold a adus sume-record de bani orașului Cluj". Retrieved 14 August 2017.
  7. ^ chapter2.untold.com. "5 kings will rule The Land of Untold". Retrieved 5 January 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ business-review.eu (9 August 2016). "Untold Festival popular with foreigners: 30,000 attend the 2016 edition". Retrieved 14 August 2017. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  9. ^ "UNTOLD: peste 330.000 de oameni, cei mai mulţi la show-ul Armin van Buuren / DJ-ul nr.1 al lumii, M. Garrix: Festivalul, în Top 3 / Aoki: Toţi îmi spun că există în România cel mai bun festival. Este incredibil!". Mediafax (in Romanian). August 7, 2017.
  10. ^ "Povestea Untold 2017 continuă cu 10 milioane de euro. La Cluj vor veni cei mai buni DJ şi cele mai bune voci ale momentului". Adevărul (in Romanian). June 22, 2017.
  11. ^ "UNTOLD Festival 2018 la Cluj Arena". InfoMusic (in Romanian).
  12. ^ "Untold 2018. Primii artiști care și-au anunțat prezența. The Chainsmokers, pentru prima dată în România". Digi24 (in Romanian). 27 March 2018.
  13. ^ "Another 15,000 passes for Romania's Untold festival sold in record time". Romania-Insider. 21 November 2018.
  14. ^ "Peste 370.000 de oameni au participat la festivalul Untold din Cluj-Napoca | Ziarul Financiar". ZF.ro (in Romanian). Retrieved 2019-08-15.
  15. ^ "Romania's Untold voted the best major music festival in Europe". Romania-Insider. 14 January 2016.
  16. ^ "UNTOLD, Brandul Anului 2015 în România". Știrile Pro TV (in Romanian). 18 November 2015.
  17. ^ Mondriu, Adi (3 August 2016). "Cu brățara de acces la UNTOLD vezi toată Transilvania". Agenția de presă RADOR. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
  18. ^ Marica, Irina (3 August 2016). "Music festival organizers want to make tourists spend more time in Transylvania". Romanian Insider. Retrieved 25 June 2023.

18. Postponement page "https://untold.com/faqpostponement

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