Carlsberg finally broke the month-long suspense, revealing the venue of its epic ‘Where’s The Party? 2013’ (WTP 2013) headliner event last Saturday, 6 July 2013. 3,000 party-goers (myself and guest included) were kept clueless on the venue until the very last moments, having only been told to meet at MAEPS, Serdang – one of the country’s largest exhibition parks.
For this year’s WTP, Carlsberg chose to go with a ‘jet-set’ theme and they certainly took a no-holds-barred approach in terms of execution – from sexy airline crew outfits of the usherers to the jet-themed fun and games and; impressive stage and lighting set-up. The actual venue was the cavernous main hall, complete with a rare Antonov airplane forming part of the backdrop. Epic? A complete understatement.
For WTP 2013, Carlsberg introduced a mobile site, that enabled partygoers to connect and meet new people, snap photos and take part in challenges that could win them passes to the global WTP. The ‘Be Bold’ challenges saw hundreds of uploads being displayed on the giant screen.
I brought my football buddy and party animal Kelvin Gan, and met up with LowYat.Net’s Eddy Han and gamer girl Ashley Khoo at the venue.
We attended the press conference where Carlsberg Malaysia managing director Henrik Andersen and Carlsberg Singapore managing director John Botia made an appearance from the Antonov, accompanied by a dozen ‘air stewardesses.’
Andersen had this to say, “Air travel is our theme this year as we’re flying lucky Malaysians to Europe for our global party, we needed a massive place that would fit the plane and the huge crowd. This WTP is also about taking partygoers to new heights and it looks like we have set a new benchmark in the local party scene by creating another epic sensorial event.”
“For the first time in the history of WTP, Malaysians will be treated to the global WTP experience, where 22 nations will come together. Consumers bold enough to step up to the challenge will be justly rewarded with entry to this epic European party experience.”
Carlsberg earlier threw a sweetener to the party series by giving away 10 exclusive invites to the global Carlsberg ‘Where’s The Party? 2013’ happening in Europe his August. A once-in-lifetime chance to party with Axwell, formerly of Swedish House Mafia.
The eclectic mix of acts arrived at the press conference in special ‘airport shuttles’ much to the amusement of the media. The line-up included stand-up comedian Douglas Lim, Swedish Dub House duo Cazzette, Nine Lives, Joel Turner, 3AM in the Valley and Big Skrptz from Australia, K-Pop sensations Sweety, DJ Inquisitive, Miss Nine from Germany, DJ Eva T from Malaysia, DJs Class and Ming Ming.
Celebrity hosts Joey G and Patricia K who looked every bit a pilot in their pilot uniforms, hosted the epic party.
At the party venue, party-goers were kept entertained with party games like Loud Ludo, Marshall Matters, No-Sigh Flight, Turbalance, Safety Slide and i-Darts. There was also free flow of food and drinks at designated tents.
Funnyman Douglas Lim, the opening act, broke the ice and absolutely cracked the audience up with this flavour of humour, and his hilarious rendition of Beyond’s Cantopop hit “Kam Tin Ngo.” Nine Lives came up next with their blend of classic and contemporary rock repertoire. Being a hip-hop fan, I completely enjoyed 3AM in the Valley, Joel Turner, Big Skrptz’s mash-up. That was indeed the shiznit.
I’m not a K-Pop fan, but that did not stop me from enjoying Korean pop divas Sweety’s energetic performance, enticing the audience with their own hits and covers from SNSD, Beyonce and Psy. Trust me when I say this, these girls can dance. Completely blown away.
I wasn’t as live-wired as I thought I might be, but last I heard the party of the year continued till the wee hours of the morning.
Party and play hard you should, but Carlsberg also made sure that everyone made it home safely. For those who were driving, were within the legal limits of breath alcohol content. And for those who didn’t drive, 100 taxis were on standby to ensure they get home in one piece. There were stations with breathalysers and also a trivia challenge where partygoers could take home a personal breathalyser for free.
WTP 2013 is of an exclusive, money-can’t-buy party experience that was attended by 3,000 party goers from all over Malaysia and Singapore, more than doubled the numbers from the last WTP.
The million dollar question remains – ‘Where’s The Party?’ in 2014?
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Even more WTP 2013 photos on Flickr