Carl Cox celebrates 20 years with Ultra Music Festival and reveals stage lineup for 2020

Having worked with the underground mastermind Carl Cox for 20 years, Ultra Music Festival have once again put faith in Brit to deliver their 2020 RESISTANCE lineup. Speaking with Billboard, the milestone has also proved the perfect moment for him to reflect on his journey with Ultra.

Its with no doubt Cox has ingrained himself in Miami’s dance music culture and has become a staple of UMF over the years. Starting from a small tent stage and developing into what Ultra now calls the “Carl Cox Megastructure”, the 57 year-old has had a massive influence on the Miami event. This year he is set to return with an even more extensive set-up as an ambassador for RESISTANCE, with the stage seeing action for an incredible 3 days of the festival.

In an interview with Billboard, Cox revealed that “Carl Cox & Friends” might never have made it to where it is now after his Ultra debut in 2001. Describing it as an “untidy” event in its early days, he promised himself he’d never go back to the festival. However, Ultra co-founder Russell Faibisch desperately tried to convince Carl to return and their resolve was to create an entirely new concept alongside the rest of the usual Ultra madness. Getting his wish, the house and techno record producer got the early “Carl Cox & Friends” ball rolling.

It wasn’t until a few years after his debut that the concept started to build momentum as Cox drafted in some of the most fundamental underground artists to perform in Miami. From 2006 to 2011, Ultra agreed to continuously transform his stage, taking it from a more intimate tent-style venue to the famous megastructure we have come to know and love today. Making the event more organised, Carl Cox’s innovative ideas and planning has made Ultra one of the leading dance music festivals with respect to its musical diversity. Trying to keep the concept  “as underground as humanly possible”, Cox and the Ultra team have forged something special that continues to surpass expectations year on year.

As an ambassador of RESISTANCE (introduced in 2015), Carl is set to return with “his foot on the gas” and as he has announced some insane additions to this years lineup. For the 2020 edition, the Carl Cox & Friends experience is to cover all 3 days and will include performances from Loco Dice, Amelie Lens and Eats Everything among a tonne of other talents. To make things better, the man himself is to jump on the decks for exclusive b2b performances with Maceo Plex, and a triple b2b with Jamie Jones and the Martinez Brothers. You can find more details on this years RESISTANCE lineup here.

Image Credit: Carl Cox / Provided by Measure PR UK