Ben Bennett, Judge Jules and Brent from Mango Django
The very first Rockinghorse Rave took place over the weekend with hundreds of ravers enjoying DJ sets from Krafty Kuts, Brandon Block and legendary Judge Jules.
The magical Caravanserai big top was the venue for the very first Rockinghorse Rave on Sunday evening. Taking pace as part of the Brighton Fringe Festival, the event gave our supporters, and fans of dance music, the chance to dance the evening away with some great DJ sets.
First on the decks was Danny Lawson who kicked off the fun with some great crowd pleasers and really got everyone on their feet. Danny was quickly followed by the DJ duo Mango Django, who came out from behind their booth to entertain the crowd.
Brent from Mango Django and Ben Bennett entertain the crowd
After their fantastically interactive set, where they got the everyone to join in with their moves, Brent said, “Rockinghorse is such a great charity and we were really pleased to have been able to help out at this event.
“We really enjoyed ourselves too, the crowd were really up for it and the venue was amazing!”
Following Mango Django was Brandon Block, who started DJing in his local pub in Harrow in 1985 and went on to have an incredibly successful career appearing on BBC Radio 1s Essential Mix, Kiss FM and on the legendary terrace at Space in Ibiza.
Despite saying before his set, “How am I going to follow those two?!”, he managed to really get the room going. His set was also live streamed for around 15 minutes which gave those who weren’t able to get to the event a chance to join in the fun.
Brandon Block on the decks
Next to entertain the crowd was Ben Bennett, who is also the Co-Founder and CEO of Second Voice Pro, the event’s supporting sponsor. Ben really enjoyed himself, having been on his feet dancing since the rave started at 4.30! He played for over an hour, after which he just carried on dancing!
Ben said, “My son was looked after at the Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital and then when I met Donna, we realised we had a similar background in dance music, and we then created the idea of the rave.
“My philosophy is paying it forward and if we can all do something we love doing it benefits those who need it most – everyone wins!”
After Ben it was the turn of the legendary DJ Judge Jules. For almost three decades Judge Jules has led the way in the world of dance music. Widely recognised as influencing an entire generation with residencies on both Kiss FM and BBC Radio 1, he also has the longest standing DJ residency in Ibiza history.
And it was easy to see why he had developed such a successful career! During his set he played some great tunes and interacted with the audience to really get them as involved as possible.
Following his set, Jules said, “I’m really pleased to support Rockinghorse, not only is it a charity I really believe in but the rave itself was a true rave, R.A.V.E with a Rockinghorse on top!”
The event was finished off with the brilliant international DJ Krafty Kuts who lives in Sussex and plays all over the world. He kept the crowd going until the event came to a close at 11.00pm.
Here’s a little taster of the evening:
All in all, it really was an amazing event, in an amazing venue, raising money for an amazing cause. Thanks to each and every one of the brilliant DJs and all the people who came along to dance and donate.
See you next year!
