Years active 1998 - present Dates 6 Jul – 9 Jul 2017 | Location Gräfenhainichen, Germany | |
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Genres Hip hop music, Reggae, Dancehall, Drum and bass Similar Melt! Festival, Openair Frauenfeld, Rock am Ring, Southside Festival, Hurricane Festival Profiles | ||
The Splash! Festival is one of Europe's biggest hip hop and reggae festivals. It used to take place at the Oberrabenstein reservoir near Chemnitz, Germany until 2006. In 2007 and 2008 the festival was held on the Pouch peninsula in Bitterfeld, Saxony-Anhalt. Since 2009 the Ferropolis in Gräfenhainichen is the ground for the Splash! festival.
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The first Splash! took place in 1998 in the inner city of Chemnitz, in a former powerhouse. From 1999 on, it was hillside the Oberrabenstein reservoir.
In the early years there were two stages, one for hip hop, and one for reggae. In 2006, the festival had extended to six stages and four party tents. The hip hop stage is adjacent to the reservoir, visitors can see the concerts while bathing. The tents house, amongst hip hop and drum and bass DJs, dancehall and reggae sound systems, a graffiti contest and ITF matches.
The name "Splash" hints at the waterside location of the festival and the phrase "to make a splash".
History
Financial crisis
The meeting of creditors in the insolvency proceedings was held on January 9, 2007. According to a Chemnitz newspaper, the debt amounted to over €500,000. The Splash! Entertainment AG asked for public help to be able to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the festival, an account for donations was opened additionally to a charity concert that had already taken place in November 2006, altogether reaching €325,000.
After obtaining €350,000 through donations from both fans and artists like Jan Delay, Samy Deluxe or the Dresden Philharmonic orchestra, the organisers announced that the festival would be held, and also informed the public about the new location.