Live Report: Longitude 2025 Saturday round up

Longitude returned to Marlay Park in South Dublin this weekend for yet another stacked edition of the festival, which opened on an incredibly high note on Saturday.

The weekend kicked off on the Main Stage with a chilled-out DJ set, as OJ Wilson eased fans into the groove with his melodic and relaxed soundscapes. The tunes were laid-back – but that doesn't mean the set was lacking in energy. The Belfast native was visibly stoked to be there, towering over the festival audience and clearly loving it.

In short, with Wilson, early-day festival-goers were in for a treat, as he delivered deliciously dance-inducing remixes, ranging from club classics to New Order tracks, easing us into an afternoon of heavy partying – and some of the best house artists Ireland has to offer.

Crowd at Longitude 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring / Hot Press

On the other side of the site, CAZ opened the festivities in the Heineken tent. Festival-goers were fired up; more than ready to dance and sing along to every burning hot remix. Behind his deck, the DJ was ecstatic at the early-day display of energy, the crowd roaring in rhythm with every boisterous and perfectly measured synth note, jumping in unison as if hit by a wave of electricity from the first ear-piercing bass drop to the last.

Back at the main stage, Dan Duffy and Dansie moved away from house, EDM and pop to explore some Rap and R&B flavoured remixes - including dance-inducing renditions of Rihanna, a healthy dose of Cardi B, Jay-Z and more.  The set was received warmly by the crowd, who never stopped smiling and swaying.

Dan and Dansie at Longitude 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring / Hot Press

In the middle of a house-heavy early Saturday lineup, the duo's set offered a welcome switch-up, as well as a first taste of what to expect tomorrow, through an enticing remix of 50 Cents' 'In Da Club'. In front of their bright red screen, dramatically projecting the words "this is what we live for", the two DJs were all smiles and chemistry, matching the energy of the exultant crowd.

At the HT meanwhile, Danny Howard pushed up the bass for a set that resonated through the ribcage while maintaining a sense of melodic flair.

Under formidable weather and feet-stomping beats, festival goers were fired-up as ever, with the Blackpool-born DJ rightly remarking, "Fuck, you got some energy!" To his credit, he clearly knows how to get a crowd moving: breathless build-ups and bone-shaking drops complemented classic remixes like Technotronics’ ‘Pump The Jam’, which had the entire tent singing at the top of their lungs.

Then there was a sudden wave of people hitting the main stage, as the crowd readied itself for the day's first headliner, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie.

By the time the rapper walked on, the main stage was bustling with fans ready to dance their hearts out. Accompanied by four dancers, Boogie's melodic rap - where deft, heavily auto-tuned bars meet dance-inducing synths and bass turned up to the maximum - was the perfect accompaniment to the boisterous midday energy of the festival.

With seemingly infinite amounts of stamina, the rapper was an absolute powerhouse, running and dancing about the stage. A big smile was plastered on his face as the crowd matched his energy tenfold, in proper Longitude fashion. The sun having just made a comeback, shirts quickly came off while dance moves become more and more outgoing. You'd be hard-pressed to envision a more summery show.

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie

The rapper also displayed his undeniable charisma, leading the audience on a merry dance for the entirety of his set. There were high levels of stage production too, with pyrotechnics and smoke machines adding to the spectacle. Musically, the presence of a live band, including drums and keys, added some welcome textures without sacrificing any of the power.

Over at the HT, Robbie Doherty darkened the vibe with moody, house numbers, suddenly transforming the grounds of Marlay Park into a retro-futurist extravaganza-zone. Ethereal, with dreamy synths and pulsing beats, the set never let up on heaviness or head-bobbing rhythms. Eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses, Doherty wrapped himself, and the entire tent, in an air of mystery that was as transporting and it was danceable.

Entering the main stage with a droning bass note that made the entirety of Marley Park tremble, West-London bar spitter AJ Tracey and his powerful flow grabbed the attention and refused to let go for the entirety of his hour-long set. With drill-adjacent, bass-heavy instrumentals, Tracey managed to induce substantial amounts of dancing and stomping without sacrificing a drop of his strength, with bars that were quick, incisive and profoundly breathtaking.

"I love coming to Dublin," he shouted. He had the crowd in the palm of his hand, as they jumped into impressively powerful mosh-pits at the command of the UK rapper.

In fact the rapper's charisma is completely off the charts. Despite the minimalist stage setup, he wasn't lacking any sort of visual or sonic appeal. As he walked across the stage, all eyes stay fixated on him, as if hypnotised.

AJ Tracey at Longitude 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring / Hot Press

At one point Tracey asked the crowd to "hold the mosh-pits for a second" as his lyricism came to the fore. His words were powerful, hard-hitting and more than a little transporting –  before he jumped back into his bass-heavy, bone-shaking soundscapes.

Crowd at Longitude 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring / Hot Press

Wrapping himself in an Irish flag and demanding that his audience pull out some of their own, Tracey proved how much he appreciates this festival, city and country. He kept up the praise for the crowd's enthusiasm, which was well-earned, given the quality of theur performance – and his!

Offering by far the heaviest and most techno-forward sets of the day, Black Traffic's bone shaking basslines could be heard all the way from the main arena - an impressive feat, considering that headliner AJ Tracey was still shaking up that half of the festival. In an afternoon filled with melodic remixes, Black Traffic's heavy acid-house and repetitive beats invited the feet to stomp. The DJ effortlessly transformed the HT into something which resembled a German outdoor rave – a real treat for the techno fans present.

Before Belters Only walked onto the Main Stage, the lyrics to Chuck Roberts’ ‘My House’ could be heard resonating throughout Marlay Park. One thing was clear: tonight, we were in the Church of Belters.

Heavy synths followed by chest-heaving bass began the set from the first home-grown headliners of the day, as Belters Only geared up to make the crowd dance like there was no tomorrow. And they did.

Belters Only at Longitude 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring / Hot Press

The Main Stage was as packed as it had been throughout the day, the crowd seeming to get bigger and bigger by the second. On top of a screen-covered giant deck, the duo looked down at their audience, as if they knew they were in complete control. And they were: eliciting ear-piercing shouts with just one command, as well as collective jumps with every bass-laden drop.

Accompanied by a healthy dose of pyrotechnics and smoke, Belters Only cranked
up the volume and tempo with their now-classic collection of house remixes and original tracks. Their excitement was contagious: it seemed impossible for thoe crpwd to resist, as they danced to the rhythm of the scintillating synths. Under the warm evening sun, it felt like the entirety of the festival had moved up to the Main Stage for a proper-boogie.

With years of Longitude under their belts, Robbie G and Bissett have undeniably gotten the festival formula down to a tee. Breath-taking beats, sing-along melodies, and an energy that never falters, Belters Only are undeniably the undefeated kings of Longitude.

Crowd at Longitude 2025. Copyright Abigail Ring / Hot Press

Back at the Heineken Tent, Enzo Is Burning offered a bit of a breather with his chilled-out brand of pop-flavoured house. As his set developed, the production got progressively heavier, with the crowd's energy following suit. With the sunset imbuing Marlay Park with a delightful golden light, there was a feeling that, although we were quickly approaching the last acts of the day, the party was only starting.

Closing the first day's HT festivities, Patrick Topping provided heavenly, rip-roaring beats. With heavy bass edging on techno, the tent was bustling with emergy, once again turning into an outdoor rave of sorts for the duration of the final set.

Behind his deck, Topping was all smiles and absolutely buzzing to be looking over the last dancers of the evening. With fast-paced, repetitive basslines ripping through your brain and rousing melodies keeping the hips swaying, one thing felt certain: Longitude Day One had been an occasion to remember.

David Guetta at Longitude 2025. Copyright Abigial Ring / Hot Press

French DJ and producer David Guetta returned to wow crowds at Longitude Festival, 13 years since his last show in Ireland.

With performances on the way at the [UNVRS] nightclub in Ibiza and Belgium's Les Ardentes festival, Guetta brought his visual production titled "The Monolith" to Marlay Park.

The big screens displayed vivid visuals of desert cliffs, ocean waves, mechanical hands and the titular multi-colored monolith structure, all running alongside a mix of Guetta's beloved dance classics and new remixes.

"It feels amazing to be back after all those years," said Guetta after opening with 'I'm Good (Blue)'.

Guetta followed that crowd-favourite with another signature track, this time his 2011 hit 'Titanium' mixed with the late Avicii's 'Wake Me Up'.

Guetta whipped young crowds into a frenzy with a remix of Travis Scott's 'Fein'. And he was only just getting into the groove!

• Watch hotpress.com for a full report on David Guetta's set...