Goldrush 2026 Was an Immersive Trip Through EDM’s Past and Present

Seeing Martin Garrix and deadmau5 at the top of the lineup brought back a lot of the energy that surrounded electronic music when EDM was exploding in the U.S. Both artists have been around long enough to have their own place in that history, but they still know how to put on a massive festival set.

At the same time, Goldrush 2026 had plenty of younger fans and first-time ravers filling out the crowd. The result was a mix of people who have been following electronic music for years and people who were getting their first real taste of a festival at this scale.

Hosted at Rawhide Western Town in Chandler, Goldrush: Midnight Riders took over the entire property for two nights, turning the western-themed town into a giant electronic music festival.

Rawhide Became Part of the Festival

One of the things that makes Goldrush different from a lot of festivals is the venue itself.

Rawhide already has its own character, with its old western buildings, restaurants, attractions and walkways. During Goldrush, all of that became part of the experience.

Massive inflatable rocks and desert-themed set pieces were spread throughout the grounds, adding to the western and desert feel without making everything look overly manufactured.

You could spend part of the night watching a major headliner and then wander down one of Rawhide’s streets looking for another stage or grabbing something to eat. There was always something happening somewhere.

That worked especially well at night, when the lights and production took over the property.

Martin Garrix Brings Back the Festival Era

Martin Garrix was one of the artists who helped define the massive EDM festival sound of the 2010s, when clips of his breakout hits would dominate Vine (does that age me?). His Goldrush set carried plenty of that feeling with it. There were huge melodic moments, familiar records and the kind of crowd response that comes from songs people have known for years.

For longtime fans, it was a reminder of how much electronic music has changed since Garrix first broke through. But the crowd wasn’t made up exclusively of people who remember that era. A lot of younger fans were right there with them.

That’s one of the more interesting things about Goldrush. The festival can bring out people who have been going to raves for years while also introducing people to their first large-scale electronic music event.

GRiZ Wins Over the Crowd

GRiZ was one of the sets that seemed to bridge those two sides of the crowd better than almost anyone.

His sound has always lived somewhere between electronic music, funk, soul and live instrumentation, and that came through in a set that felt different from the more straightforward festival EDM happening around him.

The funk influence gives GRiZ something that is easy to connect with even if you’re not already deep into the electronic music scene. There were plenty of people at Goldrush who may not have shown up specifically for him, but once the set got going, they had plenty of reason to stick around. That was especially noticeable among the more casual festival crowd.

Goldrush had plenty of people who knew exactly which DJs they wanted to see, but there were also plenty of newcomers taking in the whole thing for the first time. GRiZ’s performance had the kind of energy that could turn someone who came to Goldrush because their friends wanted to go into someone walking away with a new favorite artist.

His ability to mix the groove of funk with the scale and energy of electronic music made his set one of the weekend’s more memorable performances.

The Red Bull Stage Never Died Down

The main stage wasn’t the only place with a crowd. The Red Bull Stage was packed throughout the weekend, with people consistently moving through and sticking around for the sets. It became one of the spots where you could really see the range of people Goldrush attracted.

There were serious house and bass fans who clearly came for specific artists. There were people bouncing between stages all night. And there were plenty of “normies,” for lack of a better word, who seemed to be experiencing a rave on this scale for the first time.

That mix was part of what made the crowd fun.

Goldrush didn’t feel like it was only for people who can name every DJ on the lineup. There was enough going on for the hardcore fans while still giving newcomers a pretty accessible introduction to festival culture.

Relentless Beats Put Its Experience on Display

A festival this large doesn’t come together from a lineup alone.

The production across the grounds was massive, and the combination of stages, lighting, visuals, set pieces, attractions and the Rawhide environment made the festival feel like a complete experience.

That’s where Relentless Beats and Thomas Turner deserve credit.

They’ve spent years building Arizona’s electronic music scene, and Goldrush is a good example of the company’s investment in the industry. The attention to detail across the festival showed up in the way the venue was used, how the stages were presented and how much there was for people to do between sets.

There was a real sense that the team cared about putting on a good festival, rather than simply assembling a bunch of recognizable names and letting the weekend take care of itself.

A Festival With Room for Everyone

Goldrush 2026 ended up being a pretty good snapshot of where electronic music is right now.

You had artists who helped define the EDM boom sharing a weekend with a newer generation of house and bass artists. You had people who have spent years going to festivals standing next to people attending their first one.

And then there was Rawhide, which gave the whole thing a setting that most electronic festivals simply don’t have.

The nostalgia was there, especially with artists like Martin Garrix and deadmau5. But the weekend didn’t feel stuck in the past.

It felt like an older generation of EDM culture meeting a newer crowd that is finding its own way into the scene.

That’s probably the best way to describe Goldrush 2026. It was a big, loud weekend in the desert with a lot of different people showing up for different reasons, all ending up in the same place.

And for two nights, Rawhide was one hell of a place to be.