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Martin Garrix, 2017

Martin Garrix

Tim Mosenfleder/Getty Images

News
Inside The New Dance Doc 'What We Started' miami-music-week-2018-inside-what-we-started-premiere

Miami Music Week 2018: Inside The 'What We Started' Premiere

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The story of how two seemingly polar opposite DJs became threads in the same rich tapestry of dance music history
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Mar 23, 2018 - 12:17 pm

Despite the huge number of notable music documentaries captivating the stories behind the artists, albums, and movements we love, dance music has had disproportionately fewer shining moments on the silver screen, especially considering the genre's massive and ever-growing popularity and influence. Now, a new film changes all that — What We Started premiered at Miami Music Week on March 22 and is in theaters now. It delivers what may be the first truly great modern film about the makings of the modern DJ.

What We Started walks through the history of dance music, pinning its narrative to the star trails of two of the scenes biggest, yet seemingly most dissimilar, stars: 55-year-old underground acid house pioneer Carl Cox and 21-year-old main stage prodigy Martin Garrix. While their backgrounds are different — with Cox growing up in the in the U.K. in the 1970s without support for his DJ dreams from his father, and Garrix being supported from a very young age by his parents — the film illuminates the commonality between the two and the thread binding the movement: the love of music.

Featuring first-hand testimonies from the front lines of the dance music revolution from David Guetta, Pete Tong, Paul Oakenfold, Tiësto, Afrojack, Moby, and many more, the film covers a lot of ground in 90 minutes. Directors Bert Marcus and Cyrus Saidi weave crucial snapshots of the formation and evolution of the dance scene from its disco origins to the rise and fall of underground rave culture, to the debate between the merits of the authentic craft of spinning vinyl versus the modern notion of "press play: DJs. It also calls out watershed moments such as Tiësto's performance at the 2004 Summer Olympics or Oakenfold's unprecedented stadium tour with U2, shining a light on the shift they created in the scene's momentum.

US fans! Go see my film #WhatWeStarted in theaters starting on March 22: https://t.co/18DqeI8lAg pic.twitter.com/sxszVj6D7f

— MARTIN GARRIX (@MartinGarrix) March 21, 2018

In the end, What We Started manages to provide an appropriate introduction to newcomers of the genre and a heartfelt, honest look back for those who were there for the real thing. 

"I feel like everybody could watch this movie, not just house music and electronic music fans, but anybody interested in the genre, in the movement," says Garrix. "This movie represents us. It represents what we stand for. It represents the good energy, the positive vibes."

The premiere was followed by an in-depth discussion with the directors and the film’s two main stars, and the room was packed with some of dance music's biggest names and most enthusiastic supporters. Cox was quick to laud Marcus and Saidi's efforts for speaking to the core of the film's subject matter.

"Seeing ourselves on screen, our story, our lives," says Cox. "It made me cry your movie exudes so many emotions about our scene. Not many people know that or feel that about what's happening with our music culture. It really does touch your heart… That's what music's about. It pushes your emotional buttons … it's our lives. It's what we're here for."

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The Recording Academy @ ULTRA 2018

Photos: WireImage.com

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Ultra: David Guetta, MusiCares, Tiësto & More ultra-miami-music-week-david-guetta-ti%C3%ABsto-musicares-more

Ultra, Miami Music Week With David Guetta, Tiësto, MusiCares & More

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The dance music community gathered in Miami for the year's biggest shows, parties, panels and premieres —here is your all-access pass
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Mar 26, 2018 - 4:33 pm

Monday, March 26

  • Each year, the dance music artists, professionals, and enthusiasts from the whole world over make the pilgrimage to Miami Music Week. This year, we stopped by some of the week's hottest parties and most exclusive events to rub elbows with the world's finest DJs, including up-and-comers like Lost Frequencies, worldwide sensations such as Above & Beyond and genre pioneers like David Guetta.

    Go Inside Miami Music Week's Hottest Parties

  • As we all return home this Monday, head back to work and try to find our way back to reality, take a bleary-eyed look back at seven DJ sets from Ultra that stuck to the inside of our brains and beat hard on the walls of our hearts.

Sunday, March 25

  • Just before his sunset set at Ultra, we caught up with Dutch DJ/producer Tiësto to discuss "Boom" with Gucci Mane, music's power to heal and the motto that has informed his successful 20-plus-year career. Check out our exclusive chat with the GRAMMY winner.

  • Weren't in Miami this week? Live vicariously through our roundup of the hottest industry mixers, daytime beach bashes and exclusive afterparties from Miami Music Week. 

Saturday, March 24

  • For artists, crew members and music fans alike, there are few things more important than protecing your hearing. MusiCares, the Recording Academy's health and human services charity, was on the ground in Miami, providing hearing protection for artists and crew. Get the lowdown on what some of the clients had to say with our full report.

    MusiCares hearing clinic backstage at Ultra
  • On Thursday, David Guetta and Sia revealed their latest collaboration,"Flames." Just a day later, we sat down for an exclusive with Guetta for the full story on their fiery new single, his chemistry with Sia and how he's prepping for his headling set at Ultra.
     
    David Guetta photographed in 2018

Friday, March 23

  • Deep house DJ Nora En Pure's exotic moniker reflects her work: mysterious, unique and authentic. She capped off the resurgence of Winter Music Conference on March 22 with an intimate conversation covering her creative process, thoughts on the current state of dance music, and her deepest inspirations and dreams.

  • Despite the huge number of notable music documentaries captivating the stories behind the artists, albums, and movements we love, dance music has had disproportionately fewer shining moments on the silver screen, especially considering the genre's massive and ever-growing popularity and influence. Now, a new film changes all that — What We Started premiered at Miami Music Week on Mach. 22. Learn about the film with our report from the premiere.

Thursday, March 22

From South Beach to Wynwood, to Downtown and back, Miami is pulsing with the world's biggest DJs and most passionate dance music fans this week. The reason? There are several. Ultra Music Festival, Miami Music Week, and Winter Music Conference all coincide, making Miami the place to for all things dance music.

Inside Miami Music Week with top DJs

Whether you on the scene and unable to be everywhere at once, or you can't quite make it South Florida, the Recording Academy has you covered. We'll be bringing you inside access to all the hottest performances, parties and panels from on the ground in Miami.

Ultra Music Festival

Ultra Music Festival returns to its picturesque downtown Miami home this year for the festival's 20th-anniversary edition. While the annual lineup is always solid, 2018's docket is particularly strong with headlining sets on the way from a collection of GRAMMY winners and nominees including Afrojack, the Chainsmokers, David Guetta, DJ Snake, Kaskade, Steve Aoki, Tiësto, and many more.

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Arcadia The Spider stage (by Arcadia Spectacular) at Ultra 2017
Photo courtesy Arcadia Spectacular

To mix things up at Ultra, the RESISTANCE Stages return with an incredible mix of underground dance music. This year the Carl Cox Megastructure, hosted as always by legendary DJ Carl Cox himself, features a stacked string of performances by Dubfire, Nicole Moudaber, and Paco Osuna. Meanwhile, the unforgettable Arcadia The Spider stage installation is back, and will will be led by dark techno visionary and Drumcode label boss Adam Beyer, along with sets from J.E.S.u.S. (Jackmaster, Eats Everything, Skream, and Seth Troxler) and Better Lost Than Stupid (Davide Squillace, Matthias Tanzman, and Martin Buttrich). This diverse mix of headliners and RESISTANCE stage acts ensure there will be something for everyone at this year's sold-out Ultra.

Phase 2 of the #ULTRA20 lineup is here! GA tickets are SOLD OUT. A limited number of VIP tickets remain.

Full list of phase 2 artists: https://t.co/6WDUvtAOGJ pic.twitter.com/JMyVkUEPiG

— Ultra Music Festival (@ultra) February 26, 2018

Miami Music Week

Miami Music Week coincides with Ultra each year, and brings countless parties and club shows to South Beach, making sure industry players and fans alike have no shortage of music to enjoy. We'll be tracking some of the wildest and most exclusive parties and hippest premieres throughout the week.

Winter Music Conference

Winter Music Conference is also enjoying a vital last-minute resurgence in 2018. After a long history of unofficially overlapping to make Miami the place to be in late March, Ultra and Winter Music Conference are now finally under the same roof, with Ultra's announcement earlier this week that it had officially acquired WMC. With these two powerhouses now in step to provide more programming and entertainment, the sky is the limit. We'll be following some of the can't-miss programs from WMC, bringing you the inside scoop on what's what in today's thriving dance music industry.

Many of the world's DJs who make the pilgrimage to Miami feel that Ultra and Miami Music Week mark the start of the New Year for dance music, an opportunity to show off the new stage sets they've been working on through the winter. Make sure you check back at GRAMMY.com all this weekend to see what surprises are in store.

SXSW 2018
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(L-R) The Mrs' Mandy Prater, Andra Liemandt and Larissa Ness  
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The Mrs Spread Kindness One Music Fest At A Time

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Rezz

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Photo: Michael Tullberg/Getty Images

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Chainsmokers, Marshmello, More For Ultra 2019 ultra-2019-chainsmokers-marshmello-more-perform

Ultra 2019: The Chainsmokers, Marshmello & More To Perform

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Additional DJs include Deadmau5, Martin Garrix, David Guetta and many more
Philip Merrill
GRAMMYs
Dec 20, 2018 - 4:07 pm

On Dec. 20, the Ultra Music Festival announced the first phase of its lineup for the bigger-than-ever Ultra 2019, relocating to the historic Virginia Key Beach Park And Miami Maritime Stadium for the first time ever on March 29–31, 2019.

DJs including Martin Garrix, Marshmello and many more will break in the expanded venue grounds during Miami Music Week following the Winter Music Conference for an epic series of electronica events.

GRAMMY winners performing at Ultra 2019 include Afrojack, the Chainsmokers, Dubfire, David Guetta, Tiësto, and Zedd. Previously nominated artists appearing include Alesso, Armin Van Buuren, Deadmau5, Galantis, and Odesza.

https://twitter.com/ultra/status/1075824289331511296

Presenting the Phase 1 Lineup for the 21st edition of Ultra Music Festival!

This year, get ready for a BRAND NEW immersive experience at #Ultra2019 featuring extended sets, later hours, expanded festival grounds and top-tiered DJs & live performances!! pic.twitter.com/lqtEn96wu1

— Ultra Music Festival (@ultra) December 20, 2018

Less well-established DJs and artists are part of the upbeat dance excitement Ultra festivalgoers count on catching. The 2019 Phase 1 lineup includes Adam Beyer, Carl Cox, GRiZ, Illenium, Jamie Jones, Joseph Capriati, Loco Dice, Louis The Child, Maceo Plex, the Martinez Brothers, Nicole Moudaber, Paco Osuna, Rezz, Richie Hawtin, Sasha & John Digweed, Tale Of Us, and Testpilot.

Tickets are available at the Ultra website, including special packages.

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GTA, 2018

GTA

Photo: Hardii/@WeAreGTA

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GTA Talk Ultra 2018, "3 Night Stand" U.S. Tour exclusive-gta-ultra-2018-death-genres-3-night-stand-us-tour

Exclusive: GTA On Ultra 2018, 'Death To Genres,' & 3 Night Stand U.S. Tour

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The globetrotting Miami natives reflect on their fourth year performing at Ultra, discuss their 2018 spring concept tour and dig deep into their "Death To Genres" philosophy
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Mar 27, 2018 - 3:16 pm

Julio Mejia and Matt Toth of GTA (Good Times Ahead) are no strangers to the nonstop electric partyfest that is Ultra Music Festival.

Regular attendees of the three-day event since 2008, the pair of Miami natives-turned L.A. transplants are now marking their fourth career appearance at the festival as performers – this year taking the 9 p.m. Sunday night set at the Ultra Worldwide stage to kick out jams to a raging crowd numbering well into the tens of thousands.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BgzpM9GnnO-/?taken-by=wearegta

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It might sound like a high-pressure situation, but by now this is old hat for the globetrotting duo, who can already count touring with Rihanna, collaborations with Diplo and Martin Solveig, marquee remixes by Skrillex, and countless domestic and international festival appearances among their career merit badges.

Sitting with us backstage at Ultra just before their set, it's easy to see that the experience has paid off. Their calm, easy-going demeanor belies the explosive energy and bombast they are about to dish out on the Worldwide stage as they rip through their trademark genre-defying stable of party tracks.  In the brief time the boys had before they needed to begin their pre-show prep, they were able to share with us some insight into the surprising depth of their musical palettes, the intriguing concept behind their current U.S. 3 Night Stand tour, and a bit about what it's like coming home for their fourth Ultra Music Festival victory lap.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bgwt45QHAVJ/?taken-by=wearegta

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So we know that you're from Miami. How does it feel to have everyone descend on your hometown for these festivities?

Toth: Being from Miami, we have our parents here. They get to come and check us out and see us play big shows, which they barely ever get to do. We have so many fans, and people that we grew up with from here, that are going to be in the crowd. They come every year just to support and to have a great time at Ultra.

Mejia: It's also really cool being able to see all of our producer friends from Twitter and online. Just getting to put a face to a name and being able to connect, with everyone being in town.

Nothing like your hometown, right?

Mejia: For sure. 3-0-5 'til I die! (laughs)

What makes Ultra different that other festivals for you guys?

Toth: Well, I first got into electronic music by coming here. 2008 was my first one, and I just fell in love with the music and the crowd, and just everything about [the festival]. We'd pretty much come every year until we started touring, and then we got to play here. So now I get to be like, "hey, I used to be down there with you guys!"

Mejia: I actually used to work here [at Ultra]. My cousin got me the job – shout out to Chris! That was when I first got into electronic music. And obviously being in Miami and having all your friends and family around, you can't compare that to anything else. That's why Ultra is so special for us.

That makes sense – it's very full-circle for you guys. So after years of buzz and attention from major artists, what finally led you to release your first full-length album (Good Times Ahead) in 2016?

Toth: It was a personal goal of ours, to put together this big body of work and have it all be cohesive. We're usually very all over the place – doing lots of different things with different kinds of sounds,.so it was kind of a challenge for us to make something that works together and is one big project.

Mejia: The overall experience, like he said, was a bit challenging at first. Our whole thing has always been "death to genres," which is our way of saying: we love all kinds of music, we love listening to, making and playing all kinds of music. The challenge was making an album that sounds like everything – and all one thing – at once.

Let's talk a little bit about the collaboration you recently did – "Talkin' Bout," with Dyro.

Toth: We've been fans of his for a while; you know, playing out his music, and he plays our stuff. So he just hit us up [on Twitter], like "Hey, I'd really love to work on a song with you guys." We met up in L.A. and hung out in the studio and pretty much made the whole song in that one day. So many of our connections have been through social media – I mean, [Julio and I] even met through Facebook.

Mejia: It's so crazy to see how easy it is to make a connection with somebody across the world. I mean, [Dyro] is from Holland. It's so crazy.

Is there anything else that you're working on right now that you're excited about, that you can share?

Toth: We just put out an EP on Mad Decent – Death To Genres (Vol. 3). There's four tracks on there [featuring collaborations with Anna Lunoe, Dillon Francis, FIDLAR, Big Mack, and more].  We are also in the middle of our 3 Night Stand tour. We're doing five different cities, and are in each city for three nights, three shows in a row. Each night is based around a different genre, themed to a color.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BeBSxuMnvqC/?taken-by=wearegta

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Toth: The first night is house and techno, that's all purple-color themed. The second is moombahton and Latin music – big-room club kind of stuff – that's the yellow night. Then we have rap, trap and bass on the third night, which is all red themed.  It's really cool, because we get to really go into each genre. Usually we're mixing it all together in one hour, or like an hour and a half, but now we get to dedicate each night to a specific sound and really show people all the stuff that we love. We have the last shows in L.A. next week at the Echoplex, come check us out!

Mejia: Yeah! Echo Park, stand up!

Single-night and three-day passes to the final shows of GTA's 3 Night Stand Tour at the Echoplex in L.A. on March 30 – April 1 are still available. Show dates and further details about their other upcoming festival appearance this summer can be found on their official website.

2018 Miami Music Week/Ultra Music Festival
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Carl Cox At Ultra 2018

Carl Cox At Ultra 2018

Photo: Courtesy of Ultra Music Festival

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Ultra Music Festival 2018: 7 DJs Who Lit Up Miami

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Find out whose builds peaked the highest and whose drops hit the hardest at this weekend's 20th anniversary installment of Ultra Music Festival
Nate Hertweck
Brian Haack
GRAMMYs
Mar 26, 2018 - 5:30 pm

For its 20th anniversary, Ultra Music Festival pulled out all the stops. Whether you were in the crowd in Miami or watching the festival's fantastic live stream, the only thing more incredible than the energy this year was the lineup. From legends like Carl Cox to hometown favorites like GTA to a surprise appearance from a reunited Swedish House Mafia, this year's Ultra will no doubt be remembered as one of the finest.

Relive The Turn-Up At Ultra's 20th Anniversary

As we all return home this Monday, head back to work and try to find our way back to reality, let's take a bleary-eyed look back at seven DJ sets from Ultra that stuck to the inside of our brains and beat hard on the walls of our hearts.

1. Afrojack

GRAMMY-winner Afrojack celebrated his 10th anniversary in the music industry last year, and continues to push the boundaries of the genre and move effortlessly between flavors of EDM, hip-hop, and pop with the crowd's enjoyment always top of mind. His blistering Ultra set showed the variety and power of his talents, and featured a special appearance from Australian vocalist/songwriter Vassy, who joined him onstage for a version of David Guetta & Showtek's "Bad" and the Afrojack/Vassy collab "Lost." Afrojack clearly brought his A-game because, as he told us backstage before his set, Ultra is one of the most important moments of the year for DJs.

"[Ultra] is like a very high-level playground for the DJs." — Afrojack

"It's not just a music festival, it's a music festival linked to the biggest gathering of music industry professionals," said Afrojack, "so everyone from the dance music industry all around the world that has any kind of success is here during this week. So that's what keeps it magic. That's what keeps the artists trying their best because they're basically like, 'yo if you f*** this up you're not getting booked this year.' so it's like a very high-level playground for the DJs." — Nate Hertweck

2. Carl Cox

Headlining the Megastructure stage named in his honor, legendary house and techno pioneer Carl Cox showed the assembled army of partygoers that 40-plus years in the business as one of dance music's greatest selectors have done nothing to slow him down. Playing to a crowd numbering well into the tens of thousands, Cox ripped through his bottomless collection of choice tracks and crowd favorites, even taking a subtle nod at the perpetual rumors that Daft Punk might be reuniting for a surprise appearance by dropping "Rollin' & Scratchin'" off the French duo's acclaimed 1997 debut album, Homework. — Brian Haack

3. Slushii

The last couple years have been crazy for Los Angeles-based DJ/producer Julian Scanlan, a.k.a. Slushii. He signed with Red Light Management in 2016 at age 18, released several singles over the next year before dropping a collab with Marshmello in March of last year and releasing his debut studio album, Out Of Light, last August. Slushii's Friday night return to Ultra's Worldwide stage for the second year in a row was a triumphant one, marking his arrival as a fresh, young talent with more than enough versatility to be here to stay. — N.H.

4. Nora En Pure

South African-Swiss DJ Nora En Pure made her first appearance at Ultra since 2015 when she closed Stage 7. This year, her daytime Saturday set on the Ultra Worldwide stage was filled with upbeat vibes and En Pure's signature flair for integrating compelling chord progressions into her deep house sound. The Johannesburg-born and Switzerland-raised DJ/producer was also spotlighted earlier in the week as part of Winter Music Conference's "A Conversation With" series. — N.H.

https://twitter.com/NoraEnPure/status/977725899729768449

WOW @ultra !!! pic.twitter.com/RHCsQDXlNV

— Nora En Pure (@NoraEnPure) March 25, 2018

5. GTA

Miami-based genre-blending party leaders GTA (Matt Toth and Julio Mejia) took a quick pit stop on their 3 Night Stand U.S. tour to play their hometown's biggest dance festival. Taking the 9 p.m. Sunday night set on the Ultra Worldwide stage just before festival trap don RL Grime closed out the weekend, the duo worked their way seamlessly through the sounds of booming electro, hip-hop, future bass, and trap, blowing the party out for a nonstop rage fest. 

https://www.instagram.com/p/BgxjtGCHM2t/?hl=en&taken-by=wearegta

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"We have so many people here that we grew up with that are going to be in the crowd, they come every year and support," commented Toth about the experience of playing their fourth Ultra Music Festival.  "It's also really cool being able to see all of our producer friends from Twitter and online, and putting a face to a name, and just being able to connect with everyone," added Mejia. — B.H.

6. Dubfire B2B Nicole Moudaber B2B Paco Osuna

Ultra might be most closely associated with its unprecedented ability to bring the world biggest DJs together in one festival, but it also maintains a healthy respect for the world of underground dance and electronic music. The RESISTANCE stages provide attendees with a wide swath of premiere underground DJ sets to make sure every musical itch can be scratched. This year, the Carl Cox Megastructure played host to a special back-to-back-to-back set with Iranian-American Dubfire (one half of GRAMMY-winning duo Deep Dish), Nigerian Nicole Moudaber, and Spanish Paco Osuna served as a one-two-three punch clinic in globe-trotting techno. –N.H.

This is going to be HUGE!

Dubfire B2B Nicole Moudaber B2B Paco Osuna LIVE from the RESISTANCE Carl Cox MegaStructure now!

Tune in to Channel 2: https://t.co/F2TryvLQUb pic.twitter.com/Q3ybB2JfdI

— RESISTANCE (@ResistanceMusic) March 24, 2018

7. Swedish House Mafia

While the pervasive rumors of a Daft Punk reunion at Ultra once again turned out not to be true (as always), the equally exciting rumors that progressive house supergroup Swedish House Mafia would be reuniting, surprisingly, did turn out to be true. As the weekend progressed, flyers and posters hinting at the GRAMMY-nominated group's return began to pop up in the streets of Miami, and several sharp-eared Reddit users who were monitoring the festival's official live stream broadcasts began to note that none of the separate members of SHM had played a single Swedish House Mafia track during their mainstage sets. By the time it was separately noted that Sebastian Ingrosso and Axwell had teased the SHM logo as part of their on-screen visuals during their Friday night headlining set, the reunion was all but confirmed. When Ingrosso, Axwell, and Steve Angello hit the stage on Sunday night and reintroduced themselves as Swedish House Mafia, there wasn't a free spot left to stand at the mainstage, and more than a few tears of joy were shed among the capacity crowd. — B.H.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BgzPs-xF4hT/?taken-by=swedishhousemafia

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