This Headliner Has Raved in More Than 45 Countries

Drew Goldberg, aka “The Hungry Partier,” has traveled to more than 50 countries and raved in at least 45 of them (he can’t remember the exact number). The 23-year-old spoke with us via Skype from his flat in Korea, where he has been teaching English for the past year and a half. Originally from Arizona, Goldberg attended the University of Wisconsin at Madison and studied abroad in Prague in 2012. Since then, he’s been hooked on visiting as many countries as he can, traveling and partying extensively throughout Asia, Oceania, the Middle East, Europe, and North and Central America. You can find the full list of countries he’s been to, and a whole lot more, on his travel blog, The Hungry Partier.

We interviewed Goldberg right before he left Korea to go, well, travel some more. To find out about everything from the dance music scene in Myanmar to why Europeans are so miffed about American ravers, check out our Q&A with him below.

You’ve been teaching English in Korea for a year and a half now. What’s the dance music scene like there?
The dance music scene here is insane. Nobody would think that Korea is crazy, but I’ve never partied harder anywhere. Seoul is the next-best city to club in after Vegas, because clubs go all night, and all the big-name people come here as well.

Was there a specific moment or show that first got you into dance music?
Yes! I went to Bonnaroo 2011, and I wasn’t into dance music at all; but I saw Pretty Lights, and I had no idea who he was, but I remember being like, “Holy fucking shit.” It was just life-changing.

How do you pay for all your traveling?
Americans typically just want things and don’t value experiences, so they’ll just worry about getting a new car, getting a nice apartment, and getting a really big TV, and that shit is expensive. I don’t spend money on any of that; I just buy plane tickets. The school I’m working for provides housing, so I don’t have to pay rent. Since I don’t have a car, I don’t need to make car payments or pay for gas. I value experiences like traveling, meeting people—really experiencing different cultures and exploring life around the world. To me, that’s so much more important in the long run than just a bigger TV. After my contract ends, I plan on supporting myself full-time through my blog, which has really picked up in the past few months.

Have you been to any countries where you weren’t able to find parties?
I’ve heard dance music everywhere in the world I’ve been—even in Muslim countries like Indonesia. I just came back from Myanmar, which is very undeveloped. They just opened their doors to tourism, so there isn’t even a McDonald’s; it’s like Thailand was 20 years ago. I went to a club in the main city, Yangon, where the DJ was playing drum & bass, then hardcore, and then he would stop and play trance. No one had any clue what was going on.

What’s been your favorite experience raving abroad?
It has to be the time that my friends and I went to Let it Roll, a random drum & bass festival in Prague in January 2012. It was one of my first festivals, and it was in some sketchy neighborhood outside the city. The entire experience was bizarre. We were the only non-Czech people inside the venue. I remember seeing Netsky there before he became famous, and he blew my mind.

How would you say raving differs in the places you’ve been to?
America: Generally speaking, I think that Americans use festivals as an excuse to go absolutely crazy. They definitely dress up the craziest, wear the most kandi, and get the most fucked up out of any culture in the world. A lot of Americans may like the music, but a lot of them go to shows have no idea who is playing. They just go to party.

Europe: While Europeans still can go wild and crazy, they go to shows more for the music. I feel that Europeans are sort of annoyed that Americans have commercialized the scene and have taken it to a new level, because the scene is not what it used to be 10 years ago.

Asia: Asia is in a completely different ballpark, as the scene is just starting to get massive. New festivals are popping up here. I went to Ultra Korea and Sensation, and they were wild! Asians don’t really dress up at all; kandi is barely seen anywhere. People know the big-name DJs but don’t have that connection with them, because none of the DJs are Asian. Most of the locals also don’t speak English, so they don’t understand the lyrics. They still connect with the music through the beat and rhythm, even though they don’t understand what’s being said. I’ve been saying for years that Asians have the best dance moves. Here’s a video from my YouTube channel as proof:

What’s something that American ravers can learn from those abroad?
They can learn how to respect one another, because even though raving is all about “I love you. You love me. We’re a big happy family,” I feel like Americans can be disrespectful to one another. Oftentimes, they just go to events to party and don’t care about the music—more so than people from other countries.

Do you plan to stop traveling at some point?
No, I feel like I’m just getting started! I plan to travel, party and rave full-time in 2015 and support myself through blogging. This year, I plan on visiting the Philippines, India and Nepal, where I’ll be hiking Mount Everest. In the summer, I plan to go to EDC Las Vegas, then do a four-month Euro trip, hitting up Tomorrowland and lots of other festivals and parties.

Any travel tips?
Whichever country I go to, I always learn five or six important phrases before I go. It goes a long way.

Is there anything else you want to tell people?
I really want to encourage people to visit my website and talk to me if they have any questions about traveling or nightlife. I love talking to people; it’s my favorite thing to do. If I’m around the world somewhere, come party with me.

To contact Drew, visit his website. For pictures, click to the next page.

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