On a Saturday morning in October, Park Jihyun awoke at 5:30 a.m. to go raving in Seoul.
And a lot about her prep routine was counterintuitive.
Instead of shimmying right into a miniskirt, the 29-year-old pulled on a pair of working tights. Instead of slipping her toes right into a set of precarious heels, she slipped into trainers. And in lieu of hailing a cab to the party, she ran from her house to the venue in Yongsan-gu, arriving after an hour-long, 5-mile jog, prepared to hit the dance flooring.
“It’s just random people who meet for the first time. But as we start dancing together, it becomes crazier as time flies,” Park says.
Since launching in May, the Seoul Morning Coffee Club’s Coffee Rave has develop into a viral success, drawing a whole bunch of like-minded Seoulites from the consolation of their beds to dance at dawn.
Attendees, who’ve paid 20,000 received (about $14) for his or her ticket, begin trickling in at 7 a.m., and line up for his or her drink of alternative, usually an iced Americano or a matcha. By 8 a.m., the DJ is pumping out hypnotic bass beats for an enthusiastic crowd of revelers who’re leaping in unison within the clear, vivid gentle of day, with nothing however caffeine to gasoline their booze-free rave.
“It’s a fresh start to the day,” founder Park Jae-hyun (no relation to Park Jihyun) tells NCS. “Even though it’s very early in the morning, everyone looks excited and happy, even without alcohol.”
The idea of sober raves is not new. New York-based outfit Daybreaker and Morning Gloryville in London have been throwing these sorts of raves for greater than a decade.
But lately, the most recent sub-genre of booze-free occasions has moved into neighborhood areas like espresso retailers and bakeries in main cities world wide, flipping the script on the standard clubbing scene.
From Brisbane to Mumbai, and Paris to Toronto, the motion has rapidly gained traction amongst a phase of Gen Z-ers and youthful Millennials who’re ingesting much less and prioritizing sleep, well being and wellness of their lives.
Interestingly, nevertheless, one of many pioneers of the idea in France says this wasn’t his purpose when he launched his first bakery rave in Paris again in 2019.
While dwelling and dealing in cities like Miami and Los Angeles as a French DJ and music producer, Alexis Duvivier, higher referred to as Aazar, mentioned one of many issues he missed most about house was French boulangeries, or bakeries.
“It was such a big part of my culture in my everyday life here in France,” Duvivier mentioned throughout an interview at a espresso store in Paris. “It was the first thing I wanted to do when I went back or when I was there. I was always on the lookout for the best baguette or the best pain au chocolat. It’s always been my personal little quest.”
So when it got here time to have a good time the discharge of his single “Diva” in 2019, Duvivier, 36, wished to create a free occasion for his followers, merging his two passions — music and baked items. He hosted his first early night rave at The French Bastards within the eleventh arrondissement, which had opened a yr earlier and rapidly distinguished itself from different bakeries for its irreverent and progressive menu.
As Aazar spun for the crowds in opposition to a backdrop of baguettes, trays of free pastries had been distributed to the revelers, making for enjoyable, uncommon visuals on social media.
This yr, clips of DJs Bob Sinclair and Peggy Gou enjoying for excited crowds additionally went viral, making The French Bastards one of the crucial unlikely rave scorching spots within the French capital.
But Duvivier says the idea was extremely private and was by no means supposed to develop into a gimmicky social media development.
“I didn’t choose a bakery because I was looking for an unusual location, but because for me it represents France and represents what I love,” mentioned Duvivier, who additionally hosts occasions throughout Europe as Bakery Session.
However, within the years since, the motion has grown greater than Duvivier’s preliminary intent, circling the globe and gaining momentum, because it displays shifting international traits and responds to a set of unmet wants.
“In Korea, there’s a lot of competition and mental illness in society,” says Park, the Seoul Morning Coffee Club (SMCC) founder. “I want to help Koreans have a freer life … tell them to calm down, relax, take it easy and that everything is going to be fine.”
While South Korea is not distinctive in coping with the difficulty of deteriorating psychological well being, burnout and a loneliness epidemic on this fragmented, digital age, struggling is significantly acute on this nation.
The suicide charge in South Korea is highest among the many nations tracked by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) at 23 suicides per 100,000 folks in 2023 – greater than double the OECD common. And it’s a troubling title the nation has held for greater than a decade.
In a rustic infamous for its hyper-competitive, status-centered social construction, work-life steadiness in South Korea could be tough to handle, with lengthy work hours and a cutthroat job market.
But lately, youthful generations have been increasingly rejecting the established order, prioritizing their wellness and in search of neighborhood in offline occasions like these organized by the Seoul Morning Coffee Club (the group additionally hosts morning runs, guide golf equipment and occasional chats) that permit them to blow off steam and enhance their psychological well being.
“Compared to other countries, a lot of Korean people are very self-conscious,” says Park Jihyun, who additionally volunteers as a espresso chat host. “But the coffee rave lets you be yourself and helps introverts and those who are self-conscious grow out of their shell.”
While Seoul is identified for its thrumming nightlife, the raves additionally cater to an underserved demographic within the metropolis: morning folks. And inside this group, many have a tendency to lead wholesome, booze-free life, which could be isolating in a ingesting tradition the place skilled and private relationships are sometimes cast over an evening of heavy ingesting.
For British content material creator Freya Hawksley, 23, who has been dwelling in Seoul for the previous 5 years, the occasion is a win-win, each as a morning particular person and non-drinker.
“When you’re partying and drinking, your energy levels start really high and then deplete throughout the night,” Hawksley says. “But when you go to these morning parties, you actually gain energy. So you turn up to these raves at 7 a.m., you finish at 10 a.m., and you feel completely energized and ready for the day.”
Seoul raves are additionally secure areas: healthful, family-friendly and multi-generational raves with infants and tots bopping to EDM alongside older adults.
“As a woman, I feel so much safer,” she added.
Hawksley was invited to the launch occasion as a pal of the organizers however has since returned on her personal.
It’s an analogous story in London, the place DJs Manpal Bhullar (Mezz B), 32, and Vishal Kamle (Chndra), 31, introduced sober, daytime raves to espresso retailers earlier this yr.
“I’m at that age where I don’t want to be out until the early morning, drinking and clubbing,” Kamle says. “It’s built around us in a way, reflecting our era.”
It’s a stunning admission for the duo, who’re used to enjoying late-night golf equipment as Lost in Kaydnce. But the founders of Coffee Gen say that London nightlife has modified over time, turning into too commercialized, impersonal and prohibitively costly.
That disillusionment is shared by many younger Britons. According to a 2025 consumer report from Night Time Industries Association UK revealed in February, 61% of the two,000 respondents aged 18-30 reported going out much less steadily within the final yr, citing monetary pressures, security considerations and transportation limitations.
The group has additionally warned that 40% of the UK’s nightlife companies confronted closures with out authorities intervention.
Matthew Campoli, co-founder of The Coffee Party in Toronto, additionally factors out that the brand new style of sober raves has succeeded in shaking up a stale and stagnant nightlife scene that misplaced a part of its luster after the pandemic.
“I think there’s a need for genuine connection again. Since the pandemic, there’s been a gap. Social anxieties have developed and routines were crushed, and a lot of people started to prioritize themselves during that time which is why interests have shifted.”
For Franklin Vaz, 33, the arrival of sober espresso raves in Toronto earlier this yr aligned along with his personal life-style adjustments, as he had determined to give up alcohol altogether.
But he nonetheless beloved music. When considered one of his DJ buddies who was spinning at a Coffee Party occasion informed him in regards to the gathering, Vaz jumped on the thought of becoming a member of like-minded folks. He had no expectations, he says, and went to help his pal.
While ready to get his drink, nevertheless, Vaz grew to become immediately obsessed with the “radiant” face of a girl who was additionally ready in line and struck up dialog. Turned out that each had been avid runners and led clear life: two days later, they went on their first date the place they ran the space of a half marathon, 13 miles, collectively.
“The conversation just flowed, so it was very exciting and very organic,” he says of assembly his now girlfriend.
After attending the occasions as a visitor, Vaz now works as an occasion helper at The Coffee Party.
“The events are very motivating,” he provides. “The people there want to be the best versions of themselves. So it’s pushed me to be the best version of myself too.”