DJ Irie is always one hell of a hype man, but his intensity felt even more over-the-top than usual at 2:59 a.m. on Sunday, February 2, inside Miami’s E11even nightclub.
The crowd was already amped after a night and early morning with alluring aerialists (including E11even resident Milena Straczynski), cabaret performers, confetti cannons and high rollers making it rain with stacks and stacks of dollar bills. Then, there was an elegant moment when aerialist Haley Viloria was lifted above the center stage while wearing a flowing wedding dress that fanned out and covered the room.
This was E11even’s 11th anniversary, and Irie had a tough job. How do you take things higher when everyone already knows what it’s like to turn it up to E11even? But as usual, Irie understood the assignment.
“This is a monumental moment,” Irie screamed, and then paused as the crowd grew louder and louder. “Put some love on the visionary Dennis DeGori. E11even changed the level of Miami nightlife forever. They took it to E11even!”
This was no exaggeration. It was, in fact, an understatement. E11even, led by the vision of concept creator DeGori, is changing a lot more than nightlife.
“Eleven years of E11even is truly surreal,” DeGori, who co-founded the nightclub with Michael Simkins and Marc Roberts, told Observer. “When I first created this concept, I envisioned more than just a nightlife destination. I set out to create a lifestyle brand.”
E11even, which sold $1.1 million worth of hats last year, is about different revenue streams, from real estate to the club’s own line of vodka, as much as it is about headliners like Drake, Miley Cyrus and Deadmau5. The more than 17,000 hats sold in 2024, which seemed to be as popular with women as men, were often accompanied by bottle-service presentations. (Sources close to E11even say that the 25,000-square-foot-club generates well over $50 million a year.) So, it’s time to scrape the sky.
“We are very excited to be under construction on two 65-story towers in the middle of downtown Miami,” Simkins told Observer. “The first tower is the 475-room E11even Club Hotel and Residences and is expected to be delivered in less than one year,” and will include a Deepak Chopra spa, four restaurants, a day club and a sports lounge. The second tower, a 550-unit condo and extended-stay building known as E11even Club Residences Beyond, will be finished in about 18 months.
The towers will be a short stroll from E11even nightclub, of course.
After revelers at the nightclub raised their shot glasses to DeGori on Sunday morning, Irie showered love on other E11even bosses, like operating partners Gino LoPinto and Daniel Solomon, before turning things over to the crowd.
“I love this place,” Irie said. “Eleven years of greatness. If you were part of the greatness, make some noise!”
Then Saweetie left her pit-level VIP booth, swaggered her way onto the center stage and took the energy even higher as she performed smashes like “My Type” and “Tap In.”
It was the culmination of back-to-back-to-back E11even anniversary celebrations that started with a friends-of-the-house industry night on Wednesday, and then featured talent like Fat Joe and Marshmello on subsequent nights/early mornings. DJs including resident Mister Gray, Vice and Eric DLux kept the party going as VIP tables rotated from Champagne to tequila shots and back again.
“I have had a continuous smile on my face for this entire celebration week,” said Solomon, who, like much of E11even’s staff, has been at this club since day one in 2014.
When we saw him, Solomon was indeed smiling, which is no easy feat amid this level of exhaustion. But what may be the wildest thing about E11even is that the party is often just starting when you think it’s ending. After Saweetie concluded around 4 a.m., we walked outside and saw E11even director of VIP services Rob Crosoli holding things down as guests who had just arrived stood around and hoped for a speedy entrance into the club.
As we waited for our car, we spotted LoPinto going through messages on his phone. We asked when he was going to crash.
“Right now,” he replied with a big smile. But he wasn’t serious. The line outside E11even was still growing and would keep growing for the next hour. And also: “We’re doing this again tomorrow,” DeGori said. “Lunay is performing.”
