DJ Charlotte de Witte caps Movement on Sunday to become fest's first-ever woman headliner

Charlotte de Witte closed the second day of Movement festival Sunday — and made history doing it.

The Belgian producer-DJ became the first woman to headline the main stage of Detroit’s long-running techno fest, serving up a 90-minute set that brought waves of rapture to a crowd packed shoulder-to-shoulder at Hart Plaza.

De Witte’s set of dark, driving techno — which took flight early on with her recent single “High Street” — gave her the limelight in techno music’s historical birthplace as she closed out her latest North American tour.

Since May 27, 2000, when Stacey Pullen closed the inaugural day of the Memorial Day weekend event then known as the Detroit Electronic Music Festival, the main-stage headliners had all been men.

De Witte, who played Movement in 2018 and 2019, has been on a clear trajectory to the marquee slot, with a growing international stature and a purist-leaning sound that fits the Detroit fest's brand.

“I don’t take these things for granted and to be able to play even the smallest role in what women do for and in electronic music is incredibly humbling,” she tweeted Sunday evening.

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Movement organizers have made a concerted effort in recent years to increase the presence of women artists, and de Witte’s Sunday headlining set made it manifest.

Movement wasn’t the only festival-related milestone for de Witte this year: In March, she became the first techno artist to play the main stage at Miami’s Ultra Music Festival, which traditionally has showcased mainstream EDM acts.

De Witte was preceded on Hart Plaza's main stage Sunday by some of Detroit’s iconic techno figures: Eddie Fowlkes delivered a reliably soulful set late afternoon, with Robert Hood lending his own seasoned skills to an hour of heavy minimal techno.

And there was Cybotron, as trailblazer Juan Atkins and company revisited the proto-techno music he crafted in the early ‘80s, with stark drum patterns and time-capsule synth lines undergirding classic fare such as “Alleys of Your Mind.”

Across Hart Plaza Sunday, a familiar kaleidoscope of beats accompanied a sumptuous day of weather on Detroit’s riverfront, where thousands of festgoers brought unflagging energy well into the night.

New to Movement this year is an expanded VIP section, occupying a spacious area by Jefferson Avenue. The reimagined space includes a large bar tent and amenities such as lockers, mobile charging stations and a water refill area, with greenery helping to upscale the vibe. There’s also a new, compact DJ stage, where Sunday’s performers included members of Detroit Techno Militia.

Movement will resume — and wrap up — on Monday with another busy day of music capped by Underworld’s headlining set on the main stage.

Contact Detroit Free Press music writer Brian McCollum: 313-223-4450 or bmccollum@freepress.com.