Put a nightclub in the basement of a Las Vegas Strip hotel? With a musical format that included electronic dance music? And let revelers party into the wee hours of the morning? Yes, yes and heck yes! Renowned nightlife innovator Victor Drai shook up the industry when he opened the doors to Drai’s After Hours in 1999 underneath the casino floor at the now-shuttered Barbary Coast hotel and casino. His vision paved the way for late-night romps soundtracked by EDM music that had just made its way into the mainstream.
For more than 15 years, Drai’s After Hours continued its reign on the corner of Las Vegas Boulevard and Flamingo—that is, until the hotel property was newly minted as The Cromwell in 2014. With that rebranding, Drai and company set their sights from underground to the rooftop and opened Drai’s Nightclub. The 65,000-square-foot, indoor-outdoor venue erected a main stage for what would be another nightlife innovation—live performances inside a nightclub.
Although big-name DJs still made the bill, Drai’s Nightclub built a stellar reputation for shifting nightclub expectations and providing guests will live musical performances and residency shows from some of the hip-hop industry’s biggest names. Over the years the roster included Migos, Rae Sremmurd, Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, 50 Cent, Wiz Khalifa, Fetty Wap, A$AP Rocky, Meek Mill, Future, Big Sean, Tyga, Kenrick Lamar, 2 Chainz and Cardi B.
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