A DJ party on the light rail kicked off weeks of celebrations for Odense’s new students
On Friday, August 22nd, an Odense light rail train was transformed into both a silent disco and a high-energy DJ party on rails, when Let the Beat Ride, featuring top DJ Rune Rask, launched several weeks of welcome activities for the city's new students.
The event was organized by the Generator Festival in collaboration with Odense Letbane and VisitOdense. It highlighted Odense’s ambition to be a modern, culturally engaged, and attractive student city – and showed how the light rail connects the city’s educational institutions.
Every year, thousands of new students move to Odense to study at one of the city’s many higher education institutions. The municipality is home to approximately 31,000 students, and has repeatedly been named one of Denmark’s top student cities. On Friday evening, the welcome activities officially launched with a spectacular event on the light rail – first with a silent disco, followed by a high-energy set from Rune Rask, one of Denmark’s biggest DJs and a headliner at this year’s Generator Festival.
Let the Beat Ride also shines a spotlight on Odense as a modern, community-driven student city. Because this is not just about one festive evening – it’s a movement: a new way to experience the city, new ways of connecting, and a clear ambition to foster connection, community, and cultural experiences for the city's many young students.
Peter Rahbæk Juel, Mayor of Odense, says:
“We’re working purposefully to make Odense an even stronger student city. Not just by offering great education, but by creating a daily life where young people can thrive. With affordable housing, a compact city centre, and great transport options by bike and light rail, student life becomes more cohesive. At the same time, we prioritise a vibrant cultural scene and green community spaces that offer room for connection and new encounters. We’re always happy to welcome new students – and this year, we’re doing it with a DJ party on our very own light rail.”
A new chapter begins
Let the Beat Ride marks the beginning of several weeks of welcome activities across the University of Southern Denmark (SDU), UCL University College, and other educational institutions in Odense.
This includes the city’s major student festival, Generator Festival, which brings students together across campuses. Held on September 5–6, the festival turns central Odense into one big street party with concerts and a lively festival atmosphere. But the build-up has already begun, with pre-events popping up around the city – most recently when OB and Generator hosted a pre-party with Emil Lange at Nature Energy Park. The University of Southern Denmark is also holding its student party on September 12–13.
As a co-organiser of Let the Beat Ride, Generator Festival aims to create a strong and inclusive start to student life – and to show how student and city life can go hand in hand from day one.
Julian Leker, music booker at Generator Festival, says:
“The annual Generator Street Festival is all about bringing students together in Odense, no matter what programme they’re starting. We’re celebrating the beginning of something new – and this year, we’re taking it a step further. For the first time, we’re taking over a light rail train to create the Let the Beat Ride experience. It’s just one more reason to choose Odense as your student city – a place where you can be part of new adventures.”
Across the city
The event began with a group meetup at the light rail’s control centre at Parkering Syd in Odense. From there, the DJ train headed towards Albani Torv, where the afterparty continued at June Bar.
Lotte Stensberg, Commercial Director of Odense Letbane, says:
“The start of the academic year is an important occasion for the light rail, as thousands of new students come to Odense and need to get to know the city. We want young people to experience the light rail as part of the city’s rhythm – and part of their everyday life. Let the Beat Ride is a creative and new initiative that directly links the start of student life with the light rail.”
Let the Beat Ride is organised by Generator Festival, VisitOdense, and Odense Letbane. Participants were selected via a random draw among ticket holders for the Generator Festival.
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