Seeing as it’s IMS week and the island will be full of music industry types beavering about and ‘networking’, here’s my Top 10 Ibiza Music Videos that captured the true spirit of the White Isle.
1980s pop classics to modern dance anthems, these music videos used Ibiza as the perfect backdrop.
From 10 to 1
10. Sigala, David Guetta & Sam Ryder – Living Without You (2022)
Filmed across Ibiza’s beaches and coastal roads, this video captures the island’s modern summer atmosphere, combining uplifting dance music with sun-drenched Mediterranean scenery including Es Vedra, Time and Space and the abandoned Festival Club in San Jose. This one ticks the landmark boxes plus a friend’s son plays a starring role.
9. Sigma ft. Ella Henderson – Glitterball (2015)
Blending drum and bass energy with Ibiza’s coastal landscapes, Glitterball celebrates the adventurous summer lifestyle that draws music lovers to the island every year. Grimsby’s very own Ella Henderson looks on as the camera showcases a sumptious White Isle to a new generation.
8. David Guetta & Bebe Rexha – I’m Good (Blue) (2022)
Guetta again, this time flexing his middle aged torso (and his much improved hairline) and showing off his fabulous Ibiza house and his Ushuaia residency. Filmed during the summer season in Ibiza and produced by my good friend Lou Gallagher, this video showcases the island’s vibrant nightlife and club culture. This global hit reflects Ibiza’s continuing influence on contemporary dance music.
7. Example – Watch the Sun Come Up (2009)
This video cleverly meshes London with Ibiza as Example wanders around the old town of Ibiza staring longingly into space for inspiration. Elliot Gleave’s breakthrough single mixes reflective lyrics with visuals inspired by Ibiza’s nightlife and those famous sunrise moments that follow long nights out. We’ve all been there mate!
6. The Wanted – Glad You Came (2011)
It’s a bit ‘poppy’ but shot on Ibiza’s beaches and at villas and boat parties, Glad You Came showcases the island’s carefree summer lifestyle. More importantly this video helped introduce Ibiza’s party culture to a new generation of pop fans and nicely coincided with the island’s ‘new era’, post 2010 – just as it was about to go stellar.
5. Melanie C – I Turn to You (2000)
For nothing more than showing off the gorgeous Es Paradis in all its finery, this video is filmed principally around San Antonio. I Turn to You perfectly captured the island’s early-2000s clubbing energy and became a global dance hit and remains a recognisable Ibiza anthem from the artist formally known as Sporty Spice – who still loves a bit of Ibiza over 2 decades on.
4. Steve Walsh – Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now (1988)
Released in 1988, this hit became a feel-good classic closely associated with Ibiza’s Balearic party scene. The video is filmed at Cala Conta and in San Antonio’s famous West End and is unapologetically 80’s cheese. The tragic back story is that Walsh died shortly after the video wrapped, due to a car accident on the White Isle, but his uplifting vocals reflected the eclectic sound DJs were playing on the island during the mid to late 80s. You what! RIP Big Steve.
3. David Morales – Needin U (1998)
Ibiza mysteriously disappeared from the music video scene for several years then returned with this banger of a video from house legend David Morales which uniquely captured the spirit of Ibiza’s late 90s club culture. The POV filming fitted perfectly with the uplifting anthem that became a staple on dance floors across the island during one of Ibiza’s defining eras for house music. This video shouted it out loud – Ibiza is back baby!
2. Freddie Mercury & Montserrat Caballé – Barcelona (1987)
Who would have thought that a bonafide rock star and a Spanish operatic soprano would go together like tapas and Rioja wine but they melded beautifully and this iconic video, filmed at Ku Club in San Rafael, showcased the haunting anthem of the 1992 Summer Olympics for the very first time – watched by a stunned crowd at the world’s biggest club. Note: Iconic maybe underused on this occasion.
1. Wham! – Club Tropicana (1983)
It had to be. George and Andy in their early 80’s pomp (and their budgie smugglers). Filmed at the legendary Pikes Hotel and the surrounding area in the hills outside San Antonio, Club Tropicana helped introduce Ibiza to a global audience. With poolside cocktails, sunshine and carefree glamour, the video created one of the earliest pop-culture images of Ibiza’s party lifestyle and we’re still celebrating it over 40 years later. Club Tropicana drinks are free, fun and sunshine, there’s enough for everyone!
So this is my Top 10, there’s a few that could have been mentioned but didn’t make the cut. From poolside glamour to sunrise after-parties, Ibiza has provided the setting for some unforgettable music videos.
Decades after the first artists arrived, Ibiza continues to inspire new generations of musicians and filmmakers.
Do you agree, which ones have I missed?
MAN IN SAN AN by Martin Makepeace 