Legendary British disc jockey CARL COX returns to the island with a brand new residency at Unvrs.

Touch down in Ibiza and you&rsquo;re greeted not just by sun and sea, but by a reminder of one of the island&rsquo;s most enduring icons, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/carlcoxofficial/">Carl Cox</a>. His face beams out from a billboard at the airport, a small symbol of his importance in the island&rsquo;s genesis. For decades, he has been one of the most magnetic figures in global dance music, and his name has long been synonymous with the <a href="https://www.lofficielibiza.com/ibiza/unvrs-has-landed">spirit of Ibiza</a>. From the parties of the &lsquo;90s to his legendary reign at Space, Cox has helped shape the island&rsquo;s reputation as the global epicentre of club culture. But in recent years, his absence has been keenly felt. With the closure of Space in 2016, many wondered if Ibiza had seen the last of its most beloved selector. The club scene continued unabated, of course, but a vital component was missing. Now, with the launch of his new residency at <a href="https://www.instagram.com/unvrsibiza/?hl=de">Unvrs</a>, Carl Cox is back.&nbsp;
His Ibiza story begins long before the influencer age, before social media and the super club phenomenon, first visiting in the mid-1980s with his girlfriend and his sister. Back then, Cox was working a day job in scaffolding in Carshalton, South London, hustling on the side to buy records and throwing small parties. &ldquo;I was doing school discos, weddings, college events, anywhere that would have me.&rdquo; It wasn&rsquo;t until he flipped through an old &ldquo;DJ International Magazine&rdquo; that he became aware of the musical energy brewing on the island: open-air clubs like Amnesia, Ku and <a href="https://www.lofficielibiza.com/ibiza/fifty-years-of-pacha">Pacha</a> beckoned from the pages. He visited as a curious observer. &ldquo;I was 18, maybe 19, and couldn&rsquo;t afford to go into Ku, but I bought the T-shirt and the keyring. That was enough for me then.&rdquo; That moment, standing outside these now-legendary clubs, ignited a spark that marked the start of a very special relationship with the island.

Photography Dan Reid

In 1991, Cox finally landed his first gig in Ibiza, thanks to Mensa, a UK promoter who organised holiday packages that combined club nights with travel. Cox&rsquo;s first sets were far from glamorous, but they laid the groundwork for what was to come. Things changed in 1995. Cox, along with BBC Radio 1&rsquo;s Eddie Gordon, brought a sound installation to Space&rsquo;s now-iconic terrace for a live Radio 1 broadcast. &ldquo;That was the moment. All vinyl, six-hour sets. People loved it.&rdquo; It wasn&rsquo;t long before the terrace became the place to be. The energy and the euphoria became Cox&rsquo;s signature. &ldquo;The terrace got so big, it overshadowed the main room. It became legendary.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Carl Cox's relationship with Space is the stuff of electronic music legend, and central to that story is Pepe Rosell&oacute;, the iconic club owner who saw something in Carl that few others did. More than a business partnership, their connection was, and still is, deeply personal, like father and son, a relationship grounded in respect and a mutual love for music. &ldquo;No one gave me an opportunity like Pepe did,&rdquo; Cox reflects. &ldquo;He could see my passion, my soul. He saw me for who I am.&rdquo; The relationship sparked a long-standing residency that would define an era. He was deeply invested in making Space better. Initially, he was booked for Thursday nights, directly competing with Cream, a powerhouse at the time. He wasn&rsquo;t keen. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t want a war of brands. I wanted to do something different.&rdquo; That &ldquo;something different&rdquo; became Tuesday nights, a risky move in Ibiza&rsquo;s calendar. At the time, only Sundays and Mondays were drawing big crowds. But with time, patience and Cox&rsquo;s magic behind the decks, Tuesdays at Space became sacred because Cox&rsquo;s nights were unique. He originally gave himself five years at Space. But year five turned into ten. Then fifteen. &ldquo;I thought, 'Surely it can&rsquo;t go any further,' but each year just got better.&rdquo; Eventually, though, all good things must come to an end. In 2016, the lease between Pepe and the venue&rsquo;s owners expired. &ldquo;Pepe was ready to retire. There was no contingency. We just stopped.&rdquo; Carl&rsquo;s final night at Space was always going to be emotional. Two days before the closing, he sat in Cipriani&rsquo;s restaurant. As Angie Stone&rsquo;s "Wish I Didn&rsquo;t Miss You" played in the background, something clicked. &ldquo;It hit me like a hammer. I was almost in tears. That was the tune.&rdquo; On that final night, Cox closed his set not with a hands-in-the-air house anthem, but with a soulful breakup ballad, his own edit of Angie Stone&rsquo;s neo soul hit.&ldquo;I could&rsquo;ve played Strings of Life or something by Faithless or anything. But I played that song because it meant something.&rdquo; The moment became forever tied to the spirit of Space, a farewell letter, a soulful goodbye, wrapped in melody.&ldquo;I still miss it,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;And that tune? It said everything I wanted to convey.&rdquo;

&ldquo;That was the moment. All vinyl, six-hour sets. People loved it.&rdquo;

Though some thought the Space farewell might be Cox&rsquo;s swan song in Ibiza, he had no intention of fading into legend. &ldquo;That chapter was closed, but my story with Ibiza wasn&rsquo;t over,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;I took some time, did some special sets, but I always knew I&rsquo;d be back with the right project.&rdquo; That project is Unvrs, his new residency at a purpose-built venue rising from the ashes of Privilege (formerly Ku). The concept is a return to roots, with state-of-the-art sound and an emphasis on musical connection. &ldquo;Unvrs is what I always dreamed a club could be,&rdquo; Cox explains. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s about music lovers, pure and simple.&rdquo; Designed with immersive audio and modular architecture, it strips away the gimmicks in favour of raw, emotional impact. His series of nights is carefully curated. &ldquo;I book people who excite me, who challenge me,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Some are legends, some are relatively unknown. That&rsquo;s what keeps it fresh.&rdquo; Cox&rsquo;s sets today reflect decades of craft. He blends digital precision with old-school intuition. &ldquo;The technology is insane now, but the heart of what I do and always have done hasn&rsquo;t changed,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;I still build every set from scratch. No pre-records, no syncing, just for show. I&rsquo;m there with the crowd, responding in real time. I don&rsquo;t want to press play on a predictable set. Playing it safe is the death of DJing. People come to experience something unique, to feel something special.&rdquo;

&ldquo;Unvrs is what I always dreamed a club could be,&rdquo; Cox explains. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s about music lovers, pure and simple.&rdquo;

So what keeps him going, after decades at the top? &ldquo;The people,&rdquo; he says simply. &ldquo;The energy. That moment when the whole room is locked in and collectively you feel part of something bigger.&rdquo; But balance, he says, is essential. &ldquo;I take three months off every year,&rdquo; he notes.
He&rsquo;s keenly aware that Ibiza has changed and continues to do so. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s not the scrappy island it used to be,&rdquo; he says. &ldquo;Now it&rsquo;s private jets, big spenders and curated four-day club packages. But it&rsquo;s still got the magic if you know where to look. It&rsquo;s always been an incredible place, and it still is today, despite the changes. There is something for everyone.&rdquo;Through the decades, Carl Cox has witnessed Ibiza&rsquo;s transformation firsthand, and he&rsquo;s been instrumental in shaping it. From the terrace of Space to today&rsquo;s immersive Unvrs experience, his presence back on the island is a reminder that authenticity, passion and soul still matter here. &ldquo;Ibiza always felt like home,&rdquo; he says with a smile. &ldquo;And after all these years, it still does.&rdquo;

&ldquo;Ibiza always felt like home,&rdquo; he says with a smile. &ldquo;And after all these years, it still does.&rdquo;

Ibiza, I’m Back

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