Bands with fans suck.
Casual fans are losers.
You have to breathe the scene to enjoy the music.
words by Josh van Dyk
People claim to love dance music because they are free to express themselves without judgment. But there is something happening within the scene that strikes me as odd. Those who seek to avoid judging eyes are now the judges. We are treating people who don’t love dance music as much as us, as if they are terrible people. What happened to having an open mind?
I’m not quite sure why this is happening. My best guess would be that it has to do with people not fully accepting what dance music is about. Stop worrying about others and worry about yourself.
Yeah it’s fun to preach the whole love and acceptance thing but honestly… practice what you preach. If 2 Chainz wants to come to Echostage, it doesn’t affect your life. Don’t go. It’s curious that people who talk about uniting the world through dance can be so vindictive.
Paris Hilton was recently photographed getting a signed copy of Armin Van Buuren’s new album Intense. It went viral with people coming at her as though she killed their grandma. Is this the message dance music promotes? I thought we were using music as a tool to unite the world? Or is only dance music allowed to unite people. Rap, country, jazz and pop aren’t allowed. Ever hear of Woodstock people? The concept of peace, love and music preceded ‘EDM.’
After David Guetta took the top spot in the 2011 DJ Mag Top 100 he was crucified by these so-called ‘real fans.’ Are these kinds of actions really necessary? Do we really need to bad mouth DJs we don’t like just for the sake of it? How about we try this new thing where everyone just listens to the music. Maybe we can be productive members of society instead of bitching and moaning about what musicians do.
I understand that dance music lovers are passionate. They want what they have to stay pure. It’s cool to want the best for the things closest to your heart, but come on. Hating accomplishes nothing. Seriously. What do you get out of it? We come off as stuck-up and arrogant. And based on the way we act, we are.
Maybe it’s human nature to think what you hold dear is better than what you don’t care for. That’s fine. Jst remember it’s an opinion. Keep in mind if you are offended when someone says your beloved ‘techno‘ isn’t real music… don’t become them and complain that a primarily EDM-fcoused venue is hosting a genre of music you don’t particularly care for.
If you’re reading this you’re most likely a fan of dance music. You love what has been built and want to keep it moving forward. Dance music can coexist with other genres of music and ways of life. Rap, country, rock, reggae, every other genre of music is still art. It is still creating something from nothing. It shouldn’t get any less respect than dance music. People outside of the scene should not get any less respect either. If you disagree with something, be objective. Try to look at it from a neutral viewpoint while weighing the pros and the cons. Try to be constructive before you become negative.
Just remember there’s a thing called love that we all forget.
If you like the article thank Josh van Dyk 🙂
2 Responses
Thank you for posting this. Josh van Dyk is spot on. While edm has grown, the negative “me first” crowd grown as well. Who cares if Nero is GI Joe. While at Bassnectar last week, there was an amazing group of people who we open and fun to rage with. There are those that feel like edm is too commercial or that having too many or not enough LED lights on a animal hat is appropriate for a show… Glad you talked about this and I hope more read it.
I honestly couldn’t agree more. Great article Josh!