Interested in hearing your views on "cross over" and or compromising your personal music tastes when playing out.
Im a 110% EDM DJ with most of my stuff being barely tolerable by the typical top-40 crowd. I dont consider it to be completely break-out or genre pushing but it definitely is not the stuff daytime radio calls "dance music".
Anyhow, Im in my late 20's and have been listening EDM for most my life (back when they needed to call it “electronica” to place it in one spot at the brick and mortar music shops). You may or may have not noticed the saturation on the airwaves, in the media and at the clubs of an “electronic element” for the last…I’d say 5yrs. Those who were lucky enough to experience the birth and peak of EDM here in the states have definitely noticed a shift in the dynamics of the culture.
Maybe it’s the beginning of the cyclic generation gap. Those who were around to experience the emergence of the electronic music culture (and eventual mass marketing and commercialization) here in the States are now in their mid 30’s to 40’s. A lot of them have stopped making/spinning music and go out a lot less. The “new generation” has started to emerge/redefine things and what Ive noticed is a large-scale shift towards commercial accessibility electronic music (think lots of top 40 “EDM remixes”).
Im not too fond of this type of stuff but it seems like less and less of the younger generation finds “traditional” EDM appealing. It seems the ease of getting into the DJ culture now (and even becoming a “DJ”) might be contributing to a dance scene dominated more by poppy subgenres or track selections (i.e. electro & dubstep).
I often wonder how the DJs I respect who have made it big and still play to thousands at a time around the world got there. EDM used to be a very exclusive and acquired taste. Im sure many of them experienced crowds, venues or even regional areas that were *not* into EDM at the time.
My question is…how do you suppose they built their following? Did Digweed, Sasha, Richie Hawtin, Carl Cox, etc, etc get to be the masters they are by just sticking to their guns the whole time and playing only what they play? I cant imagine it went that well all the time in the beginning.
How do you all feel about it? I have stuff that I consider to be a little more “accessible” to people not really into EDM but I *only* spin EDM and usually it’s the stuff you would never mistake to find in the top 40 section. What are your views on “cross-over” type tracks or genres. ***strictly EDM DJs*** how do YOU feel about spinning other genres aside from EDM when the crowd seems not to be an EDM crowd? How did the greats turn people who weren’t EDM lovers into EDM fanatics?
Bookmarks