What demographic do you think caters most to EDM right now?

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parachuteantics

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I was talking to my younger brother (16 years old) who is in high school about people who listen to EDM, dubstep, whatever you may call it. I live in a rural area of Upstate NY. My brother said even though dubstep is popular in general, most of the kids in his high school listen to rap/hip-hop including himself. He said he likes dubstep with rap but he just wold prefer the rap, the lyrics, and all eletronic music sounds the same. He said that the kids who attend the local raves/EDM scenes are druggies or just slutty girls. He also said the "popular" kids only go to house parties and just do molly, weed, etc at the party versus going to a concert/show.

I find this interesting as someone who attends local shows and shows in NYC, I have seen all types of crowds. The NYC crowd is obviously an older crowd, as it's usually 18+ to enter. The shows around here are normally 16+ and I always thought that it was a bit of a younger crowd attending these shows locally versus NYC crowd. My brother then said that not many people like electronic music, that only really weird kids or kids that do drugs. All the local schools seem to be same.

Is this a rural thing or a thing in general? I thought eletronic music was becoming more mainstream but apparently not so around where I live. Or maybe the eletronic music or dubstep that is popular is just really watered down so some of the kids like it? Any thoughts / opinions?
 
Using information from a high school student to gauge how things are in the real world isn’t the best way to get accurate information. High school truly is its own universe in a way. Even college kids could offer better insight but even that is its own microcosm in many ways.

I can’t speak with certainty about the scene now as I don’t go out very often anymore but the beautiful thing about this scene was that it DIDN'T cater to any crowds. It catered to ALL crowds. I am really hoping that’s still how it is.

We used to have metal and punk kids coming out for the hardcore/gabber and speedcore, the hip hop kids would come for the drum and bass/Jungle, the ravers would come for a bit of everything. You would have all of these people that would not get along on the outside all coming together in harmony, with almost no fighting.
 
That's very true. I do think college kids would have better insight on the subject. I guess I was surprised to hear that he, a high schooler, only thought weirdos and druggies would attend and when I do see 16 year olds go to the shows.

As in another post that I started regarding promoting/ticket sales, I am really trying to figure out type of people will buy tickets from me and what the biggest demographic is for EDM. I personally don't care about it but I still think there must be a general demographic or stereotype that high schoolers or even college kids see that go to these types of events.
 
So your brother might be into Trap music? That's cool, whatever.

EDM is such a broad thing that it breeds its own little cliques. Like if you take my area, you got the:

-Top 40 clubs that probably put in a couple of Swedish House Mafia tracks, or Tiesto at least by the radio playlists (Even Psy! gasp!).
-Probably generic house at supperclubs, decent places are probably playing Chicago House or just plain good house, like a cocktail bar.
-Big events where they bring in a DJ, with supporting acts. Armin Van Buuren, Tiesto, etc.
-There's DJ nights at some venues where they do 80s night, classics, etc.
-Random raves by local DJs with a headliner. Breaks, Drum and Bass, Dubstep are popular. Maybe Electro or Electro House.
-Hip Hop has a strong connection to our city, turntablism is pretty big, its not really EDM but it has to be mentioned.

-A local festival where its a mix of folk, rock, indie, and some EDM.
-Maybe Euro, or a mix of Euro or Middle Eastern dance, etc. at some clubs I'm guessing.

-House parties where anything could be spinning.

But very little Trance, Techno, Hardstyle (Hardcore, etc.). Which is funny because years ago Happy Hardcore was big when it was big (? I dunno even know, early 2000s)

Where if you go somewhere else its a whole different kettle of fish. When I was living in Toronto there'd be a monthly, a night of psy basically with the Industrial, EBM, Hard Electro, Hard House, Hardcore crowd and DJs etc. . Someone was even doing a monthly of Experimental, Ambient, etc. at a bar.


In saying that EDM is a global thing is without question.

But your brother is right. At the high school level just look for the weirdos. Hahaha.
 
in what sense does a demographic cater to edm?

as with most things, this boils down to a definition of terms. mainstream? you could argue that electronic music is incredibly mainstream - every other advertisement on tv has electronic music behind it. i was at a psytrance event in san francisco a couple of weeks ago and i would not describe that event as mainstream.

op, as jpgrdnr says, edm is such a broad term, it's hard to answer your question in a meaningful way.

alasdair
 
jpgrdnr said:
http://techno.org/electronic-music-guide/
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I love that guide but I don't see how that has to do with being mainstream or not, that guide has been out for what, 10 years now?

Also, I guess it does depend on the TYPE of EDM, as EDM is very generic. I really feel out of place on this electronic music forum, as I was always one for house music, specially the french and disco house genre...I was never much into trance or psy or hardstyle...I was always a house head I suppose :/ ANYWAY

I guess another question would be, if EDM in general is becoming mainstream, what group normally is attracted to it? The raves I go to play house, dubstep, trip-hop, drum and bass, and mainstream EDM. The events that suck are the ones that are mainstream such as Dada Life. Anyway, there are more "underground" places to go for good electronic music here, but usually no fan base. There;s a bar/club that plays awesome awesome electronic music - but there's probably 10-20 people there, less than half dancing, it relly puts off the mood for me. Even though the music is great - I could dance at home with paying a cover or for drinks.

I guess it's really depending on the location too...
 
That's a question that often threatens the integrity of electronic music producers.
Refer to Madonna pissing off Deadmau5

To me, I see EDM as becoming popular due to its versatility and optimistic connotations. I've listened to artists like daft punk my whole life as I was never raised on rock music or hip hop. EDM was something my conservative parents never cared about while raising me as it usually does not have bad lyrics. I feel like the next generation will only continue to become more into the EDM genre and it excites me.
 
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Renz Envy said:
That's a question that often threatens the integrity of electronic music producers.
Refer to Madonna pissing off Deadmau5

To me, I see EDM as becoming popular due to its versatility and optimistic connotations. I've listened to artists like daft punk my whole life as I was never raised on rock music or hip hop. EDM was something my conservative parents never cared about while raising me as it usually does not have bad lyrics. I feel like the next generation will only continue to become more into the EDM genre and it excites me.
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I agree! I grew up on Daft Punk and EDM and was not really listening to what other people in my high school or what was cool or top 40 (I am a sucker for some top 40 though haha). I just hope the next generation of EDM is not watered down if you know what I mean...
 
if EDM in general is becoming mainstream, what group is normally attracted to it?
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This is like some sort of weird question people in the music industry ask themselves all the time. Its the same with marketing.

How can we sell you more of the stuff that you already like or have?

Marketing data is a closely guarded industry secret.

Let's take Deadmaus: if Deadmaus is mainstream, who likes Deadmaus? Or more importantly who buys Deadmaus music. Or in your case who buys tickets to Deadmaus concerts.

For me, that's a tough question. I don't know. Like if you go to an average night at the alternative rock bar and play a Deadmaus track, will people immediately vomit and kill the DJ, or will they not even blink and order another beer? Or whatever, you go to the pick up bar, and drop a Skrillex track in the middle of the set will people stop dancing and go get a drink ... or will they not care and continue dancing?

I've heard a lot of people refer to EDM as car music. People who like EDM listen to EDM while they drive their cars. Or workout music. Or music to listen to while they do computer stuff.

EDM is mainstream. Gangnam style officially charted No. 1 on the iTunes Music Video Charts.
 
I don't consider Gangnam Style as EDM - I would consider that a pop song. Like I said I guess it really depends on the location it seems! I like Deadmau5 and Skrillex, saw them both live, but they are more mainstream EDM. EDM is Electronic Dance Music, just a term to generalize eletronic music, it can include all types of genres of electronic.
 
parachuteantics said:
I don't consider Gangnam Style as EDM...it can include all types of genres of electronic.
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unless that electronic music to which people dance is popular, then it's not edm?

your posts seem a little confused so perhaps you could take a step back and define your terms? what's your definition of edm? mainstream?

alasdair
 
alasdairm said:
unless that electronic music to which people dance is popular, then it's not edm?

your posts seem a little confused so perhaps you could take a step back and define your terms? what's your definition of edm? mainstream?

alasdair
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Jeez, if you happen to know so much, what your defintions of it??

EDM can turn into pop music but EDM I guess can a personal defintion as well. EDM can contain artists that are popular such as Swedish House Mafia but they were and are still eletronic dance music whether they became more mainstream or not. Mainstream and pop music are different IMO.

Gangnam Style is simply a Top 40 or "pop" song that has infusions of EDM style/production.


EDM (Electronic Dance Music) is electronic music produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered in dance-based entertainment. The music is largely created for use by disc jockeys and is produced with the intention of it being heard in the context of a continuous DJ set; wherein the DJ progresses from one record to the next via a synchronized segue or "mix".[1]

The term electronic dance music was used in America as early as 1985,[2] but didn't catch on as a genre name until the second half of the 1990s, when it was embraced by the music industry[3][4] and in academic writing.[5] The term's use surged in the late 2000s with the mainstream appeal of hybrid styles which are increasingly disconnected from EDM's relatively underground roots.[6]

Some 15 years later, in 2011, Spin magazine reported that the American dance music scene had finally reached critical mass with a "new rave generation" of mainstream consumers having emerged.[11] Both domestic and foreign artists no longer viewed America as the "final frontier" when it came to EDM and the market was now wide open.[11] Today it has become common for established Top 40 artists and producers to infuse elements of popular EDM styles in their music.[9] According to Time Out Chicago, EDM has "become the driving beat behind pop music and product sales, the soundtrack of choice for a new generation." -WIKIPEDIA[13]
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parachuteantics said:
Jeez, if you happen to know so much, what your defintions of it??

EDM can turn into pop music but EDM I guess can a personal defintion as well. EDM can contain artists that are popular such as Swedish House Mafia but they were and are still eletronic dance music whether they became more mainstream or not. Mainstream and pop music are different IMO.

Gangnam Style is simply a Top 40 or "pop" song that has infusions of EDM style/production.
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You consider gangnam style pop but not skrillex and deadmau5? I would argue that skrillex and deadmau5 are the epitome of pop music. The definition of EDM is actually pretty cut and dry, it’s music that is electronic and danceable, that’s it. Perhaps you need to focus more on how you define pop music? If we are to go by the Princeton definition then it’s simple “music of general appeal to teenagers”. That sums up deadmau5 pretty well, doesn’t it?

It's best not to confine music to a box with limitations on what it should and shouldn’t be. All that does is limit its evolution. Part of what makes EDM beautiful is that it should be limitless and constantly evolving.

7 years ago most people were vehemently opposed to dubstep being called EDM because they felt it wasn't danceable, now it's considered one of the most mainstream genre's of EDM. Funny how that works, eh?
 
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@LuGo - in a way you are correct but I guess I listened to Deadmau5 and Skrillex before they were popular so sometimes it's hard for me to see them go mainstream, I still don't consider either pop music. Mainstream EDM yes...
 
That’s understandable. You have specific memories attached to them. Kind of how a person can be a grown adult but to the parents they will always be their little baby.
 
Pop music usually follows certain cliche chord progressions and has a bunch of other catchy little tricks I don't really feel like going into.
But nowadays I would label pop music as "Vocal Electro House"


Strict electronic music, I believe, requires more effort as the producer has to spend creative energy coming up with other things than a few background details (percussion, bassline, Lead Synth) compressed and ducked under the computer altered voice of an attractive pop-persona.

It requires patience a lot of people do not have to make music that can flow and progress without becoming repetitive.
 
parachuteantics, forgive me for reading your posts and responding to them. i'm asking simple, straightforward questions in an attempt to understand what your point is and what the questions you are asking mean. you seem uncomfortable discussing your position which seems to me to be muddled. if you're not comfortable discussing your position, you may wish to rethink your participation in this discussion forum?

popular is defined as "adapted to or indicative of the understanding and taste of the majority". mainstream is defined as "a prevailing current or direction of activity or influence". they are virtually synonyms.

as is often the case, i find myself nodding at what lugoj has written. in particular this: "It's best not to confine music to a box with limitations on what it should and shouldn’t be".

alasdair
 
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