Research on Electronic Dance Music (Essay Sample)

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ELECTRONIC DANCE MUSIC
Electronic Dance Music is the genre of music that is primarily produced for entertainment based on dance in atmospheres like nightclubs and discos. In most cases, the Electronic Dance Music, referred to as EDM, is produced for use by DJs for use as DJ mix. Commercial US electronic dance music reached greater heights in United States, and it was given the acronym EDM in 2010. The acronym was given to this genre of entertainment to signify the increasing commercial use. The term however have received questions as to whether it stands for the entire electron dance music, but it has been observed to refer mostly to sub-genres electro house and brostep (Petridis). The origin of electron dance music date back to 1977 when a collaboration for the song I Feel Love produced a groundbreaking dance using traditional instruments. The earliest forms of EDM were created using music instruments that were developed before 1945. The current form of EDM has seen the use of computers to compose and synthesize music. The development of computer technology and sophistication of the electronic music studio are the two driving factors to the rise of EDM in the United States entertainment industry today (BBC Culture).
The aim of this paper is to discuss the rise of Electronic Dance Music in the United States. The discussion is provided from the time the Electronic Dance Music was launched in America up to the modern day. The modern commercial use of EDM in America is also discussed in the essay. The factors that played a role in making the EDM popular in America have also been discussed. Finally the paper evaluates the potential of EDM in the United States.
Electronic dance music hail from what was originally known as techno. The sponsors of techno music included the Dave Guetta, Afrojack among others. However, the modern industry has seen the collaboration of new Hip Hop stars like Nicki Minaj, Pitbull, Usher among others. The conversion to EDM is on the rise, and it is taking over the American entertainment industry gradually but surely. More artists are switching to this mode of music because of the trend it is taking (Petridis). The rise of a nightclub scene in America is promoting the rise of EDM in America because the audience prefers to dance to this type of music. A lot of people in the United States go to clubs, and they request music they can dance to, electronic dance music is the right for this job. In order to promote the growth of electronic dance music in the United States, various electronic festivals have been organized. The festivals include Electric Zoo in the New York City, and Ultra Music Festival held in Miami, and Electric Daisy Carnival that is held in Las Vegas. The ultra-Music Festival is the largest and attracts more than 150,000 people from all over the world. Electro dance music is on the rise, not only in the United States but the world, and continues to make a bigger impact as time go on (Bogart).
In United States, the electronic dance music developed as high energy style of up-tempo disco abbreviated as HI-NRG. The electronic dance music was characterized by fast tempo, reverberated intense vocals and staccato hi-hat rhythms. The early EDM incorporated Italo disco and American electronic sounds of post-disco. The genre of music later led to the development of techno and house music. The acid house and rave developed as the evolution of electronic dance music continued to shape up in America. The acid house developed in Europe especially in United Kingdom and Germany. The acid house party was very popular in London and, Manchester and the parties could run overnight. By 1988, many people o almost 15000 were attending this night parties s referred to as raves and after 2 A.M the parties went underground to avoid the attention of media (Petridis).
The success and popularity of acid house dance music and rave promoted the rise of Detroit Techno music style. This was a style that was not initially popular in America and was only supported by a handful of house music clubs United States cities like New York and Chicago. In the early 1990s, the raves had gained the momentum in Germany but the popularity began to dwindle at the beginning of the new millennium. The decline of the raves in the Europe countries saw the momentum of the use of EDM in the United States. The first popular electronic dance music in the United States was the Electric Daisy Carnivore (EDC). The carnivore received a record attendants of 85000 audiences in 2012. The event is held in Las Vegas motor speedway. The EDC has six stages for DJs. United States has other popular EDM concerts like the Hard Summer, and this is an event that features reggae, Hip-Hop, and rock that has been infused with electronic dance music style (Ramsay).
In the late 1990s, the electronic dance music was marketed in the United States as Electronica. The commercialization helped EDM to acquire a limited popularity during his time. At the same time, many electronic dance music bands from United Kingdom migrated to the United States, and it influenced the rise of this gene of music in United States. Nevertheless, instead of the presumed growth of EDM in the United States, it did not find the mainstream success but was condemned to the peripheries of the industry. The American producers and DJs of house and techno music migrated to the European countries where the fortune for this genre of music was very popular (Reynolds).
The early years of 2000 came with increasing and rejuvenated potential for growth of Electronic Dance Music in the United States. There are a number of factors that promoted the growth of electronic dance music in the United States in the late 2000s. The first factor that helped the growth of EDM in the United States is the performance of Daft Punks at the Coachella Festival in 2006. The event was marked with the introduction of a unique pyramid-shaped stage and lighting rig. The introduction of this set up helped the growth of visual effects in electronic music. This was the tipping point for EDM and the introduction of raving era in the United States (Reynolds).
In 2009, David Guetta ventured into the America music industry with his song when love takes over that featured Kelly Rowland. The artist gained prominence in mainstream pop music and dance music. The success of the song attracted interest of collaboration from other famous hip hop and pop artists in the United States. These collaborations made the Americans own the new culture of electronic dance music in the American culture. The other factor that fuelled the rise of electronic dance music in the United States id the concerts and festivals. The festivals like Electric Daisy Carnival fuelled emphasis on visual experiences, fashion and DJs began to get celebrity status (Petridis). The final factor that fuelled the growth was the growth of websites like SoundCloud and YouTube. These sites aired the concert videos and other events facilitating the Americans who were not attending the events to have a taste of the house and other electronic music (Bogart).
In 2011, the rave generation was introduced officially in the United States by the spin, a group that included Guetta, Skrillex among others. After the introduction, the culture was then followed by a wave of mainstream consumers. The mainstream artists have begun to introduce the elements of Electronic Dance Music because of collaborations with artists like Calvin Harris. At this point, the EDM producers and DJs started experiencing success in playing these songs in clubs shows in American cities. The promoters also started to generate more profits from DJs over acts (Ramsay). The club owners started using these events to attract clients to their premises for more purchases. During this time, other artists like Swedish House Mafia and Avicii started holding concert tours in the major avenues in the United States cities and making appearances in nightclubs. In Dec 2011, the Swedish House Mafia became the first electronic music to sell at New York in the Madison Square Garden. The Music Trade Magazine ranked EDM the fastest growing genre of music in the world (SmartAsset Blog).
Increase in live events, the use of internet, technological advancement of radios and televisions helped to a greater extent the growth of electronic dance music. The EDM work of the artists like feel so close by Calvin Harris and don’t you worry child also received boosts when they started becoming contemporary hit radio airplay in the United States. EDM song artists, producers, and DJs started to feature in the television commercials and programs. They became more popular, and their work was boosted to greater extent (Bogart). The radio and televisions were also used to promote EDM concerts in the United States and the concerts that were promoted received huge attendance compared to those that were not electronically promoted.
The growth of the EDM in United States was so fast that the Americans compared it to the growth of the dot-com boom in the last half of 1990s. At this time, the corporate world started to become increasingly interested to utilize the growth and popularity. In the year 2012, the corporate world began to consolidate the EDM in live events. In June 2012, SFX Entertainment was re-launched by Robert Sillerman, the CEO of Lie Nation, as EDM- focused conglomerate. Robert also planned to make an investment of $1 billion to acquire facilities related to EDM. He acquired a number of regional promoters, festivals nightclubs in United States and online music stores that are oriented to EDM (Ramsay). The Live Nation entertainment today has purchased Cream Holdings and Hard Events and also made a partnership with Insomniac Events in the late 2013. The CEO of the company believes that EDM is in the DNA of the modern generation, and it is the basic...