How many times have you found yourself trying to explain to your parents what electronic dance music is? Or what a rave is like? Or why you want to spent five days camping with “strangers listening to techno”?
Look no further.
We’re here to help you show your parents the magic of electronic dance music, and hopefully bring them into the community with modern twists on their favorite songs!
But before we get into the tracks that will have them dancing on their way to work Monday morning, we have a few ideas that might help you get your parents into EDM and on board with the whole electronic dance community.
Let them watch
EDM and rave culture sometimes gets a bad name because of unfortunate drug-related stereotypes and other negative aspects that your parents could see as something “taking away from your homework” and such, but we all know that it is so much more than that.
Luckily there are now multiple methods of actually showing your parents what it is all about, rather than them having to take your word for it. Major festivals around the world like Tomorrowland and Ultra Music Festival have “aftermovies” posted that provide a glimpse of the magic experienced by so many.
On an even larger scale than that, electronic dance music has made it to the big screen with films like Under the Electric Sky, following a series of groups attending Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas, and Leave the World Behind, which delves into the breakup and final tour of the beloved Swedish House Mafia.
Movies like these humanize the concept of electronic dance music and rave culture. Once they see Jose lifted above the crowd in his wheelchair or hear about the emotional turmoil Axwell, Ingrosso, and Angello went through, they will start to see how deeply important EDM is to so many people and its capacity to change lives.
Give them the facts
Sometimes the facts speak louder than the abstract description you create around them, so it’s a good thing we have some of those too!
Two great ways to go about this are by checking out our investigation of musical therapy and how electronic dance music ties into that, as well as the Google Study showing the growth of EDM in the last year.
It is one thing to show your parents how cool and fun electronic dance music can be, but being able to convey its importance and growth in society today is a whole other story – a good story, at that.
Remember that it’s not all the same
One of the major stereotypes that gives “non believers” a negative perception of electronic dance music is that it is all the same.
I was once telling a family member about a show that I was attending in the near future, and the response was “why are you paying so much money to watch a guy on a big stage to the same thing a guy at a sweet-sixteen does?” The crushing and mildly infuriating question made me realize how generic it must look from the outside, and that it needed to change.
If your parents are in the same boat as the aforementioned family member, explain it to them.
There are so many different genres within the umbrella of EDM and there is bound to be at least one that appeals to them. By the time I got through explaining the difference between trance and trap to my family, I had them downloading tracks from Above & Beyond‘s latest We Are All We Need album.
Once they have the introduction, their curiosity will lead them to something that piques their interest. You just need to shed some light on it!
Be patient
Like anything else, it takes time. We are always so excited about the happenings in the EDM community, and being able to share that with your parents is such a great thing; but let them get their footing first! Don’t go ahead and book tickets to Tomorrowland the second you hear them say they like the latest from Dimitri Vegas and Like Mike.
It is much easier to build a connection with your parents and EDM if you ease them into it. Afterall, it is a lot to take in!
When it comes down to it, they’re your parents. They have loved and supported you as you’ve grown up, and they want nothing more than for you to share your happiness with them, so give it a shot!
Let them listen
As promised, we have provided you with some oldies remixes that might give you and your parents the spark that’s needed to get the fire going. If they still aren’t convinced, check out some classic songs turned electronic.
