Why is Dubstep Music Becoming So Popular So Fast?

[rjones82]

I have been involved in the dubstep scene for a good 5 years now and have noticed its many changes in style and popularity since the start of my experimentation in the scene. I now have an opportunity to do field research on the subject and am wondering some other people's input on why this genre of music is blowing up so quickly?

[DZA]

Wouldnt really call 10 years fast

[Mr. Mittens]

I blame Rihanna.

[rjones82]

I guess I should have made my point a little bit more clear. Why in recent years do you thing it is becoming more and more popular. Especially in the US.

[syphon live]

Been lots a US Tours ?

[Rossco]

[kidshuffle]

that series of tubes we call the internet

[jsills]

If you like Bass music dubstep is undenyable. to me it is the sum the best parts of many other quality genres.

[Steve_French]

i blame rusko

[Dark Reign]

Well I think beacuase its the first really new Genre to come along in the age where everyone has internet, if there was no internet I think dubstep would not have left London and the UK, or at least blown up like it has. And in the US its been the same music over and over for the last decade, pop princess shit(britney, miley cyrus), shitty ALT rock(nickelback, seether) and mainstream rap shit (soulja boy, fitty cent) people were looking for something different and Dubstep just caught on especially the Filth stuff beacuse its hardcore and underground but still can appeal to a mass audience. Its still not even close to being mainstream but its really Big in the underground. It will eventually drop off and lose momentum sometime but it will never get in the pop charts at least not without shitty vocals over top Like rihanna for example.

[tobo]

The internet.
I wrote an essay about it.

[ben freeman]

Well I think beacuase its the first really new Genre to come along in the age where everyone has internet, if there was no internet I think dubstep would not have left London and the UK, or at least blown up like it has. And in the US its been the same music over and over for the last decade, pop princess shit(britney, miley cyrus), shitty ALT rock(nickelback, seether) and mainstream rap shit (soulja boy, fitty cent) people were looking for something different and Dubstep just caught on especially the Filth stuff beacuse its hardcore and underground but still can appeal to a mass audience. Its still not even close to being mainstream but its really Big in the underground. It will eventually drop off and lose momentum sometime but it will never get in the pop charts at least not without shitty vocals over top Like rihanna for example.

Reign basically summed it up. Having been into the rave scene in the US since about 96, I have caught wind of quite a few genres, drum and bass being the only other one that really got me pumped like dubstep has. But I knew DNB would never take off in the mainstream, or any electronic music in the states, because people here have this stigma about music, that it must have lyrics for them to like it. I know so many people that won't even give it a chance just because there are no lyrics involved. Too many close minds and bad taste here I'm afraid. (Nickelback being voted best band of the decade for the billboard charts shows you just how awful the US public's taste in music really is.) Though when I first heard dubstep at Dubwar in 2007 with Digital Mystiks was when I KNEW this shit was gonna go fucking mental and it was my first truely awe awakening experience that I had in years, I felt like I just discovered a new country. Now with people doing all these remixes and whatnot, Rusko getting big, and Diplo doing dubstep things, there is a big chance for Dubstep to sort of creep it's head out to the public. But as long as there is that stigma the American public has about "techno" music, (most ignorant American's call all electronic music techno) I don't ever see it breaking out and becoming mainstream like hip hop did in the 80's, because the majority of dubstep has no lyrics, it's just another form of techno to most Americans.

[twentyOneDummies]

Can't speak for Europe but for North-America...

Hip-Hop has gotten much softer over the past 10 years and has recently adopted more rigid drum patterns that borrow from house/electro.

(Some) Dubstep offers a darker/more aggressive alternative and the drums (whether 2-step or half-step) have a lot of swing.

That's why I started listening a few years ago and eventually got consumed enough to join this forum.

I suspect I'm not the only one who went through this process.

[Blue Patterns]

sonically different than most things that are happening...even within EDM.

[-dubson-]

Hype stuff getting popular because its an alternitive to DNB which has had a total monoply on that for too long. Now dubstep is one of the cool things.

Deeper stuff getting recognition because its doing something different to every other scene and theres ALOT of very good music.

[Dark Reign]

Now with people doing all these remixes and whatnot, Rusko getting big, and Diplo doing dubstep things, there is a big chance for Dubstep to sort of creep it's head out to the public. But as long as there is that stigma the American public has about "techno" music, (most ignorant American's call all electronic music techno) I don't ever see it breaking out and becoming mainstream like hip hop did in the 80's, because the majority of dubstep has no lyrics, it's just another form of techno to most Americans.

Its fucked eh, the majority of people call any electronic music "Techno" dont know where this came from. Here in canada in the 90's Daft Punk, Bassment Jaxx, FatBoy Slim and others were getting major radio play and we're really popluar, mind you that alot of these artists were more mainstream and most of the tunes had lyrics. But then suddenly people just lost interest I guess and EDM went underground. Not In the UK though. And for some reason there is this stigma around dance music in the general population. These girls I know like the mainstream dance music like Calvin Harris and other stuff with lyrics but if I even show them House Music with no lyrics they say it sucks, they wont even give dusbtep a fair listen with out saying its gay, wheres the lyrics?

Dubstep will get really Big in the Underground but I dont see it getting radio play or like someone said like hip-hop in the 80s. Which is fine, keeping it underground will be better for the scene anyway

[pkay]

pretty simple

Bass jiggles the girls funny bits----> girls like dubstep -----> dudes follow the cookie wherever it goes -----> ???? ------> profit!

[twentyOneDummies]

mmm...girls' funny bits.

[drokkr]

Sounds like some wants info for an article they are writing.

[steshine]

Media replacement.

They hear something that is interesting (this basically includes a lot of urban music and dance music) they then find some approachable tracks and play them on radio programs around 8pm (high time) and place prominent reviews in magazines (NME). This causes a small number of people to become increasingly interested and then begin creating that music (or what they now as that music) themselves. This causes a sound to be produced which isn't necessarily how it began but what the media has perceived the sound to be. The same happened with D'n'B, hiphop, and 'Grime', although they have removed that genre so far from the original genre it's completely unrecognisable.
Essentially it makes people feel 'cool' and unique because they listen to genre of music which is new (or so they are told). The original music is fairly unapproachable so this replacement makes it more approachable and as a result, it's overall sound changes.