Unfortunately that’s what the media portrays it to be, but in all reality drugs and music have been lifelong dance partners. I really want to resolve this misconception because those who truly love the scene know there’s something more to it than that.   

What makes EDM so special isn’t the craziness or the drugs; but the it’s the environment it creates.

What consists of this environment life, you may wonder?

1) PLURR

PLURR is more than an acronym, the environment of a rave and the credo ravers stand by.

1. 1. 1. PEACE
         • Peace comes when you experience that moment of “Wow, I truly wouldn’t want to be anywhere else right now.” You know what I’m talking about, it’s is a priceless feeling.
      2. LOVE
         • Love is everything from being welcoming and appreciative of complete strangers, to leaving your perfect spot in the crowd because your friend has to pee. Treating others how you want to be treated is the key to finding love.
      3. UNITY
         • Unity means we’re all share something. It might not be our age, our color, or our background; but what we all do share is this moment. Raving helps you focus on the now, and in this day and age, becoming more present is important as ever
      4. RESPECT
         • With a strong sense of community comes respect. “I don’t belong in you, you don’t belong in me” is one of my favorite sayings about respecting others’ differences. You are not there to impress anybody, and nobody is there to impress you, so all there’s left to do accept and respect.
      5. RESPONSIBILITY
         • Be responsible for your actions, words, and to your body. Yes, alcohol and drugs are apart of this scene, which I’ll get to in a second. If you choose to partake you, that doesn’t mean you suddenly aren’t responsible for your actions and words. Be responsible, know your limits, and look out for each other.
           

2) It’s a place to be yourself

Raves are a judge-free zone, that is ironically constantly getting judged! Unlike this hypercritical world raves are a place where expressing yourself is valued. Dress how you want, dance how you want.  You don’t have to worry about doing anything ‘right’ because anything is right.

When was the last time you stopped worrying about the way you present yourself around people? Nowadays, it seems we are always putting on a front depending on who we are surrounded by. Raves are a place where you can completely drop the facade and just be yourself. Be weird, be sporadic, be loud, be proud, be you & people will love it.

3) It’s a place to boost your happiness

It is scientifically proven that music is directly linked to happiness! When the  Australian Unity Wellbeing Index anonymously surveyed 1,000 participants, the findings revealed that engaging with music led to higher self well being than for those who did not.

Also, individuals attending can get high on the music alone! A study done by McGrill University in Canada proved that music actually releases dopamine in our brain. The same chemical we get when we satisfy our basic needs.

4) It’s a place to make new friends!

By being apart of something bigger, you are now connected to so many individuals. You have an excuse to go up and talk to anybody, and anybody has an excuse to talk to you. It may sound extremely extroverted, but meeting new people is apart of life. It opens so many doors to new memories, new opportunities, and new relationships.

Who knows, you may meet the love of your life, I know I did! My boyfriend and I met 2 years ago when I was surrounded by an uplifting energy acting outrageously myself. It’s never been ‘weird’ because he already saw the real me from the very first day. 

I understand why people have hesitations, and I get this isn’t for everyone, but you guys I promise that if you attended one of these events you wouldn’t regret it. I’ve brought many first-timer’s, I’d be more than honored to take you to your first one, cause every single one has left with a euphoric look on their face. One person actually said to me, “A place like this actually exists?” And that spoke volumes me. There’s a reason why people are so passionate about this scene;

In a violent world exists a place of peace.

In a judgmental world exists a place of love.

In a divided world exists a place of unity.

And in a cruel world, exists a place to respect.

Your mind and heart would be opened to a different way of life, and even if it wasn’t your thing, you still get an experience of a lifetime.

I hope you consider seeing what all this hype is about!

Thanks!

All the love,
Katy

The post Why You Should Try Going to A Rave! appeared first on Red Roll.

“Music is the most famous and popular language in the world” – PSY

I agree, music is not only a popular and famous language, but a unique one because there aren’t necessarily words. Still, everyone can understand the language a song can speak; the moment when the hairs on your arm stand up from pulsing bass, or your heart feels like it’s soaring during a beautiful ensemble, or when you get teary eyed when a singer oh so perfectly hits their notes?

You have to know what feeling I’m talking about, music speaks this universal language. How that language gets across the universe, though, is due greatly to social media.

Social media & music streaming is a relatively new relationship. Stewart Copeland, former drummer of the band called The Police recalls a time where “tagging,” or spray painting, was the most effective form of advertisement.

“I remember running around the city spray painting ‘The Police’ all over London, and that stuck in peoples heads.”

Old school forms of promoting music were not only authentic, but stuck around more physically and mentally, unlike some social media posts that can get overlooked. Having to put a little elbow grease into your advertisement instead of clicking a few buttons, also resulting inhave all the more value.

The downfall, though, was the small number of eyes that were seeing it. Now’a’days, this problem is quite the opposite. Releases and promotions are hitting such a big audience, it’s hard for an up-and-coming artist to make it.  

“The competition part sucks, but on the bright side it is good for culture. It brings campfire music back in the sense that everyone can do it.” Copeland states, “Before it was more based around specialization ‘I am the musician, you are the audience. I play the music, you sit there and listen’. This isn’t now true today; Sally is got a laptop so she can make a record, Bob’s got a laptop, Joe’s got a laptop. Every damn fool is making a record”, which also means every damn fool has a profile in which they can promote their stuff. If all it takes in today’s world is technology to be a musician, you can understand how the good undiscovered music can get lost in the noise on social media.

That’s where LÜM comes in.

If everybody and their grandmothers have the ability to make music nowadays, how are you supposed to know when a good song comes out? More importantly, how can you easily weed out the bad? Musicians have a tough time with this too; although it doesn’t hurt to put your music out there, it can easily go unnoticed in a sea of streams. Luckily, social media and music birthed an app called LÜM that has managed to tackle this monster problem

I interviewed CEO and Co-Founder Max Fergus, and found his passion for the project stems from the universal language of music. “There was this one night after me and a couple of friends went out to a show, and we all got back to the house and just sat there in in awe over how amazing that concert was. Every part of it, from opener to closer, I just wanted to shout from the rooftops how awesome they were. That’s literally how the idea of LÜM was born. From a fan wanting to rate artists and have them gain recognition”. Stated Fergus. 

So what is LÜM exactly? 

LÜM stands for Live Undiscovered Music. Available as a downloadable app, you can sign up for LÜM either as an artist, fan, or venue. This makes LÜM unique: these portals give options that no other music streaming apps do.

Venues can explore all kinds of artists to fit their needs, book acts affordably, and give up and coming artists needed exposure.

Artists can become their own promoters, calculate analytics, and build a community through listeners and venues.

Fans can listen to local music from different locations, find tracks that aren’t your average mainstream radio tunes, and possibly discover the next big thing.

Their mission statement promotes LÜM as “A music discovery and streaming platform that focuses on giving power to up and coming artists and dedicated music lovers so that more musicians can earn a livable income through their passion for music, and fans can discover that music in a way that does not currently exist.

LÜM’s streaming platform is built on a social network that enables emerging artists to circulate their music and grow their fanbase.

By rethinking the interaction between social media and streaming, LÜM will eventually become a digital “talent pool” for live entertainment around the world that is constantly circulating new artists.” says Fergus. 

This app is contributing to the revolution of the music industry by giving the power of discovery to the listener, and the promise of an audience to an up and coming artist. LÜM is a prime example of the influences social media has on the music industry because they have collided so much that LÜM is literally a combination of the two.

I’m excited to see what’s in store for this startup, the vision & passion this team has will drive them to inevitable success. I look forward to the impact they’ll make on many individuals, and the change they will ensue on the world of music.

All the love
-Katy

The post Social Media & Music: How LÜM Is Changing Streaming Forever appeared first on Red Roll.