Media moguls knew that if at some point if you repeat something many times, people will start believing in whatever you are saying.
Tropical Bass explores Reality VS Perception of “Global Bass Dead Music”. Simply go and check this for the best music related concept.
Let’s start with FACTS, something you cannot deny, not even imply that is subjective.
Jason Derulo scores second week at Number 1 of the charts with TALK DIRTY (click here) !
Now, if you hear the beat, you will find it FRESH!! (REALITY)
The beat was made by our good friends Balkan Beat Box (who were approached by Derulo team and everything was done thru the right channels)
BUT, also in reality, How many of you ( Either Dj, producers or mere listener) have played Balkan or Balkan Bass lately?
Except the usual suspects, we may not find too much balkan being blogged as you’d say, 2007-2010.
Keeping the media lyin’ theme:
One Buzz that is circulating lately is Moombahton is dead. (Perception)
Reality: Major Lazer picked their first Gold for SALES of a single with BUMAYE.
And Moombahton.net is the fastest (in terms of time) to reach the same amount of followers from the EDM.net network.
In fact, Walshy Fire & Etc Etc ran few weeks ago a moombahton challenge for the Beat Making Lab with literally hundreds of submissions.
And we all know that perhaps the best (or one of the best) Moombah track of 2013 is Happy Color’s El Diablo.
So let’s discuss these and many more FACTS, about NEW GENRES:
TRAP is just another way to label southern rap/hip hop with a bouncier bassline and EDM fest tactics.
Perfect example is Flosstradamus & Yellow Claw latest tune
But these cats as much as talented as they are, and as much as TRAP is the new hype; they have nothing to do ONCE BIG CATS jump in the same wagon and decide to reclaim its real name
Twerk is another (and much better way I’ve got to admit) to call what we -Tropical Bass & Mad Decent-(joking) decided to call Molly Grit
Biggest Name is obviously TWRK, who premiered Bandinga via Mad Decent!!
But you gotta remember Play me records and many more people were doing it much (a year..? before!!)
Zouk Bass is/was another way to call Tarraxo.
This is a Dj Paparazzi Tarraxo
And Zouk Bass’ Biggest star right now is JSTJR
who takes his own influences to give Tarraxo, Kizomba and Tarraxinha a twist!
His most “known” track as for today is Cerveja
Now, Trap, Twerk, and Zouk Bass, are indeed expanding sonically because new people jump in the train and they come with their own influences, so in no time we will see bailefunk twerk, cumbia zouk bass, as much as we have seen zouktwerk, trapbass, and so on.
SO, when is a genre officially DEAD?
ANSWER: NEVER.
A music genre DOES NOT DIE, it simply loses Media Exposure due to many factors, numbers do not bring as many readers, followers, likes, comments, you name it, as they used to do, so media decides to move to new things to leech.
New producers will feel discouraged to label their music as (hip hop/southern rap) when you already have established acts who will NOT share their piece of the pie. So it is logical that Baauer or UZ feel they have more success if they tag their music with a new term ( and in both cases it paid off!!)
Some producers do not feel any sentimental attachment to the roots of the kind of music they produce, like Kizomba or Tarraxinha, so for them to explore zouk bass and trap is just something they do, while for Angolan producers to even try to adapt 808s in their songs will have a severe impact in the core of their own micro scene.
Also, public’s taste is in constant change. And that is a reflection of today’s music scene.
Take GTA 5 soundtrack, in where the average teenager will be exposed to at least 100+ songs in where less than 10 will have a different sound to the usual rap (and its variation trap), rock (and its variation indie) and Electronic ( and its variation avant garde).
So in perception, in a TOP RANKED GAME SOUNDTRACK you wont find cumbia, nor champeta, nor tuki, nor kizomba, nor kuduro, nor baile funk, nor azonto, etc etc etc on their pure form!! BUT it is most likely you will find elements of them.
For example
If you aren’t into music, and blogging as we are here at Tropical Bass, you will be extremely surprised with the amount of dubstep, balkan, cumbia, and moombahton submissions we get AND even greater the amount of those which are uploaded every HOUR to soundcloud or youtube!!
Every artistic movement will have people who think they are the taste makers, people who follow the trend, and people who try their best to make it and fail, as well as people who made the wrong choices and lost everything in their own game AND ALL OF THEM eventually will turn and say THAT GENRE is not what it used to be.
They are right. Because music evolves. ALL OF IT. from Classical to Jazz, to Heavy Metal to Indie.
The fact grunge or metal is not what used to be in the 90s in terms of media exposure, it doesn’t mean Metallica or Alice in Chains could not be the biggest acts in Rock in Rio a week ago.
The fact you DO NOT play Balkan in its pure form, it doesn’t mean you wont play a trap or twerk edit of Derulo eventually. which in a way will be a twerk edit of a balkan track.
Music never dies. Either you moved on to a different genre, OR it has lost media exposure. But if you look for it, you will find always great releases. No matter the genre.
Just look for it.
SAPERE AUDE.. AND do not believe everything you see!
Great piece! All of this has happened before and will happen again …