It's impossible to overstate how important social media has been to me and the development of my career. The fact that I can go and play venues that hold 25,000 people and sell them out is crazy.I don't have music on the radio. I'm not a pop culture icon. I'm just this kid making dance music. And yet I still can sell out massive arenas. It's truly incredible, and I think a lot of that is because of social media.
KaskadeAt the beginning of my career, I saw an opportunity to forge new ground and focus on songwriting. Not many people were doing that at the time. Pretty much nobody. I thought I could write some really cool songs that would rise above all these dozens of genres that exist within dance music. I'd make it more about the songs. For the last 20 years, I've been sharing stories of my life through music. I've been writing songs about my life.
KaskadeA lot of people see electronic music as a flavor of the week, but it can be more than that - has to be more than that.
KaskadeWith every show I go out and do, I'm trying to change peoples' lives. I'm trying to make a huge moment and give them something that they'll remember forever. I know that's crazy to say after I've played maybe 5,000 shows in my life, but really that's what it is. Leaving it all out on the dance floor and giving people something spectacular to remember.
KaskadeListening to music is such an uplifting, spiritual thing. Its far-fetched to some - I understand that. But the way dance music brings people together, its not a big stretch from hymns.
KaskadeBut know this: as far as a music culture goes, EDM is the one who will accept the kids on the outliers, the ones who get bullied, the ones who feel like they may not quite fit in. This community is exceptional in its ability to bond all types together, and I am not exaggerating when I say it saves lives. Our audience is intelligent and kind, discriminating only in regards to which sound they like best. Our audience is unprecedented in their drive to proactively support each other.
KaskadeWith that explosion of dance music thing, there have been some downsides. We're lacking a little bit of connection right now. Pop music is so massive. It's everywhere. Today, there's less of discovery. There's less "I'm going to drive two hours and go see him at this dirty night club." We're missing a little bit of that. It's still there, and I feel like those connections are still made.
KaskadeIt's an honor for me to close out Mysteryland. In American music history this is hallowed ground. I think electronic music has a lot in common with the spirit of rock and roll and what Woodstock had going on at the time. We are kind of the new kids on the block and this music isn't accepted by everyone so we are still kind of getting into pop culture and I think its appropriate that this festival is here and kicking down the door.
KaskadeI'm constantly looking for new things to do whether that's in the studio, trying to keep production fresh, or it's going out on the road. It's not the best for business. My team sometimes wants to beat me. But that's what keeps it fresh and keeps me inspired.
KaskadeMusic is not disposable, people. We can twist it, sample it, mash it and experience it in endless ways. Open up.
KaskadeI think rap music has made more money on dance music than dance music has made on dance music. Just a thought.
KaskadeI think what's made electronic music so fascinating is that it came up through the underground and always moved and pivoted so quickly that you could never keep a handle on it. That continues to happen. Sure, the stuff on the very top moves slower and is marketed for Spotify. But there are still going to be undercurrents that flow freely and move around, simply because there's too much of a base with this music.
KaskadeWhen you see millions and billions of dollars being made in a genre, there are going to be copycats and people who jump in for the wrong reasons. Ten years ago, nobody was going to make dance music to try and get rich or even make a living. You couldn't! It was impossible.
KaskadeI knew it straight away when Twitter first came around, and also Facebook, where it was so easy to post, that this was another way to speak directly with people listening to my music. If they found my music and they like it, most likely they want to hear more from me and hear what I'm about. I've put an enormous amount of time into that and it's played out well for me.
Kaskade