Kennedy Jones on Bringing the Culture and Love Back Into the Music Community

Do you remember the reason you fell in love with music? Do you remember the feeling of having your first “favorite song”? Now, think about what made you fall in love with dance music, specifically.

My love for the music was just the tip of the iceberg. What brought me here was the music, but what made me stay was the love—the love I found in the people of the dance music culture. From the fans, to the artists, all the way to the music festival production staff, everyone I met was enthusiastic about showing love to their fellows. The enthusiasm that I also found was in everyone’s willingness to preserve and grow the culture that they were so happy to be a part of.

As dance music grew, so did the industry, the following, and the scrutiny. The mounting criticism of dance music events in the media has created a stigma around what our beloved culture represents—a stigma that I try in my daily life to break. I want to create an environment that brings the culture and love back into the music community. Wouldn’t it be incredible if on the nightly news, a story came on about a group of dance music enthusiasts volunteering in their community? A way that we are able to show the world who the real people are behind all the lights, loud music, and wild outfits.

The only way to achieve any goal is persistence. I think everyone in our culture could benefit from consistently working together to always highlight the positive results that come from dance music and its currently flourishing culture. We have something special right now. We are making history right now. We have formed so many friendships and bonds over this music, so why let it stop at a personal level? Why not find a way for all of us together to contribute to our communities and proudly represent the dance music family as the people we are? The truth is, in 10–20 years, we may look back and realize only then what we truly have the power to do right now.

I believe in the people that make the music happen. That goes for the fans, the musicians, the festival producers, the industry professionals, the bloggers, the club promoters, and so on. I believe we can all collectively make a difference through the music that binds us.

In the coming months, I will be bringing new perspective inspired by the positivity that our community generates through a column that encompasses our efforts to preserve and grow the dance music culture as a whole. In a world where the entire public opinion of our culture is formed through somewhat second-hand, negative media coverage, there is no time like the present to battle words with ACTION.

The ultimate goal here is to have this be more than a column—to give back to the community and to give you the opportunity to show the world the power of music, culture, and love. Watch this space…

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