Anyone watching the Grammy Awards this year would have noticed a rising star in the music world getting some recognition – Skrillex, one of the leaders in the world of music, namely in the newly-popular genre dubstep. Skrillex walked into the Grammy Awards knowingly receiving three awards, and also with a nomination for Best New Artist.
For fans of dubstep such as me, this was a huge deal to hear about. Fans had never questioned the validity and contributions to the music community that dubstep offered, but seeing one of the most prominent artists on the Grammy stage really gave dubstep a big stamp of approval from the music community.
These artists are some of the most talented and hardworking artists in music, and are starting to be acknowledged for what they have to offer. In his acceptance speech for one of his three total Grammy Awards, Skrillex was quoted as saying, “This is really crazy for me, man. I made this song in my bedroom when I was living illegally in a warehouse in downtown L.A. I made that song with a blown speaker.” This was in regards to the song he won “Best Remix of a Song” for his remix of Benny Benassi’s “Cinema.”
Despite not working for a big record label, with tons and tons of the most cutting-edge equipment, Skrillex still managed to produce one of the most popular dubstep songs in modern music, which takes real talent.
Dubstep has been on the rise over the past 10 years, but the sharpest increase in popularity started in mid-2010. That’s when people started to take dubstep more seriously and to listen to it at dance clubs, and everywhere using iPods and other media devices.
The new wave of music, which started in the late 1990’s, was finally taking to the mainstream airwaves. Personally, I think it’s amazing how talented these artists really are. People claim that dubstep isn’t “real” music, and the artists have no talent and just are getting acknowledged for nothing, but that is wildly untrue. Artists such as Skrillex, Figure, and Nero are all just as real musicians as anyone else.
They have the same drive and passion for their work that any rap, metal, rock (or whatever genre) artist has. Saying that dubstep artists aren’t “real” musicians is faulty, in the same way that saying any artist that uses auto-tune isn’t a “real” musician. They are simply embracing innovation.
Any person who makes music that people find audibly pleasing is a “real” musician in my book. Dubstep just happens to do so with insane drops and hard-hitting bass. Would you say a street drummer who uses paint buckets instead of drums isn’t a talented artist? Or a painter who uses non-traditional mediums and paints abstract art shouldn’t be recognized for their talent?
Just because dubstep may not be your favorite kind of music, or you might not even like it, doesn’t mean that the artists don’t deserve just as much respect as every other artist. I am not a fan of country music at all, and likely never will be, however I will argue fiercely with anyone that says they have no talent.
Dubstep has really opened my eyes to a whole range of music that was unknown to me years ago, and hopefully will be around for a while to come.
David Padrazo can be contacted at dpadrazo@ksc.mailcrusier.com