The 12 Biggest Controversies of 2012

Without a doubt, 2012 will go down as the year that EDM was seen by the masses as a viable scene. Sure, electronic music isn't new in the States in any way, but the difference between how it was perceived prior to 2012 and where we're at now feels like lightyears apart. With more mainstream press comes more controversy, and 2012 was chock full of twitter beefs, allegations of fraud and corruption, debates on what EDM actually is, and questions about an artist's authenticity in DJing. With twitter, blogs, and mainstream media pushing news everyday all day, there were some stories you just couldn't escape.

Here are the biggest controversies to rock the EDM world in 2012.

Why?: One of the largest live entertainment companies investing in EDM through one of the emerging festival companies.

If you hit up the HARD “Day of the Dead” event in Los Angeles, where they had over 35K heads in attendance, you can only imagine how huge this merger between Live Nation and HARD truly is. Imagine if HARD started world tours, backed by Live Nation (who backs Jay-Z and other major acts)? Think of how huge their 2013 batch of festivals will truly be…

Or just imagine how watered down your next festival could be. No underground/upcoming acts. Will tracks get made to be played at corporate-sponsored events, dumbing down the vibrant edge that has kept dance music alive for this long? Will credibility and integrity be shot? It might depend on which side of the coin you fall under. DJs might love this, and relish in the ability to get paid much better for essentially doing the same gig. Producers might learn how to DJ more efficiently so they can get on these trains. Ravers might get larger shows, with more DJs they want to see.

Or none of this could occur. The fear of many is these kinds of purchases turn into credibility-lacking, soul-sucking, empty shells of the parties ravers grew up on. And this isn’t to say that every event that Live Nation/HARD throws will be massive corporate events, but give it some time – you might be surprised with the outcome of this union.

Why?: It calls into question how EDM is viewed in America

When Richie Hawtin called EDM "EPM," or "electronic pop music," he had a number of points. Many of us who have been listening to dance music for years almost hate using the term EDM; electronic dance music is a very broad term, and if you follow dance music in the US in 2013, you have no choice but to use it since it’s now in the mainstream vernacular. When you realize that what people consider “EDM” are basically a handful of producers, or a particular “style” of dance music, it’s reminiscent of the "rap vs. hip-hop" debate. Richie looked at the difference between the formulaic, “instant gratification” beats from Tiesto and others, and realized that that’s more popular – hence his “electronic pop music” dig – than the deeper, more complex electronic sounds that have been there since the beginning. Plus, when you consider that most of the EDM tracks that people refer back to are stuff from pop acts like Rihanna, Black Eyed Peas, and other artists who appropriate the sound, it kind of feels like Richie’s right and everyone else is doing it wrong.

The question is: can this even be escaped? We’ve had to live with (and through) Electronica, but “EDM” is also much, much larger than anything before it. And the main problem is, even though people are flocking to hear new EDM, they aren’t necessarily digging too deep, so you’ve got a pretty odd disconnect between the innovation on the underground and the formulas of the mainstream. Again, this resides in every genre under the sun, but EDM is still new to a lot of the country, and we're in the growing stages currently. We'll all settle on one term and continue on with what's important: good music.

Why?: Do we really need to know?

In 2012, while the yrap scene in America was looking for a character to properly exemplify exactly what was going on, UZ started dropping his “Trap Shit” instrumentals. Were they the best out there? No, especially once guys like Baauer started really styling on everyone. The mystique had a lot to do with UZ getting over, which resulted in a number of producers creating Trap beats, for good or ill.

All of this while no one had a definitive idea of who this guy was.

NPR interviewed the phenom, Mad Decent signed and released a four-track series of “Trap Shit” beats, and UZ hit the road for a slew of live performances. His rider made it plain: we are not to find out who UZ is. And, for a bit of full disclosure: we know who UZ is. And while it’s not some super secret, knowing who the man behind the mystery is doesn’t mean one should let the cat out of the bag. Especially in when the reveal will just have people scratching their heads, before moving onto the next bit. The mystery is cool, play along.

Why?: Producers aren't happy with their tracks being remixed and given away for free, or worse...

While this argument is nothing new, the mainstream moves that EDM has made these particular brand of bootleg remixes a bit stickier to try to explain by the producers in question. Hardwell’s bootleg game got called into question by the Swedish House Mafia, while Flosstradamus engaged in a twitter back and forth with numerous hardstyle producers for trap versions of some of their tracks. DJ Adam K even got into it with araabMUZIK, although his situation is a bit different, as the tracks from his Electronic Dream album borrowed heavily from a number of EDM tracks. He put this out for sale, so we can only hope he got proper permission in terms of remixes (plus, Ultra released the Kaskade remix that araabMUZIK flipped, and they signed him on to put out some releases).

We can understand both sides of the argument: producers creating original works should be compensated and credited accordingly, while the artists who are remixing or reworking these tracks are expressing themselves creatively as well. Some of the best new genres were created with experiments just like these, including many forms of dance music. It's a sticky situation, and could continue to get hairier once more music industry money gets poured into the scene.

Why?: Does the use of a dedicated button to match the tempos of the tracks you're playing cheapen the job a DJ has?

The release of Pioneer’s CDJ-2000nexus also brought forth a grip of hate regarding the incorporation of the “Sync” button, which is strictly used to beat match two tracks. Anyone knows that one of the primary functions of DJing is beatmatching, creating a seamless mix between two different tracks. Those who welcome this addition expound on how this isn’t mixing, it’s just a tool to help expand a DJ’s creative side. There are many detractors, and their thoughts are that this is either the start of DJ’s ending or another ding in the foundation of DJing 101.

In the end, these new CD decks come out with so many different features, aiming them at a number of different demographics, although a DJ who isn't solely mixing two tracks together would be the obvious target. For a disc jockey who is all about editing tracks on the fly, bringing in new sounds for a quick mix on the fly, and numerous other DJ tricks might want to have tracks beatmatched perfectly so they can concentrate on the other aspects of their set. If a kid loves EDM and wants to learn how to DJ, having that sync button might be key for them as well.

In the end, you can't stop the progression of DJ equipment, and many of us remember just how fiercely the idea of Serato and digital mixing software was debated a few years ago. Unless these are directly affecting the quality of mixes overall, the sync button ultimately shouldn't be a big deal.

Why?: The CEO of Insomniac, which is behind the Electric Daisy Carnival, got wrapped up in a scandal regarding the parties his company puts on.

In March of 2012, word hit the newswire that Pasqualle Rotella, who is the CEO of Insomniac Events, was getting arrested on corruption charges regarding the LA Coliseum, which as you may know was the site of multiple Electric Daisy Carnivals in Los Angeles, including the 2010 EDC where a fifteen-year-old was found dead. These charges stemmed from payments made to the Coliseum’s commission, which was charging low (and in some cases, no) rent to put on these huge shows, as well as backroom deals involving monies that could have gone to the venue instead being paid to side-buisnesses controlled by the Coliseum’s general manager, Todd Destefano. The idea was that these payments were made between Rotella and Destefano under some agreement between the Coliseum and Insomniac.

Rotella was one of six charged in this particular scheme.

Rotella claimed innocence, and has been awaiting trial on these charges, some of which were dismissed in May of 2012 due to the LA Coliseum doesn’t have the authority to file under the False Claims Act, where they were looking for triple the damages under said act. One of the former directors at the Coliseum plead guilty and escaped a 15-year prison bid for his part in the kickback scheme. There are still other charges that are standing, but if they falter, this entire situation could go away.

Now, for years one of the constant gripes between DJs and clubs were shady promoters, and this could be the landmark case, something that could quite possibly further regulate the ability to throw raves in the United States. Ravers in the UK fought for years to have the ability to party without government regulations, and if these charges stick, it could spell the beginning of a similar war on parties within the US. We do imagine that, with the influx of corporate dollars being put into EDM at this time, that there would be better (read: legal) dealings between promoters and the facilities they are operating with.

Why?: The EDM community stood watch as a producer stood up to the artist he felt was doing him wrong.

This was an entirely new situation, where a producer is alerted to a single they produced might be placed on iTunes literally a day or two before release and scheduled video shoot. Munchi, one of the forefathers of the Moombahton scene, flipped a Montell Jordan sample on a track from 2010 (which in itself sampled a Claudia Berry song) that Azaelia Banks ended up using on her Fantasea mixtape track, “Esta Noche.”

When Munchi presented questions regarding the content of said video, Azaelia took to twitter to air out the situation, with Munchi not backing down and firing shots of his own. He detailed his problems with the situation and stood by his morals, to mixed responses. Many felt he not only did the right thing, but stood up for plenty of producers who get bullied by rappers and labels alike, while Banks’ fans were not pleased with the single not being released when it should have.

It was a small salvo, but at the moment this felt like an independence day for producers who hold their moral code high. If you’re an artist wanting to use someone’s track, then ultimately release it as a single? Get everything situated as soon as possible. Sounds simple, but damn.

Why?: Deadmau5 speaks his mind and isn't afraid of confrontation.

Whether it's calling out Madonna for pandering to the EDM crowd, or having a twitter beef with Pauly D, Deadmau5 was all over the dance music newsbeat in 2012. He took the Ultra Music Festival to task over high ticket prices and their exclusivity contracts, and went at Madonna over her "molly" comment during a performance at the UMF. Deadmau5 was also instrumental in charging up the EDM community over the "button-pushing" debate, with his comments regarding DJs causing quite a stir.

The interesting thing about Deadmau5 is the fact that he is one of the major figures within the North American EDM scene. He's not some random producer venting on twitter (although he does do that); Deadmau5 is taking his views straight to Rolling Stone. He's one of those artists who is in the limelight more for his actions and words than his music, which can be a great way of marketing yourself (although we imagine that he's not trying to promote himself by being so outspoken).

Plus, he's engaged to Kat Von D. That alone has sparked all kinds of comments.

Why?: If it's true, it's a sad look at what artists will do to get their name out there.

In an article that rose the question about bought Facebook fans, Mixmag linked a picture showing a number of EDM artists’ pages with “Mexico City” as their “Most Popular City” in terms of fans, causing a huge debate on the possibility of DJs buying FB fans. We're living in a time where the number of plays on YouTube or followers you have on twitter can speak louder than how good your music is, so the idea of artists gaining an advantage by misrepresenting their social media pages as to indeed be larger than they are sounds like a sneaky scheme that makes sense.

Excision (one of the DJs in question) tried to defend himself, but just like Mixmag’s initial story, it felt like no one was really nailing their particular points down. Some believe that the management farmed out a grand Facebook-liking operatin and it finally caught up with them, but based on the words from some promoters, it sounds like Mexico City truly is a hotbed for EDM, parallel to what you might find in New York City.

There was never any real resolution to any of this, but hopefully some concrete data can be mined and released on this issue. Although like with any popular scene, there’s bound to be trickery and illegal tactics done to get ahead – although guys like Guetta, Aoki, Skrillex, and other more established acts are doing more than enough to truly warrant the need for false Facebook likes, right?

Why?: Many DJs were called into question about faking their DJ performances, some by fellow DJs themselves.

Talk about a hot-button issue (pun’s totally intended)! While you’d think someone would normally say “yeah, DJing can’t be that hard,” you would think that the last person to utter that would be the DJs that are getting paid millions of dollars per year to perform.

Calvin Harris threatened to sue the BBC over claims of him just pressing play on pre-recorded mixes, while Deadmau5 butted heads with a number of DJs about his comments about DJs just having to "show up and press play." There was a lot of talk on both ends of the debate, with A-Trak delivering the best thoughts on this ordeal. While most ravers could probably care less, and most promoters weren’t slowing down on booking these DJs, the argument felt, at times, like we were peering into the backroom poker game between EDM’s finest.

In the end, we all know that DJs have a few jobs: spinning tunes and making people dance. If you can bring in theatrics or seem like you’re enjoying yourself while playing your tunes, that goes over big. If you’d rather stand stoic while you murder the crowd, that works as well. Fans are of the assumption that a DJ is actually doing something, and the majority are more concerned about a tight set of big tracks than which button got pressed to begin with.

Why?: Their annual Top 100 DJ list was being scammed, but the question of their ethics also got put into play.

Ranking DJs can be a daunting task, so DJ Mag conducts it in the most fair and sensible way they know how: Facebook voting. Couldn’t be harmful, right? Except when they find out internally that some DJs were selling votes on eBay. Seriously. The publication ended up booting out a few DJs (although they weren’t ones that are world-renowned), naming and shaming when need be. And you thought all was well in the world… right?

A few weeks after that news broke, reports of leaked documents regarding payments that big name DJs sent to DJ Mag that ended up being payments for feature articles listed as “news.” Essentially, it smelled like there was a pay-to-play scheme going down in the name of coverage. Without that separation of paid advertising and news, it’s hard to really give DJ Mag the cred it’s seemingly built up as a resource for dance music fans.

In the end, it calls into question the sources that you're investing in. When "news" is effectively more than a glorified advertisement of an artist's new music or label, how can you then hold that organization in high regard when they put out a top DJ list? Could the alleged payola scheme extend outside of what they print in their magazine?

Why?: 2012's most impressive troll nailed a Grammy nomination that no one ever knew of.

When the 2013 Grammy nominations were made available in early December, many EDM heads clamored to see who would snag spots in the Best Dance/Electronica Album and Best Dance Recording categories. Color many surprised when, amongst the likes of Skrillex, Swedish House Mafia, Avicii, and Calvin Harris was the name “Al Walser.”

Yeah, we didn't know who he was either.

After the dust settled from the swarm of interviews (and detective work) that arose from people trying to figure out who Al Walser was, we found out that he was an artist/producer that was able to vote. What Al ended up doing was logging into the Grammy365 social media site and spammed his track to as many people as he could find. While none of them knew who he was, by the time it came to actually vote on someone for the Dance/Electronica categories, they went with the name they had drilled into their head. For a track that, at the time, barely had 7000 views on YouTube.

Final word from the Grammys is that Walser's nomination will not be stripped. While we imagine many of you could care less, this does end up affecting the credibility of the awards, and if EDM is to be taken seriously moving forward, simple things like this shouldn't happen.