Text Box Posts on Social Media
Uh oh, what’s canceled now?! This was the first phenomenon of this crazy time. Any time you see one of those text boxes you know it’s bad news. Is it a cancelation, a postponement or a bunch of words saying absolutely nothing? I can’t wait until we can get back to generic hype videos and announcements of announcements of lineups.
Festival Updates Saying Nothing
Just cancel it already, we know it’s not happening. You needed 3 paragraphs to tell us you’re still aren’t sure if it’s gonna be canceled or postponed? We have flights and hotels to deal with. We get it if your festival is in July or August, because who knows. We’ve gotten 3+ updates about EDC and we still have no idea what’s going on with it. All we know is it’s scheduled for mid-May and right now there’s no way that’s happening.
DJ Sets from Home
Ultra was the first domino to fall and it was also the first to start this “virtual experience” era that we’ve all come to know and feel indifferent about. Now with the entire music industry frozen, all of your favorite DJs are performing in their kitchens and living rooms. And you know what? They look basically just as lame and awkward doing that as we do!
In a global “emperor has no clothes” moment, you’ve suddenly realized that without the millions of dollars in stage production, pyro, lasers, and LED graphics a bunch of DJs aren’t nearly so magical. Even for talented DJs, it’s hard to craft a set without a room full of people to read and respond to. Also, it’s just too much at this point. Just post your set to Soundcloud and we’ll listen to it when we’re in the mood. Some are better than others, but you probably won’t be going back to re-listen to many of these sets once we get back to normal.
Emails Referencing this “crazy” time
This one is aimed more at industry people, and you know how bad it is. Publicists, Artists, bloggers, – hell everybody still writing work emails is doing this right now. Sure festivals and venues are closed, but we still have some part of the music industry left. Music is still be released and listened to and produced. The show must go on, somehow. So how do you continue working in this crazy and uncertain time without being insensitive? Add a quaint little phrase to all of your emails! The “hope you’re doing well” is now “hope you’re doing well in this crazy and uncertain time”. It’s nearly impossible to have any business conversation without a reference to it, and we can’t wait for this to change to “hope you’re as happy as we are to be busy again!”. Oh and don’t forget to “Stay safe!”
DJs Streaming on Twitch
Since DJs can’t tour and Facebook/YouTube monetization systems are pretty whack, all of our favorite DJs are jumping on the Twitch train. Wonderful!! Another social media channel to add to the list for everybody we follow. Another app to download on your phone. Some DJs like deadmau5 made his Twitch presence authentic, but many of these new entrants are just doing it because it’s the cool thing to do right now. Can you just stick to Facebook or YouTube? Thanks.
DJs Making TikTok Posts
You know everybody is bored when suddenly everybody is making TikTok accounts. Why the sudden influx? Posts that would just normally be posted to Facebook or Instagram are being posted on TikTok. As is typical with TikTok, it’s a whole host of dumb dances and quirky antics. Thanks, but no thanks. We’ll all be more than happy when you’re too busy touring to make any more of these again.
Instagram Challenges
Send 10 pushups, do 10 pushups. Send a shot, do a shot. How about the ever-challenging “post your most liked photo” challenge? That’s a tough one, I’m not sure if I’m up to that challenge!
Fights About Refunds
Nobody asked for this, certainly not the clubs, artists and music festivals that plan all year for their events. This whole situation is putting a major financial pinch on these companies, and some are better able to weather it than others. That means that some companies literally can’t afford to give back all of their ticket purchases without going under.
Sure it’s BS that some of these companies are keeping your service fees (that are BS to begin with) and it’s annoying that they’re making you jump through hoops to get your refunds. We all know people are upset about Ultra making you attend 2021 instead of giving you a refund. While you might be temporarily out a few bucks or have to wait a year for your festival, many of these companies could be bankrupt in a year if you don’t have some patience.
We’re all hurting now and we’re all bored and angry. Don’t bankrupt our concert promoters and festivals before this is over. You’ll regret it if you do because the big players like Live Nation that charge the most fees aren’t going anywhere. Just imagine what they’ll do if everybody else goes under.
Getting Reminders for Events That Are Canceled
This one goes last because it hurts the most right now. Seeing Facebook reminders for amazing DJ shows and festivals I was planning to attend hits me like a punch in the gut. Only 365 days until Ultra! Especially as I read them bored to death on my couch or desperately trying to figure out how to achieve anything with these stupid resistance bands I ordered.
Bonus Positive: No More FOMO
If there’s one decent thing about this crazy and uncertain time it’s the fact that FOMO has been abolished. No matter how boring and lame you’re being, you can rest assured that everybody else is just about as lame and boring as you. Almost nobody is doing anything cool that you could be jealous of. Nobody is going out or raving without you. Although we won’t be sad to see FOMO reinstated again.
