Appreciating Art is Appreciating an Artist
At the age of 19 I was depressed and heartbroken living in a single dorm room in Southern Minnesota when rave culture saved my life. My friend finally convinced me to get out of Mankato and hit up Skyway Theatre in Minneapolis (a well known venue for EDM). He introduced me to his rave fam and they accepted me with open arms. On the drive up the anticipation arose and I thanked God that I had drugs to help me out. Once, I got there the rave fam dispersed into the crowd and I was stranded.
Molly began to dance with me and I felt pure bliss which opened up my door to others. I began sharing life stories, the good and the bad. Each person reciprocated the equivalent story if not better. I began to realize I wasn’t alone and neither were my peers. We were all here to escape our past and create a better future. It wasn’t until my fourth show into my discography of artists I’ve attended I realized there was a hell of a lot more to rave culture than drugs. Art is the soul ideology that keeps us sane in an insane world.
We all deep down within us have an artist that has been or is misunderstood and mistreated. Each of us desire to share our secret talents but never do. Personally, going to festivals/shows has encouraged me even more to write, glove, paint, draw, poy, etc. You name it, and i’d like to try it, because it creates an incredible bond with others who do. Bringing people together for something so simple is why I love rave culture so much.
Walking the grounds of a festival night can be one of the prettiest sights to have ever been seen
Art is what brings all of us to raves/festivals. Predominantly the music has a shamanistic control over us but it also frees us. Walking the grounds of a festival night can be one of the prettiest sights to have ever been seen. Beautiful girls wearing daisy dukes, heart shaped glasses, and chuck taylors hoola hoop the night away. Shirtless people wearing furries on their heads give out glove shows to those spending the night with Molly. Pin makers wearing pirate attire while holding umbrellas slanging their pins as if it were crack on a street corner. Painters paint the face of a beautiful woman they once loved to a collection of love songs being played. Meanwhile, friends are bonding, new flames are being sparked, and most importantly we are truly free to be who we are.
I’ll never forget my first rave fam and how important they were to my personal/spiritual growth. I carried that love given to me on that cold Minnesota night throughout my travels. Not only have I embraced my inner artist but I have inspired others to do so as well. I still remember bringing a friend I only met once to his first rave. I follow him on snapchat and he’s been to Electric Forest, multiple shows, and even gloves himself. Even a member of my first rave fam vended for the first time at Summerset this year! From an artist to another artist, please embrace others and their dreams.
I believe freedom of expression without judgement is what makes rave culture so great. Being allowed to be you is all a person ever deserves. Being you allows you to find a path to travel along with others who might be on a different page in life but are still connected to the same wavelength.
