Drugs and music are intertwined. They have been for awhile, and probably always will be. While we here at Your Edm do not advocate for drug usage, it would be naive of us to suggest that there is no connection. Face it. When you tell someone outside of the scene that you are into electronic dance music- what is one of the first things they assume about you? That you do drugs. While most of us realize that the music is enough to give a beautiful and natural high, the media, especially due to the recent deaths and hospitalizations, chooses to focus on Molly as the forefront of the EDM culture.
Luckily our scene has advocates like Tommie Sunshine to tell the media what’s up. On Katie Couric’s talk show, Sunshine, in his typical fashion, defended the electronic dance music culture.
“It’s a music scene above all things. You know, I mean that’s I think kind of getting lost in the conversation… The majority of the people that are going to these parties are going because they love music. That’s what it’s really about.”
While the media likes to portray EDM-lovers as drug-infused zombies bopping about to repetitive beats, they miss the entire point of why we attend shows and festivals. The M in EDM does not stand for Molly. It stands for Music.
Couric goes on to ask why people choose to ingest Molly and “have a heightened response to their surroundings” at EDM events.
Sunshine explains how he believes it is a natural thing for people to want to go out and cut loose, but “with education, which is what we are all trying to do […] will come safer experiences.”
Kerri Mason, Billboard Magazine Contributor, describes festivals as “total sensory onslaught” for Couric, who has never before attended an EDM-related event.
“There’s so much to hear and see, that the idea of enhancing it isn’t necessary for a lot of people … but it also does lend itself to ‘let’s take it one step up from here,'”
A DanceSafe representative also had the chance to speak with Couric about the company’s mission to
“promote health and safety within the nightlife community”.
“We typically set up at events and provide free water, non-bias drug information, condoms, earplugs, sunblock.”
DanceSafe also provides screening and testing kits for people to know exactly what they are putting into their bodies before they ingest illicit substances. Julie Holland, when asked how she feels about these testing kits, explains,”Education is crucial…One of the biggest risks to molly is counterfeit drugs and drug substitutions”.
Although our scene is constantly taking the blunt of it, molly is not just an EDM-oriented drug. It is not just a music-oriented drug. It is a worldwide, mainstream drug that is affecting millions of people. In the interview, Sunshine urges those who are going to experiment with these substances to do their research beforehand.
Couric, on the other hand, makes another suggestion.
“Rather than testing whatever substance you may be taking, I think a whole policy of better safe than sorry, and just staying away from this stuff, isn’t a bad idea”.
Although Couric has a point, it is important to realize that the “Drugs Are Bad Mmk” tactic is clearly not working. People are consuming these drugs without fully realizing the risks associated with them. People are consuming these drugs without testing them. Preaching abstinence is not key here. Education, testing kits, and honesty in regards to molly is key.
