Well, our EDM paragon is back at it again. As it turns out, Keith Urban, the country music singer and songwriter, was one of the few sober people at his concert last saturday, July 26. According to Rolling Stone, 46 attendees had to be given medical attention and the concert, and of the 46, 22 were hospitalized. EMS weren’t the only ones scrambling about, however. The police dealt with a constant flow of intoxicated people as well, amounting to more than 50 people getting taken into custody.
“In total, Fire and EMS attended to 46 medicals resulting in 22 transports mostly alcohol-related,” Mansfield Police Chief Ron Sellon and Fire Chief Neil Boldrighini said in a statement. “The large number of medicals in a shortened time of approximately three hours caused the activation of a phase one EMS plan utilizing ambulances from five mutual aid communities. Police dealt with a steady stream of intoxicated persons as well, resulting in over 50 people being taken into protective custody and a number of others arrested for alcohol-related issues.”
So a few people got too drunk. So what? 
Weird that so many ravers were at a Keith Urban concert. Oh wait…there’s a drug/alcohol prob OUTSIDE of electronic music?? Shocking.
— Kaskade (@kaskade) July 28, 2014
Obviously Kaskade wouldn’t stand for such a blatant double standard. About a year ago, after the LA Times ran an article about the topic, Kaskade spoke up against the condescending EDM stereotype that paints the scene as “ecstasy-fueled underground raves bumped up into the mainstream.” Time and time again, Kaskade’s words prove to be timeless.
My response to @latimes about EDM’s drug culture (1 yr ago) http://t.co/HmzlPeeRIG Can’t wait to see what they write to Mr. Urban!
— Kaskade (@kaskade) July 28, 2014
It’s sad that so many people seem to think that drugs and alcohol go hand in hand with music. It’s sad that at every single notable music festival or concert, dozens of people require medical attention. It really is sad. What’s ridiculous, however, is that EDM is often exclusively paired with the (somewhat true) stereotype. Vices such as drugs and alcohol have been paired with music long before EDM existed, yet when the issue comes up, EDM is often the only type of music that’s correlated with it. It’s time to put an end to the double standard.
