“I am a DJ, I am what I play,” David Bowie sings on the song “DJ” off of the Lodger album from 35 years ago. That’s more true than ever, as the popularity of the DJ as artist, especially in the electronic dance music realm, keeps on growing thanks to superstars like Skrillex, Porter Robinson and Diplo. The Brooklyn Electronic Music Festival, which returns for a seventh edition on Friday and Saturday with headliners Damian Lazarus, Little Boots, Booka Shade and Eats Everything, reflects that trend as electronic music grows out of the underground and into the spotlight.
The festival will appear at several venues around Williamsburg, a fitting location for a genre on the rise, says festival co-founder, Jen Lyons. “Brooklyn has always been the fringe,” she wrote in a press release. “Brought into the mainstream in these past few years, what still exists is a pulse that is unique. Artists experience New York City differently here.” We’re not so sure about all that, but it’s definitely worth it to go get loose at Glasslands, one of the festival’s venues, before the mainstream success of Brooklyn shuts their doors forever.
The Brooklyn Electronic Music Festival begins Friday and runs through Saturday at various venues in Williamsburg. Tickets for each day are $55; tickets for the entire festival are $120 general admission, $175 VIP. For more information, including the lineup schedule, click here.
