10 Acts That Should Top DJMag’s ‘Top 100 DJs’

It’s that time of year again! We are talking about the DJing popularity contest known as the DJMag Top 100 countdown. A list released every year that ranks your favorite DJ’s based on an electronic voting process that spans nearly 3 months.

The past two years we have seen Dutch big-room powerhouse Hardwell take top honors, and before that we saw the King of Trance, Armin Van Buuren, take the throne. Both artists have worked respectively hard to further their careers and do deserve some sort of recognition for their accomplishments.

But, any veteran electronic music fan knows that this entire competition is not an accurate judge of who the top DJ of the year was. This competition does not judge on one’s ability behind the decks or even how good their productions that year are. This competition is solely based on popularity. If a DJ has a huge following on their social media, chances are they will be ranked very high. Many DJs and fans have deemed this competition a scam.

Since the announcement that voting for the contest has opened this week, we at RaverRafting have been in discussion about which artists actually deserve a top 10 bid. After a long and hard thought discussion, we have come up with 10 artists in which we feel have had the most successful year.

Here is the criteria we judged the artists on:
1. Musical production value
2. Impact on the music scene in late 2014/early 2015
3. How good their live performance is
4. How dedicated and real their fan base is.

So here are our picks (in alphabetical order):

Alesso

Photo courtesy of Olav Stubberub

Our first choice in our top picks is Swedish sensation Alesso. This past year Alesso has made leaps and bounds in his already successful career. Being signed to Def Jam Records and releasing his debut album Forever is only just a small part of his successful year. He released the track “Heroes” which was possibly one of the biggest and most popular records of the year having huge main stream success on the radio and other forms of media. He has continued to please his original fans as well as attract many new ones with his latest singles by not compromising his signature sound. Alesso has headlined many festivals across the globe giving performances that take you on an emotional roller coaster, giving you the best of festival bangers and heart-warming anthems.

Bassnectar

Photo Courtesy of Live Nation

Next up is one of the most recognizable names in electronic music, Bassnectar. One year ago his Noise Vs. Beauty album hit No. 1 on the Billboard EDM charts, and Into The Sun is currently the highest selling electronic album on iTunes.  Last October he became the first independent artist to sell out Madison Square Garden. Lots of Bassnectar’s success is due  in part to his extremely dedicated fans, bass heads who criss-cross the country to hear Lorin’s sets (which are different every time). Bassnectar brings much of his own equipment to his shows including custom sound systems and loads of equipment in order to create what he likes to call “amorphous music.” With his music reaching an unprecedented level of popularity, his crowds will only continue to grow.

Deadmau5

Photo Courtesy of BBC

Without a doubt one of the biggest juggernauts in dance music today, the ever-so controversial Toronto native Deadmau5. After earning a Grammy nomination for his album While (1<2), Deadmau5 has continually pushed the boundaries of what it means to be an electronic artist. One of best parts about the Mau5 is his live shows. He is constantly diving into new technologies trying to make the best show he possibly can to please his audiences. Revealing his new “Mouse Trap” stage at Governor’s Ball this year, Joel Zimmerman is setting high standard for all other artists to follow. Deadmau5 is in constant contact with his fans via his ever so popular Twitter account but also on his website in which he offers member exclusive content and free music.

Eric Prydz

Eric Prydz, Pryda, Cirez D or whatever else you want to call him comes in next on our list. Prydz has been a staple in progressive house for years constantly pushing the boundaries and releasing many timeless tracks. He has ushered in a wave of new producers via Mouseville Records along with highlighting how progressive house music should be. He was the first artist to implement a complete 3D show at Madison Square garden and now travels along with his 4K visuals to present the best show possible every time. Every Pryda show you attend you can be sure that you will hear tracks that you have never heard before. This past week he released part 1 of his 3 part Pryda series loaded with tons of new banging tunes.

Gramatik

Photo Courtesy of Tobin Voggesser

Electronic Music can get a terrible wrap at times, many people will complain that their live performance is nothing and that the artists are just up their playing songs on CD players or laptops. Well, this is not the case for our next nominee Gramatik. Bringing many live elements to his shows like guitar and saxophone, Gramatik combines live elements with the technology of today to deliver a performance like none other. One of the best parts about Gramatik is that you can get all his music for FREE! On his website you can download his entire discography, the man truly loves what he does and knows how to please his fans.

ill. Gates

Photo courtesy of Watachara Phomicinda

ill. Gates does not appear at the top of festival lineups, nor does he have an enormous fan base like our other choices.  What he does have is epic skill, and his impact on electronic production has been enormous.  ill. Gates is a wizard on Ableton, the dominant program in electronic music production.  He taught many DJ’s, Bassnectar included, a thing or two about creating crisp and hard-hitting sounds, and he offers video tutorials on his website. Ill. Gates live is like no other live show.  Not only are his sets completely improvised, but if you look closely you can see his fingers dancing over a midi pad or two, creating crushing beats and synth lines like a percussionist would strike a drum  His 2015 tour is called MFC, Midi Fighting Championship. ill. Gates truly reminds us of the raw energy and intensity of electronic music when it’s actually being played live.

Jack Ü

Photo Courtesy of Rukes

Possibly the biggest collaborative act since the Swedish House Mafia, Jack Ü comes in at our next spot. Diplo and Skrillex are no strangers to being considered top players in the game, but together they bring a whole new element to electronic dance music. One of the most notable attributes to this duo is that their is no line separating genres, they are just making music they feel is good. And judging by their fan base they are doing a good job. After getting huge heat about collaborating with Justin Beiber,  Jack Ü has hushed the haters after releasing one of the biggest songs of the year “Where are Ü Now.” This super group is continually pushing the boundaries of music and are making a huge impact on the music industry as a whole.

Odesza

Photo Courtesy of Dave Lichterman

Harrison Mills and Clayton Knight hailing from Seattle, Washington form the duo known as Odesza. Their album In Return, that debuted at #1 on the Billboard Electronic music chart that sparked the live performance synonymous with Odesza has gained the respect of the media, artists, fans and propelled them into one of the must see acts at any festival. Well worth the hype an Odesza show is an experience unique from the current electronic scene of a DJ and turn tables, the duo take the audience on a sensory journey with breathtaking visuals that perfectly suit the energy generated from their live drums and electronic synths. Along with their successful sold out tour Odesza has impressive stats to back them up. They have 21 Hype Machine #1 66 million SoundCloud streams over 29 million Spotify plays in the last 90 days, over 34.5 million Pandora plays in the last 30 days. Needless to say we expect great things from the duo in 2015.

Oliver Heldens

Photo Courtesy of Rukes

Noted as one of the front-runners in the Future House genre, Oliver Heldens has had a huge breakout year. Starting with his release “Gecko,” Heldens has ushered a new sound sweeping the dance music scene by storm. Oliver Heldens has brought back the groove and brought dancing back to electronic music. After countless new releases, playing every major festival, and even starting his own record label, Oliver Heldens has changed dance music this past year by being able to compete with big name artists by bringing dance music back to it’s roots with a new era twist.

Porter Robinson

The final entrant on our list is none other than Porter Robinson. After a brief silence in parts of 2013 and 2014, Porter came back with something totally new when he premiered his debut Album Worlds. Porter had been known for his high energy DJ performances, but this year he switched over to new live show that can only be described as breath-taking. His new show consisted mainly of new songs off his album that have a vibe unlike anything else you will hear. When he adds a keyboard, drums and live vocals to his performance you truly are receiving a special one of a kind performance. The new energy and aura created by Robinson has had huge impact on his career and fans throughout this past year. He continues to explore new avenues of music like his remix for Nero.

Though there is a slim chance that any of these extraordinary acts make the actual DJMag top 10, it would be truly a breath of fresh air to see some diversity in the top 10. We can be sure to see usual contenders such as Hardwell, Armin Van Buuren, and Tiesto in the top spots, but times are changing in dance music culture and authentic and different acts are starting to earn their share of the limelight. We can only hope that one day this poll will not be about popularity but about legitimacy and authenticity.

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