Beatport, the worldwide leader of electronic music for DJs, producers, and fans, announced the release of Music Connects Us, a ground-breaking Electronic Music and Mental Health report. The report was developed in collaboration with Arigami, Silentmode and the Association For Electronic Music (AFEM).
Back in late 2020, Beatport hosted a special edition of their ReConnect live streams. The stream was to highlight the issue of mental health in the electronic music community by curating a mix of DJ sessions along with educational expert roundtables and live breathwork sessions. In conjunction with the stream, Beatport developed a research survey with Arigami, AFEM and Silentmode. The overall goal of the survey was to better understand artists’ needs and struggles during this past year. Artists from all over the world were invited to give their experiences on how the pandemic has affected them.
“Mental health has been one of the most talked about topics in our industry for years, and this is a global topic that should continue to be discussed and de-stigmatized. Everyone at Beatport takes this topic very seriously and will continue to bring visibility to it.”
Beatport’s CEO, Robb McDaniels on mental health
Music Connects Us is a free report and resource that includes insight from a multitude of artists. Some of the artists included are Kaskade, Louisahhh, Scuba, Ben Rau, Sarah Story, Junior Sanchez and more. The report also has contributions from leading researchers and mental health experts such as Dr. Aida Vazin (AFEM), Tristan Hunt (AFEM), Ari Peralta (Arigami).
Since 2014 the world has seen a decrease in global life expectancy. A major factor in this decrease has been the “diseases of despair.” These “diseases of despair” are three classes of behavior-related medical conditions that increase in groups of people who experience despair due to a sense that their long-term social and economic outlook is bleakly displaying the connection between increased hopelessness and depression. There are three disease types associated with despair, drug overdoses, suicide, and alcoholic liver disease.
Electronic music is a great supporter in setting the right mood for coping tools and can be viewed as ‘functional sound enhancement’. While Meditation is a great practice, not everyone has the same discipline to sit still. We can’t give up on billions of people who need extra support! Music helps revert our racing thoughts to our breath, music can help us sit with our discomfort and allow the body to regulate through stillness and inaction.”
Ari Peralta, founding partner of Arigami
Music continues to be a ‘go to’ for most people’s mental health needs. According to the Beatport research, 72 percent of respondents shared that listening to music, performing fitness activities or practicing meditation has been their top tool in supporting their mental health. It is the goal of these organizations like Arigami and Silentmode to increase awareness of these issues and to combine them in fun and exciting ways like with the use of breathwork in combination with electronic music. Silentmode is “committed to making support tools such as breathwork, accessible to all, including those who prefer to get in the zone with electronic music.” says Bradley-Dowding Young, CEO & Founder, Silentmode and Breathonics.
You can learn more about the report, survey findings and support tools here.
