dance
8 Things We’re Going to Miss by NOT Going to EDC
By Koko and Sype.
The Electric Daisy Carnival will always and forever hold a special place in our hearts. We both have been to 7 EDCs, and hopefully more. So we say with deep regret that we will not be attending this year’s extravaganza. KokoKai won’t be able to attend because, of course, she’s in SOUTH AFRICA, and Sype will not be attending because he can’t stand the thought of an EDC without Koko there. (Airec here, Koko is a liar. I can live a future without her, I just choose not to.)
We will be back again in the future, but for now here are some things that we’re going to MISS about EDC this year.
1. Preparing for the trip/the road trip there.
I (Koko) recently had a dream about the Zipper Squad renting a giant yellow school bus for the road trip to Vegas and to EDC.
But for real, the journey into the desert is full of aspirations, hopes and dreams of a young adventurer into Wonderland. If you’re driving or flying into Vegas, you get the pre-festival jitters just visualizing the magic that awaits you at the Motor Speedway. Whether it be seeing random cars with EDC on the back of their windows, hanging with your close mates or passing a beer to a random fellow EDC attendee from a moving car, cherish this journey and make the best of it. With so much energy and enthusiasm, the trip into Vegas is like a mental pre-game for EDC.
2. Vegas and its nightlife!
Anyone in Vegas around the time of EDC knows that the entire city goes absolutely apesh*t. Even if you don’t actually go to EDC, just being in Vegas for EDC week is an event in itself. EDM celebs decorate the pool parties as festival-goers and regular people alike dance the day away while splashing around and spilling overpriced drinks into the pool water. Oops. This might be your only night to really do the ‘Vegas thing’ and go nuts. Spend that hard-earned cash that you’ve been saving up, buy that random hot girl a drink and eat at all the buffets. Once EDC starts, the chance of you doing all this stuff is slim. We won’t tell (;P)
3. Seeing all of our favorite DJ’s in one space.
Dat 2015 line up doe. :O I. Cant. Even. With. It. Like, it was really hard not to cry when I (Koko) saw the lineup for the first time. Most raves and festivals will have a few DJs you really want to see, but EDC is like the mecca of all festivals. Anyone who’s anyone will be playing at EDC. Not only do we have the pleasure of seeing our faves, but there’s always the discovery stage as well – a chance for up & coming artists to showcase what they’ve got to offer the EDM world. We get to see the famous people before they become famous.
4. The costumes.
The Zips thoroughly enjoy planning and creating custom, unique costumes for each day of EDC every year. Airec not so much because it intrudes on his masculinity. (Which is why he always has an awkward combined costume of bro and kandi kid.) Coordinating themes and characters then transforming them into outfits is something to look forward to, and is a platform for our creativity to come out to play. Not only will be miss our own dress-up time, but seeing everyone else’s costumes is something we will definitely miss. (Not just the hot rave booty.) People be wearin’ some crazy shiz, and no matter how outlandish, we appreciate EDC for providing a safe space to express diversity and creativity.
5. InstaGram ruins my life.
-For the days leading up to EDC, the 3 days of EDC, and at least 2 weeks after EDC, we’re just not going to look at InstaGram. Everyone and their moms are gonna be posting elegantly filtered photos and strategically edited videos all over social media about EDC. Not gonna lie, it’s gonna make us upset and a little jealous and angry that we’re not part of this year’s magic. If you’re going to EDC 2015, don’t expect us to like any of your IG posts. F*ck you.
6. The dancing.
Talk about an undercover cardio fest! EDC is like the triathlon; each of the 3 days is an athletic event. It’s a marathon and not a sprint. Well, you could try sprinting, but then you’re gonna be under a table an hour before EDC like Airec was in 2012. A Lady Zip decided to put on the step counter of her iPhone on for a day of EDC (for funsies) and it calculated over 20 miles of dancing and grooving :O Holy sweet Jesus, that’s a lot of steps for an “experience”. But sports talk aside, EDC creates a space where everyone can dance their little hearts out underneath the electric sky; you can move, shake, wiggle, fist pump and undulate in whatever ways your mood desires, no judgements here on your creative dance moves. (especially Airec’s awkward Asian dance moves in which looks like he’s spazzing out.) And the icing on the cake is that you’ll accidentally lose like 10 pounds in the process. Dance monkey dance!!!
7. The Magic in the Air
There is something to be said about EDCs atmosphere. Your head may be pounding and your body sore from the night before, but once someone yells out ‘EDC’ or just gives you the look of hope and passion for the night to come, your body will become possessed with this euphoric energy that will send chills down your spine and goosebumps on your skin. Mixed that with some fireworks and oh, the feels. These pyrotechnicians know exactly when and how to light off these glorious firework shows in such a way that they can cause 300,000 people to all stop what they’re doing and just stare up at the sky in complete awe of the beauty. The hangover that once was in your head will now be cured by the excitement Under the Electric Sky. It’s EDC, you can’t wuss out and let anything stop you from the adventure you’re about to embark on.
8. The friends and the memories!
The people whom you surround yourself with can make or break your experience. So make sure you surround yourself with the right people. For us it was the ZipperSquad that accompanied us through our magical ride. That doesn’t mean that we didn’t make the effort to meet other people, but it was the special group of people who helped us feel the warmth of EDC, transforming it from an EDM festival to a spiritual journey. Sure we raged, but we also frolicked around in what can be compared to Pan’s Neverland. Friendships will form and memories will be forged. Even now we still think of our time at EDC 2013, the best EDC so far (in our opinion). Cherish the time you have with one another because you never know when someone from your crew will randomly text you ‘Are we still meeting at the Zipper at midnight?’ to send tears down your cheeks.
Well there you have it. Make sure you be safe out there. It’s easy to forget about safety when you’re having fun . . . not trying to sound like the older sibling though. EDC is a magical experience, so enjoy it. Check out our other tips and write ups about EDC and festivals.
What do people listen to in South Africa?
Well, I’m glad you asked 🙂 Africans love their dance music! This is what they consider ‘house music’. It kinda has a drummy beat with some build ups, definitely a different style of composition than that house we love so much back in the States. One of the most popular songs I’ve heard since arriving in good ol’ Afrika Borwa is Y Tjukutja BTW, ‘Y Tjukutja’ means ‘shake your body’ in the Xhosa language (one of South Africa’s 11 official languages). Congratulations, you learned something new today. You’re welcome 😉 This chick Mampi is from Zambia and sings in Bemba. Also very popular in South Africa. She’s singing about her lover, it’s a love song, but she really does know how to get you up & moving! After all, that’s the point of dance music right? Then there’s these weirdo Afrikaaners who are creepy as fuck, but they’re well liked for their shock value. Die Antwoord translated means The Answer. Not gonna lie, their demeanor, costume choice, props, everything about their video production in fucking nuts. But I like it. They’re pushing the limits of normalcy, and their outrageous IDGAF attitude makes me want to watch, holding my breath with anticipation of what the next barbaric scene has to offer. All in all, I’m really digging the spread of musical entertainment in South Africa. A lot of the music is in any of the South African languages I don’t understand, but still there’s so much energy to it. And what I’ve discovered is that it doesn’t matter if you understand the lyrics or not, the beat still lifts you out of your chair and makes you wanna dance. 😀 -Kokokai
Twerking . . . Friend or Foe?!?!
For some of y’all who don’t know, there has been a Twerking epidemic in America. In countless clubs from the East to West Coast, drunk girls have fallen under the spell of the Twerk which causes them to get into a 2 point stance or on all 4(s) on the floor and shake their booty to hip-hop beats as they try to attract their mate (for the night).
Let me explain this Twerk a little more. According to Wikipedia, Twerking is a “dance move (debatable) that involves a person (preferably a woman) shaking their upper hips and lower hips in an up and down bouncing motion, causing them to shake, ‘wobble’ and ‘jiggle’ To ‘twerk’ means to ‘dance in a sexually suggestive fashion by twisting the hips.’”
To help explain the image of this cursed, but enticing movement (I mean come on guys, it’s great to see in da club), here is a video of a girl performing this act:
Not only are nightclubs in America infested with this (insert positive or negative adjective here) range of motion, but so are our high schools. Our nations youth are feeling “Twerk Fever.”
In San Diego, 33 high school girls were suspended for a Twerk video that they filmed and posted on YouTube.
The principal suspended the teenagers involved because it was filmed on school grounds using school equipment. (Sucks they got suspended, but funny as hell).
So ladies, if you feel your intoxicated friend is about to get-her-Twerk-on, please stop her from embarrassing herself. And gentlemen, do the right thing and protect her lady status in high society . . .
. . . or you can take the devilishly hilarious alternative route.
Upon a situation where you feel the need to Twerk, you may be under the influence or just simply bored. So you may encourage the Twerkness to happen. You maybe feel the need to tell your drunk female, or male, friend to shake her (or his) booty in the air like it’s protesting something at San Francisco State. (If y’all don’t know, they’re a lot of protests at SF State).
It does not matter if they are doing it right or wrong, just make sure you have a camera out to film that shit so you can embarrass the shit out of them later.
Here is a funny Twerk video of a woman getting out-Twerk at an iHop . . . BY A GUY!
As you can tell, at the end of the video the woman notices her defeat and tries to rebuttal her loss with some more booty shaking. However, all that ass is not enough to regain the upper hand (or cheek).
So note this girls, just because you are a woman, or super attractive with an amazing booty that is a gift from God, you can still lose a Twerk battle due to your poor technique.
Check out this male who has foully caught the Twerk disease (but it’s super fuckin funny to watch this Asian guy scare the Twerk outta White people in Canada).
Now that you know, it is in your power to stop this “Twerk Fever” from spreading even more . . . or help it spread so you can laugh your Twerk off!
-Hoping for the best, Sype
PS, Hot chicks in the club Twerking . . . HOT! And if you’re not, please don’t try, nobody wants to have nightmares later.
PSS, here is an awesome video of a guy asking a girl out to prom with the POWER OF TWERKING!!! Shake that booty brotha, Shake that booty!
Inside the Dark Minds of Koko and Airec 