For years now, Play Me Records founder Reid Speed has been an undeniable force in the world of heavy electronic music. Known primarily for her work in the fields of drum and bass and dubstep, but never one to shy away from a manifold of different sounds, she has become a pioneer in dance music since the mid 90’s. She has never looked back since then, eventually forming the Play Me brand and releasing no shortage of cutting edge music on her own. In a recently resurfaced quote from a piece THUMP did entitled “Here’s What 10 Old (School) DJs Think About EDM,” Reid focused on how the underground culture was a safe haven for those who didn’t fit into the mainstream culture. Obviously touching on her own personal experience, she goes on to speak about dance music now being populated by those same people she was trying to escape from. Even as a younger face to the world of electronic music, my journey started around 2008. The same people that made fun of the music, events, and culture one year were asking “Are you going to EDC?” a few years later. That’s what dance music going mainstream has done, and in a more recent post from Reid Speed’s Facebook, she elaborates on the original quote, her experience and passion for the music, and the debate of underground vs. EDM. She touches on ghost producers, marketing becoming the primary focus, and the role money has played in the new EDM world. All things are very relevant right now, and it’s definitely worth thinking about from the perspective of someone who has been in the scene for 20 years. You can read her more recent perspective below, along with the powerful image that has been making its rounds. From Reid Speed via Facebook: Source