Have any of you guys heard of this recent musical trend 'Vaporwave' before? To keep it short its a pretty recent trend in techno music in which artists remix samples of tracks (ranging from movie soundtracks to PC Intro screens) from the 80's, 90's, & early 00's while simultaneously providing modern flare (the modern dubstep or EDM sound in music), thus giving the jams a true A E S T H E T I C  F E E L 8).


This is a pretty recent track and I'm digging it so far, and I think best represents this genre of music ;)

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Its catchy, energetic, but also equally relaxing, melo & its also pretty nostalgic (for instance, guess where the theme for that first song is from!).


The legitimate question I have here is that, do you guys think this underground movement is going to eventually become mainstream? If you're interested please discuss, and I'll be providing my own answer shortly!

Isn't vaporwave more 80s?

Isn't vaporwave more 80s?


Well most of its influence is from the 80's, but it also ranges from the 70's, 90's, & a little bit of the early 00's.

What was the first song supposed to be? My best guess is The Katz Motel from Courage The Cowardly Dog ;D

What was the first song supposed to be? My best guess is The Katz Motel from Courage The Cowardly Dog ;D


I'm not gonna lie but the instrumentation with the drums do match the beat with the song I posted! However, the first song is from the cartoon Hey Arnold. Its hard to tell at first but once you start listening more to that smooth jazz in the song and how the beats are played you start to get major flashbacks of watching that loveable 'f**t ball head' on your old CRT ;)

I miss the days of about 2010 to 2013, when Vaporwave was a special, small little phenomenon that was confined mostly to 4chan's /mu/ (yeah, I was there as it happened. And not all 4chan boards suck like /pol/ or /tv/ or /v/ do, so don't ostracize me for going to one of their decent boards :P).

Now, crappy sites like Reddit, 9gag, and Facebook know about it, and it just doesn't feel the same anymore, duuude. Like, vaporwave has sold out, know what I'm sayin'?  ;)

I was being half-sarcastic. ;D

People who use the word "sell out" also tend to say "mannnn" for some reason.

Music-wise, I don't think Vaporwave has declined, in fact I think it's gotten even better with a wider range of sub-genres and artists to pick from. But I do kind of miss when it was an obscure/underground thing, before social media discovered it and drove all those "post-post-post irony" or "A E S T H E T I C" jokes into the ground.


Yeah I get where you're coming from! It seems since 2015/16' the genre has started to steadily rise in popularity (ironically around when I first discovered it). Maybe I'm overthinking things but I theorize the massive political turbulence in the mid 2010's has obviously made people more nostalgic of the past, especially in the 80's & 90's, where most of Vaporwave's influence comes from. Hence the rise in popularity of the genre, although to most casual music listeners and the general public, the genre remains pretty underground for the most part. Although, while not exactly Vaporwave, I'm noticing many pop songs are recently incorporating many 80's/90's beats in their songs such as 'Star Boy', 'Cheap Thrills', & '24K Magic', to name a few

I kind of get where you're coming from. I personally first discovered the phenomenon in 2015 with this classic:

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I was being half-sarcastic. ;D

People who use the word "sell out" also tend to say "mannnn" for some reason.

Music-wise, I don't think Vaporwave has declined, in fact I think it's gotten even better with a wider range of sub-genres and artists to pick from. But I do kind of miss when it was an obscure/underground thing, before social media discovered it and drove all those "post-post-post irony" or "A E S T H E T I C" jokes into the ground.

Yeah I get where you're coming from! It seems since 2015/16' the genre has started to steadily rise in popularity (ironically around when I first discovered it). Maybe I'm overthinking things but I theorize the massive political turbulence in the mid 2010's has obviously made people more nostalgic of the past, especially in the 80's & 90's, where most of Vaporwave's influence comes from. Hence the rise in popularity of the genre, although to most casual music listeners and the general public, the genre remains pretty underground for the most part. Although, while not exactly Vaporwave, I'm noticing many pop songs are recently incorporating many 80's/90's beats in their songs such as 'Star Boy', 'Cheap Thrills', & '24K Magic', to name a few

Another Great Jam!

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It's nice but I don't think it will go mainstream. Everything that's good doesn't make it to the mainstream.

It's nice but I don't think it will go mainstream. Everything that's good doesn't make it to the mainstream.


Yeah I think you may be right. Although I don't see the actual Vaporwave genre ever becoming super-mainstream, I can realistically see some pop artists incorporate some of the aesthetics from Vaporwave in the near future.

Remember Vaporwave is a mixture of nostalgia (mainly 80's/90's) and modern techno, which is something many pop artists have already been doing for the last couple years. For instance, Meghan Trainor's first album was basically a huge homage to music from the 40's & 50's, while her most recent album has been a homage to the late 90's/early 00's. With nostalgia banking huge in recent years (and I personally suggest that'll continue with Trump becoming president ;D), I can see some of the aesthetics of Vaporwave being mainstream.

The genre itself would probably remain obscure to the general public though, but like Zelek said, the genre is definitely becoming more known to internet & social media users.

It's nice but I don't think it will go mainstream. Everything that's good doesn't make it to the mainstream.


Something I'd expect a hipster to say.  ;)

As for the subject of V A P O R W A V E it's a bit easy to see why it never become into the mainstream. Vaporwave is like listening to elevator/waiting room retro music that's been slowed down. Gives this eerie dream vibe to it. Not something that everyone wants or would understand. It lacks the things that most of the other genres have which is why most don't care for the genre and see it as basically internet meme music. Also wasn't this genre involved with some anti-capitalist movement? Always found this part to be strange and somewhat random.

As for the subject of V A P O R W A V E it's a bit easy to see why it never become into the mainstream. Vaporwave is like listening to elevator/waiting room retro music that's been slowed down. Gives this eerie dream vibe to it. Not something that everyone wants or would understand. It lacks the things that most of the other genres have which is why most don't care for the genre and see it as basically internet meme music.

IDK about that, especially with politics and world events becoming more turbulent by the day, I think what this music allows for people is an escape. Once again, I agree I don't think the genre itself would become mainstream, but various aesthetics from the genre could realistically pop up more into music.


Also wasn't this genre involved with some anti-capitalist movement? Always found this part to be strange and somewhat random.


From what I heard its sort of a mixture between anti capitalism and pro capitalism. You could read more here; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaporwave

As it says in the article, it seems like various TV channels like MTV have already incorporated elements of the Vaporwave & Seapunk subcultures in their re-marketing.

IDK about that, especially with politics and world events becoming more turbulent by the day, I think what this music allows for people is an escape. Once again, I agree I don't think the genre itself would become mainstream, but various aesthetics from the genre could realistically pop up more into music.


From what I heard its sort of a mixture between anti capitalism and pro capitalism. You could read more here; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaporwave

As it says in the article, it seems like various TV channels like MTV have already incorporated elements of the Vaporwave & Seapunk subcultures in their re-marketing.


Actually from some articles and videos I've seen there Vaporwave elements may end up leaking into future music and culture according to this video.
-WNrjWSJwf8&t

And take a read at this article.
http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/music/a47793/what-happened-to-vaporwave/

The article mentions how the genre is supposed to be "dead" yet it really isn't as some of its elements continues to leak on into some mainstream music and other bits of culture. Add that with the fact that even some big music producers and writers even know of Vaporwave and you got yourself a very interesting genre. Heck Vaporwave have gotten so big that it spawned subgenres such as Future Funk and Hypnagogic.

This is a complete stretch, but if Vaporwave continues to live on and even give more influence in other parts of culture I wouldn't be surprised for it to be one of common aesthetics of the late 2010s/2020s. I'd actually love for something like Future Funk to become more mainstream.

Speaking of Future Funk here are some nice music vids.
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Great now I've gained yet ANOTHER Vaporwave obsession. I wonder how long this will last. But anyways like the video I've posted asked do you think Vaporwave may end up being the music of the future (or at least one of the big influences in the future of music)? If it is then I'm shockingly okay with that.

Actually from some articles and videos I've seen there Vaporwave elements may end up leaking into future music and culture according to this video.
-WNrjWSJwf8&t

And take a read at this article.
http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/music/a47793/what-happened-to-vaporwave/

The article mentions how the genre is supposed to be "dead" yet it really isn't as some of its elements continues to leak on into some mainstream music and other bits of culture. Add that with the fact that even some big music producers and writers even know of Vaporwave and you got yourself a very interesting genre. Heck Vaporwave have gotten so big that it spawned subgenres such as Future Funk and Hypnagogic.

This is a complete stretch, but if Vaporwave continues to live on and even give more influence in other parts of culture I wouldn't be surprised for it to be one of common aesthetics of the late 2010s/2020s. I'd actually love for something like Future Funk to become more mainstream.

Speaking of Future Funk here are some nice music vids.
ic2d-1xVkkItbWS0j2fulY&t



Great now I've gained yet ANOTHER Vaporwave obsession. I wonder how long this will last. But anyways like the video I've posted asked do you think Vaporwave may end up being the music of the future (or at least one of the big influences in the future of music)? If it is then I'm shockingly okay with that.


Damn thats pretty interesting! If thats the case, as we've predicted, than I agree that would be a fresh take to pop/techno music!

Another true A E S T H E T I C

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Another true A E S T H E T I C

UJsUpeXK6Jo

I swear listening to music within the Vaporwave Genres/Sub genres gives my body this strange feeling. It's funny as a lot of people who've listened to the genre has felt it too. For some it's nostagia due to growing up during the era that a lot of Vaporwave's influences originated from. But as someone who have never lived in the '80s Vaporwave gives me another feeling (although there are Vaporwave influences that have came form the '90s and early '00s which I suppose can connect with me). It's like if you were in surreal/psychedelic future full of a bunch of bright neon lights of purple, green, blue, pink, and yellow.......oh and you're in Japan for some unexplained reason. 

Something like this.
http://igloomag.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/2814-birth-of-a-new-day-animated.gif
https://media.giphy.com/media/Q1EITT4JVpAIw/giphy.gif
We could go on and on about Vaporwave's Aesthetic.



Damn thats pretty interesting! If thats the case, as we've predicted, than I agree that would be a fresh take to pop/techno music!



It is a fresh take. I'm interested in seeing how Vaporwave would further influence pop/techno music. The genre originated in the early 2010s and is still around in the late 2010s. I want to see if it can last into the 2020s. I'd figure that it would die due to it being a meme, but after looking at the community and the thousands upon thousands of tracks they've made, the genres influence on some mainstream artists (heck there are even books about the genre, and the fact that the genre has become big enough to birth its own set of subgenres I can see why the genre has lived for this long. If this keeps up the genre may never die (or at least not die anytime soon).

It also means something when a CRAP TON of Vaporwave relate videos on youtube are gaining 500,000 to 1+ million views on Youtube.

Kinda OT but it seems the occurrence of city/country specific music genres may have died with the 00's. There doesn't seem to be any location definining genres anymore probably because of the popularity of social media.

You had UK grime in in early 00s, Seattle grunge in the early 90s, east coast v. west coast hip hop, New Orleans jazz, and Jamaican reggae in the 60s. But now all emerging genres seem to be primarily Internet-based.

Kinda OT but it seems the occurrence of city/country specific music genres may have died with the 00's. There doesn't seem to be any location definining genres anymore probably because of the popularity of social media.

You had UK grime in in early 00s, Seattle grunge in the early 90s, east coast v. west coast hip hop, New Orleans jazz, and Jamaican reggae in the 60s. But now all emerging genres seem to be primarily Internet-based.


I don't have too much of an issue with this. Mainly due to the fact that the internet is international. A lot of music we have nowadays doesn't take influence from any specific regions, but rather culture and/or whatever they can think of. For example Electro Swing is popular in Europe, but EDM (Such as Chicago House) and Big Band Swing (the two things that Electro Swing is made from) are from the United States. Internet culture isn't blocked by cultural barriers that each region of the world has. Now with all that said the only true genre that is Internet based is Vaporwave as it's the only genre with no regional point of origin. All other genres aren't internet based as they don't take influence from the internet. The internet only acts as a platform that a lot of artists use to get their music out to many other people, but it's not what influences their music. You can have a specific song that is internet influenced, but the genre as a whole has taken influence from other things long before that specific internet-based song was made.

Well most of its influence is from the 80's, but it also ranges from the 70's, 90's, & a little bit of the early 00's.

It's very odd that it would touch the early 00s. Even the late 90s aren't even retro yet, let alone the early 00s. But so far the vaporwave tracks I heard had 80s elevator music.

Anyone that appreciates Vaporwave should give Neon Indian's Vega Intl. Night School a listen.

T2U2vZyNjTk

It's very odd that it would touch the early 00s. Even the late 90s aren't even retro yet, let alone the early 00s. But so far the vaporwave tracks I heard had 80s elevator music.


Yeah, what's funny is that Vaporwave is supposed to show some influences from the 70s, 80s, 90s, and early 00s. But to be honest I'm mainly just hearing 80s influences (and 70s if we're talking about Future Funk). The only 90s/early 00s influences I can think of is with the Aesthetic design of Vaporwave. So in short Vaporwave shows influence from the 70s-early 00s (as of 2017 anyways. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw more influences from up to the mid 00s by the time we reach 2020), but the sound of Vaporwave is from the 70s and 80s while the design of it is from the 90s and early 00s.

Listen to any Vaporwave track and you'll mainly just hear 70s/80s style sounds, but the visuals for the track are from the 90s/early 00s (and also 80s).

It's very odd that it would touch the early 00s. Even the late 90s aren't even retro yet, let alone the early 00s. But so far the vaporwave tracks I heard had 80s elevator music.


The late 90's/early 00's are most certainly nostalgic now. 1997 was 20 years ago for goodness sakes! ;D The rest of the period is roughly 14-19 years old. Damn... when you put it that way it looks that makes me feel old :o



Anyone that appreciates Vaporwave should give Neon Indian's Vega Intl. Night School a listen.

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I gave it a good listen and it was very good man! My favorite track on that record is probably The Glitzy Hive 8)



Yeah, what's funny is that Vaporwave is supposed to show some influences from the 70s, 80s, 90s, and early 00s. But to be honest I'm mainly just hearing 80s influences (and 70s if we're talking about Future Funk). The only 90s/early 00s influences I can think of is with the Aesthetic design of Vaporwave. So in short Vaporwave shows influence from the 70s-early 00s (as of 2017 anyways. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw more influences from up to the mid 00s by the time we reach 2020), but the sound of Vaporwave is from the 70s and 80s while the design of it is from the 90s and early 00s.

Listen to any Vaporwave track and you'll mainly just hear 70s/80s style sounds, but the visuals for the track are from the 90s/early 00s (and also 80s).


THIS. Its style of music has a funky late 70's/early 80's feel to it. But at the same time its visual art has a 90's/early 00's vibe going on, something you'd find on KidPix or various 90's era graphic arts. While of course still keeping things fresh by adding modern elements in the songs.

These are examples of where Vaporwave gets its visual influence from:

http://41.media.tumblr.com/18fae8ea469698842d05cfd5c80c72dc/tumblr_mz5abzDq3S1rh9a7mo1_500.jpg

https://static1.squarespace.com/static/517c0a2be4b0d5eb59dbd468/t/51c4f9e9e4b001e973451f69/1371863529684/%E2%80%A2+Kid+Pix+Box+Picture+copy.jpg

http://www.guidebookgallery.org/pics/gui/startupshutdown/splash/win95-1-1.png

http://www.coverbrowser.com/image/misc-games/5708-1.jpg

http://romhustler.net/img/screenshots/genesis/title/53e69dff7192a.png

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/f7/df/56/f7df56f14bd42fcf17a152e25bb60624.jpg

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/L4jvkhxCflw/hqdefault.jpg

http://www.vintagecomputing.com/wp-content/images/pcmag/headtrip_small.jpg

http://images.nintendolife.com/news/2016/05/random_solving_the_mystery_of_the_super_smash_bros_melee_lost_stage/large.jpg

http://orig15.deviantart.net/683f/f/2011/210/a/6/nintendo_64_logo_gif_2_by_artchell-d420di6.gif

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8A4pHjMvp4E/maxresdefault.jpg

http://attackoftheandroids.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/clippy.png

The late 90's/early 00's are most certainly nostalgic now. 1997 was 20 years ago for goodness sakes! ;D The rest of the period is roughly 14-19 years old. Damn... when you put it that way it looks that makes me feel old :o

It is not retro yet. Only things that are 20 years ago are considered retro. Early 2000s retroness will not come until 2020, still way too early.

It is not retro yet. Only things that are 20 years ago are considered retro. Early 2000s retroness will not come until 2020, still way too early.


I think this is where the line between nostalgia and retro becomes noticeable. Retro usually falls into the 20 years ago rule, but nostalgia usually happens a bit earlier. So while 1997 the only retro year from the late 90s/early 00s era the rest of the years (1998-2002/3) still somehow ended up in people's nostalgia with comebacks in things like fashion and music.  It's quite strange. The year 2000 isn't retro yet, but it's easy to see why people would be nostalgic for a year that started 17 years ago.


THIS. Its style of music has a funky late 70's/early 80's feel to it. But at the same time its visual art has a 90's/early 00's vibe going on, something you'd find on KidPix or various 90's era graphic arts. While of course still keeping things fresh by adding modern elements in the songs.


Yeah, like that. I'm quite curious on what Vaporwave will be like when this decade reaches its end, however. For example classic style Vaporwave (the original style of just getting 80s elevator style music and slowing it down, changing its pitch, and chopping up and mixing samples) isn't made as much as it was in the early 2010s. Now the current style is what is known as Hypnagogic Vaporwave (basically newer style of main Vaporwave) which is basically like the classic style with some funky elements to it. But aside from the music I'm curious on how the aesthetic and stuff will continue on. Maybe a newer era of aesthetic style would be created.

I think this is where the line between nostalgia and retro becomes noticeable. Retro usually falls into the 20 years ago rule, but nostalgia usually happens a bit earlier. So while 1997 the only retro year from the late 90s/early 00s era the rest of the years (1998-2002/3) still somehow ended up in people's nostalgia with comebacks in things like fashion and music.  It's quite strange. The year 2000 isn't retro yet, but it's easy to see why people would be nostalgic for a year that started 17 years ago.

The late 90s and early 2000s are not one single era. They are two distinct eras.

I agree retro and nostalgia are different. You can be nostalgic for any period you want really. There are many these days who are nostalgic for the 2000s, especially younger people. But remember the late 90s and early 2000s are separate, they should not be combined in any way.

The late 90s and early 2000s are not one single era. They are two distinct eras.

I agree retro and nostalgia are different. You can be nostalgic for any period you want really. There are many these days who are nostalgic for the 2000s, especially younger people. But remember the late 90s and early 2000s are separate, they should not be combined in any way.


Eh... not too sure about that. Not to bring up 'decadeology' in the conversation but the period from 1998-2003 is what most consider the 'Millennium' period. Aka, distinct from the core 90's (1992-1998 era) & the core 00's (2003/4-2008 era). It was when 90's culture was gradually phasing out and 00's culture was gradually phasing in. Assuming you were born in 95? Your childhood was closer (culturally speaking) to an 8 year old in 1999 watching Pokemon, rather than to an 8 year old in 2007 watching Ben 10, if that makes any sense.

However FWIW I agree that 20 year is the limit on when something officially becomes retro. Me & Looney Tune were just saying that the entire era is already nostalgic to most people who grew up in it. Heck its 14-19 years old, almost within the retro realm.

I gave it a good listen and it was very good man! My favorite track on that record is probably The Glitzy Hive 8)


I can't even find a favorite. So many good songs on that album.

I think vaporwave is best when people really experiment with it and make it poppier or at least more eventful than the chopped and screwed stuff we all know about.

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So in short Vaporwave shows influence from the 70s-early 00s (as of 2017 anyways. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw more influences from up to the mid 00s by the time we reach 2020), but the sound of Vaporwave is from the 70s and 80s while the design of it is from the 90s and early 00s.

I think Vaporwave artists will just do what every-damn-one else is doing: take influences from 2004 and 2005, maybe 2006, pop culture and lump them into "early 2000s", so you get a nice even 5/6-year chunk to get nostalgic for, then never go anywhere past that.

Most people don't realize this, but thanks to YouTube, Tumblr, Buzzfeed, etc. the mid 2000s have been genetically spliced together with the early 2000s to form one Frankenstein monster that is simply called "early 2000s", much to Jordan's horror.

I think Vaporwave artists will just do what every-damn-one else is doing: take influences from 2004 and 2005, maybe 2006, pop culture and lump them into "early 2000s", so you get a nice even 5/6-year chunk to get nostalgic for, then never go anywhere past that.

Most people don't realize this, but thanks to YouTube, Tumblr, Buzzfeed, etc. the mid 2000s have been genetically spliced together with the early 2000s to form one Frankenstein monster that is simply called "early 2000s", much to Jordan's horror.


I was in my own little world during the mid 2000s. I was listening to nothing but Mars Volta, Mahavishnu Orchestra, and Mr. Bungle and their stylistic contemporaries.

The mid-late or late 2000s didn't feel like late 2000s to me until Paper Planes, Justice's D.A.N.C.E and Electric Feel rolled around. Then Single Ladies, Poker Face and I Kissed a Girl came and the late 2000s was unmistakable.

Final Neon Indian promoting on this thread but this video is super IRL Vaporwave inspired.

eb4UcIZMhw8

I think vaporwave is best when people really experiment with it and make it poppier or at least more eventful than the chopped and screwed stuff we all know about.




Well BornIn86, you're in luck! Vaporwave has quite a few sub genres. The genre that is more poppier and funky is Future Funk which is a subgenre of Vaporwave. Heck you already linked a Future Funk song in your post. What's nice about Future Funk is that many have said that it's the genre basically makes Vaporwave a bit more accessible to the mainstream audience. So for people who don't listen to Vaporwave due to how slow and eerie it sounds they can always try Future Funk which is more funky and dance-able.

INck6oc6xaUnLuGayBTrOo
UJsUpeXK6Jo&t=1269stbWS0j2fulY&t=1141sCCecdVTTTh4&t=547s2N0T2ghW44o

Future Funk, Hypnagogic, Classic Style, FutureVision, VaporTrop, and Mallsoft are all sub genres of Vaporwave. However, I like Future Funk and Hypnagogic the most.

Well BornIn86, you're in luck! Vaporwave has quite a few sub genres. The genre that is more poppier and funky is Future Funk which is a subgenre of Vaporwave. Heck you already linked a Future Funk song in your post. What's nice about Future Funk is that many have said that it's the genre basically makes Vaporwave a bit more accessible to the mainstream audience. So for people who don't listen to Vaporwave due to how slow and eerie it sounds they can always try Future Funk which is more funky and dance-able.

INck6oc6xaUnLuGayBTrOo
UJsUpeXK6Jo&t=1269stbWS0j2fulY&t=1141sCCecdVTTTh4&t=547s2N0T2ghW44o

Future Funk, Hypnagogic, Classic Style, FutureVision, VaporTrop, and Mallsoft are all sub genres of Vaporwave. However, I like Future Funk and Hypnagogic the most.


I didn't even know there were subgenres of Vaporwave. Thanks for the enlightening.

I think Vaporwave artists will just do what every-damn-one else is doing: take influences from 2004 and 2005, maybe 2006, pop culture and lump them into "early 2000s", so you get a nice even 5/6-year chunk to get nostalgic for, then never go anywhere past that.

Most people don't realize this, but thanks to YouTube, Tumblr, Buzzfeed, etc. the mid 2000s have been genetically spliced together with the early 2000s to form one Frankenstein monster that is simply called "early 2000s", much to Jordan's horror.


Well as of right now it seems that Vaporwave is consistent in only getting musical influences from the 70's, 80's, & 90's and visual influences from the 90's & early 00's. I have yet to see a Vaporwave track having visual art of a myspace page yet or the PS3 Xross Home Media Bar ;D

However, eventually the entire aughts are gonna be seen in a more nostalgic light, to the point in which more people would stop labeling the entire decade as 'early' and simply as the 2000's or noughties, or whatever. 90's nostalgia began to take form on internet culture in 2005 or so (I've seen inthe00's forums dating back to 2005 talking about the 90's in a nostalgic light, albeit the 'early' 90's, in which sometimes 1994 was included). I didn't get big to the general public until around 2008 or so. I suspect 2000's nostalgia to do the same within the next couple years as the later 2000's start to feel more dated. (Can you believe 2007 is already 10 years ago!? :o)



Final Neon Indian promoting on this thread but this video is super IRL Vaporwave inspired.

eb4UcIZMhw8


Yeah I listened to it and it was pretty good!






Well BornIn86, you're in luck! Vaporwave has quite a few sub genres. The genre that is more poppier and funky is Future Funk which is a subgenre of Vaporwave. Heck you already linked a Future Funk song in your post. What's nice about Future Funk is that many have said that it's the genre basically makes Vaporwave a bit more accessible to the mainstream audience. So for people who don't listen to Vaporwave due to how slow and eerie it sounds they can always try Future Funk which is more funky and dance-able.

INck6oc6xaUnLuGayBTrOo
UJsUpeXK6Jo&t=1269stbWS0j2fulY&t=1141sCCecdVTTTh4&t=547s2N0T2ghW44o

Future Funk, Hypnagogic, Classic Style, FutureVision, VaporTrop, and Mallsoft are all sub genres of Vaporwave. However, I like Future Funk and Hypnagogic the most.




LOL never even knew there were subgenres :o. I guess at of all I've listened so far, FutureFunk seems to be my favorite. It has a hip late 70's/early 80's vibe (like I'm about to watch an episode of The Muppets ;D) while also having enough modern traits that makes the song enjoyable to listen to.

Also going back to musical influences but doesn't this new ad campaign give off an 80's vibe?

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Also damn I haven't heard anything from LMFAO for like 5 years.

Also going back to musical influences but doesn't this new ad campaign give off a

Also damn I haven't heard anything from LMFAO for like 5 years.


The only good thing I remember coming out of LMFAO was the shots song and thats only because it gave me and friends an excuse to do this
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The commercial and song was meh but the a e s t h e t i c reminded me of Ford and Lopatin's Channel Pressure cover art (the video on the top left). If only the right music matched with the design.

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Ford and Lopatin used to be called Games and they made a song with Laurel Halo, another experimental musician. It's my favorite song from them.

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Well as of right now it seems that Vaporwave is consistent in only getting musical influences from the 70's, 80's, & 90's and visual influences from the 90's & early 00's. I have yet to see a Vaporwave track having visual art of a myspace page yet or the PS3 Xross Home Media Bar ;D

However, eventually the entire aughts are gonna be seen in a more nostalgic light, to the point in which more people would stop labeling the entire decade as 'early' and simply as the 2000's or noughties, or whatever. 90's nostalgia began to take form on internet culture in 2005 or so (I've seen inthe00's forums dating back to 2005 talking about the 90's in a nostalgic light, albeit the 'early' 90's, in which sometimes 1994 was included). I didn't get big to the general public until around 2008 or so. I suspect 2000's nostalgia to do the same within the next couple years as the later 2000's start to feel more dated. (Can you believe 2007 is already 10 years ago!? :o)

There was some 90s backlash before 2008 as well. Because I distinctly remember me and my brother in 2007 refusing to wear these shorts of some kind and said it looked like it was from the 90s. I remember throughout the 2000s decade people thought things from the 90s (at least fashion) was old and uncool. Not sure if anyone else had a similar experience.

There was some 90s backlash before 2008 as well. Because I distinctly remember me and my brother in 2007 refusing to wear these shorts of some kind and said it looked like it was from the 90s. I remember throughout the 2000s decade people thought things from the 90s (at least fashion) was old and uncool. Not sure if anyone else had a similar experience.


That's how it's supposed to be in my opinion. The last decade is supposed to be embarrassing. The nostalgia is supposed to kick in the decade after next. It is WAAAY too early for 2000s nostalgia. I'm very much against the rise of Meghan Trainor.  How people wax poetic about the 2000s now is evidence of how close we are to the end newness.

The only good thing I remember coming out of LMFAO was the shots song and thats only because it gave me and friends an excuse to do this
e0nWySStZbM


I liked LMFAO because of the fact that they were unique and different during a time when music became pretty homogenous. Looking back though, I agree that there have been better music since then.



The commercial and song was meh but the a e s t h e t i c reminded me of Ford and Lopatin's Channel Pressure cover art (the video on the top left). If only the right music matched with the design.

G2xgwpa3yLs qcAkjVKf2Ck

jLyvYdS76Nk


Ford and Lopatin used to be called Games and they made a song with Laurel Halo, another experimental musician. It's my favorite song from them.

5scYXIvAr7w

I gave it a good listen and it was pretty dope :D. I like the mixture of emotions of the song ranging from melancholy to glitzy. That's the thing with techno music I like a good balance between soberness and happiness. Songs that feel to melodramatic don't give me that a e s t h e t i c feeling, you know what I'm sayin'? I think this is a perfect example of a song thats too jumpy for my taste

x5aWfkm-h6A



There was some 90s backlash before 2008 as well. Because I distinctly remember me and my brother in 2007 refusing to wear these shorts of some kind and said it looked like it was from the 90s. I remember throughout the 2000s decade people thought things from the 90s (at least fashion) was old and uncool. Not sure if anyone else had a similar experience.


Yeah I remember for most of my childhood that the 90's was just considered 'recent' history, similar in regards to the 2000's today. However in similar relation towards today with the early 00's (even though 2004 & sometimes 2005 are considered in that blanket statement), Early 90's nostalgia was most certainly starting become common around the mid-late 2000's though, it wasn't a taboo. The launch of YouTube channels like AVGN in 2006 for instance, in which his entire mantra was ripping to shreds things he grew up with in the 80's and early 90's, was evidenced of that.

There was some 90s backlash before 2008 as well. Because I distinctly remember me and my brother in 2007 refusing to wear these shorts of some kind and said it looked like it was from the 90s. I remember throughout the 2000s decade people thought things from the 90s (at least fashion) was old and uncool. Not sure if anyone else had a similar experience.

My personal experience was that suddenly in 2009, after a couple of years of thinking of the '90s were not that new, but not that old either, people were finding the '90s old.

Man, I love listening to Future Funk. A great way of reviving interesting in the late 70s/ early 80s Post Disco/Funk sounds while also making them sound modern so the people of today can find interest in them. As mentioned before is that Vaporwave (and its sub genres) is the first genre to have internet origin and not any regional origin. What's interesting about this is that the internet holds info on both things old and new. It makes it possible for people to discover old things and gain ideas from the past while also keeping up to date with the present. This is great for music because it allows for people to look back at older decades and see the music genres that were once popular and ended up dying. Internet fixes this since it allows for people to make get the outdated genres and update them (this is why how we ended up with Electro Swing which brought back the sound of 1930s/1940s Big Band Swing Jazz music and updated. This is what sparked the Electro Swing scene and the genre is pretty popular on the internet and in regions such as Europe). Vaporwave has the same potential as Electro Swing (already interesting when mainstream media takes notice of Vaporwave and even influences some musicians). Heck even MTV used the Vaporwave aesthetic.

iAaInjzznVQ
https://d1t6gdblzuqy70.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/2015/06/MTV_Premium_Collage_300DPI_IAM-1002x564.jpg

This move from MTV has been met with criticism as people saw this MTV trying to stay relevant yet also not truly understanding the themes/ideas of Vaporwave and community behind it.


All Vaporwave needs is just a little push forward and it would take part in the mainstream (this is predicted to be the case by the 2020s as by then Internet Culture would be synonymous with Real World Pop Culture....kinda freaky in all honestly). I wouldn't mind listening to music like this.
WYvji5AXOfk
This song/video blends late 70s/early 80s Post Disco & Funk with modern day internet edits and sounds. Looks old, but could also pass as recent. I sure do love the internet.


Also just a funny though, but a lot of decades tend to have a pop cultural aesthetic. Wonder if late 2010s-2020s Aesthetic would take cues from Vaporwave. I'm not entirely sure if this is the case, but to be honest there are a lot of Aesthetic styles that we have today that I didn't think would become popular. And unlike how it used to be for most of the 20th century the 21st century doesn't have uniform pop culture. It's rather a bunch of Pop cultural fragments.

Man, I love listening to Future Funk. A great way of reviving interesting in the late 70s/ early 80s Post Disco/Funk sounds while also making them sound modern so the people of today can find interest in them. As mentioned before is that Vaporwave (and its sub genres) is the first genre to have internet origin and not any regional origin. What's interesting about this is that the internet holds info on both things old and new. It makes it possible for people to discover old things and gain ideas from the past while also keeping up to date with the present. This is great for music because it allows for people to look back at older decades and see the music genres that were once popular and ended up dying. Internet fixes this since it allows for people to make get the outdated genres and update them (this is why how we ended up with Electro Swing which brought back the sound of 1930s/1940s Big Band Swing Jazz music and updated. This is what sparked the Electro Swing scene and the genre is pretty popular on the internet and in regions such as Europe). Vaporwave has the same potential as Electro Swing (already interesting when mainstream media takes notice of Vaporwave and even influences some musicians).

I agree, this is probably my favorite subgenre within the Vaporwave space! One of my favorites is this:

INck6oc6xaU


iAaInjzznVQ
https://d1t6gdblzuqy70.cloudfront.net/content/uploads/2015/06/MTV_Premium_Collage_300DPI_IAM-1002x564.jpg

This move from MTV has been met with criticism as people saw this MTV trying to stay relevant yet also not truly understanding the themes/ideas of Vaporwave and community behind it. All Vaporwave needs is just a little push forward and it would take part in the mainstream (this is predicted to be the case by the 2020s as by then Internet Culture would be synonymous with Real World Pop Culture....kinda freaky in all honestly). I wouldn't mind listening to music like this.
WYvji5AXOfk
This song/video blends late 70s/early 80s Post Disco & Funk with modern day internet edits and sounds. Looks old, but could also pass as recent. I sure do love the internet.


Also just a funny though, but a lot of decades tend to have a pop cultural aesthetic. Wonder if late 2010s-2020s Aesthetic would take cues from Vaporwave. I'm not entirely sure if this is the case, but to be honest there are a lot of Aesthetic styles that we have today that I didn't think would become popular. And unlike how it used to be for most of the 20th century the 21st century doesn't have uniform pop culture. It's rather a bunch of Pop cultural fragments.


Yeah from the like/dislike ration on YouTube I could tell lol! But (despite) the move, its proof that Vaporwave is starting to become mainstream. To Vaporwave purists this is a horrible thing, but perhaps you're on to something. By the 2020's, I wouldn't mind jamming out to tracks like this on the radio, heck its about time to shake things up musically because like most people on this forum I feel like we've been pretty stagnant for the last few years or so.

Also this video is pretty hilarious

wyt_87yCyNw

Also pretty surprising that this video now has 1 million views

Hey Zelda, sorry to bug you but can you respond to my PM?

Also this video is pretty hilarious

wyt_87yCyNw

Also pretty surprising that this video now has 1 million views

A weird thing I noticed with Vaporwave videos is that some of them have up to like 3 million views, yet at times there are only like 50 comments!

It makes the videos seem just as eerie as the music contained within is...

A weird thing I noticed with Vaporwave videos is that some of them have up to like 3 million views, yet at times there are only like 50 comments!

It makes the videos seem just as eerie as the music contained within is...


THAT'S THE WEIRD MYSTERY LOL! But in all seriousness I noticed in the video I posted the guy only had 180k subscribers. Pretty weird but its whatever.

THAT'S THE WEIRD MYSTERY LOL! But in all seriousness I noticed in the video I posted the guy only had 180k subscribers. Pretty weird but its whatever.

I'm not talking about videos like the one you posted however, that one has a fairly expected amount of comments to go along with the view count.

I'm talking about ones like the Simpsonwave videos. They have a million views or close to it/above it, but other than "Sunday School", they only have like 50 comments which is much less than you'd expect for a widely-viewed video.

Other how to videos by this prophet!

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0XMqZ6gOOHwpEQMmJdYJ0g



I'm not talking about videos like the one you posted however, that one has a fairly expected amount of comments to go along with the view count.

I'm talking about ones like the Simpsonwave videos. They have a million views or close to it/above it, but other than "Sunday School", they only have like 50 comments which is much less than you'd expect for a widely-viewed video.


You mind if you show me an example?

You mind if you show me an example?

Back when the Simpsonwave videos were just getting popular, I remember them having nearly a million views each, yet only having about 50 comments each.

Now I look at those sections and it seems like the number of comments has increased to a level of "normalcy", but trust me that it used to be different, lol.

Back when the Simpsonwave videos were just getting popular, I remember them having nearly a million views each, yet only having about 50 comments each.

Now I look at those sections and it seems like the number of comments has increased to a level of "normalcy", but trust me that it used to be different, lol.


That's weird. The reason I ask is because sometimes people would buy money for views. A classic way to tell is if a video allegedly has 1 million views, but only 50 comments.

That's weird. The reason I ask is because sometimes people would buy money for views. A classic way to tell is if a video allegedly has 1 million views, but only 50 comments.

A notable example of this is those "Hey Kids" spam videos on YouTube, which are really quite creepy.

A notable example of this is those "Hey Kids" spam videos on YouTube, which are really quite creepy.


Never seen them before. Are they supposed to be meant for kids? I've seen some creepy videos for kids before like this one:

AJMroLNw2rw

1 Million+ Views yet around 50 comments. That is a bit eerie. Although I don't know what's funnier. The fact that Vaporwave has become to big that there our countless tracks with around 1 million views or the fact that out of the million viewers less than 100 decided to comment.

Never seen them before. Are they supposed to be meant for kids? I've seen some creepy videos for kids before like this one:

AJMroLNw2rw


It's actually sad that most kids today actually buy into this crap. I've seen silent movies that have more plot than this, to be honest.

FrankJayCee actually makes great productions. I just hate his vocals and rapping. He's pretty talented and funny tho.

8QRAvVQTn5g 2h0qzlP5Y3w

This song sounds like what Bruno Mars has been doing for a while.


It does somewhat. I'm not sure how long Bruno had been making songs in the late 70s and early 80s style, but I think it coincides with the creation of Future Funk.

If there is one thing that know people will always love it's funky dance music. It's a bit interesting as you can almost see where music is going.

This song sounds like what Bruno Mars has been doing for a while.


Fun fact of the day: The Kid in the Red Coat dancing in the commercial is Alfonso Ribeiro!

The sexy beast himself:

http://s3.amazonaws.com/rapgenius/carltonbanks.jpg

Welp! I'm not sure if anyone discovered this, but in late 2016 there has been news that in Miami a Vaporwave Mall is being built. No joke! Look it up. Some are excited. Others aren't so happy (since it goes against what Vaporwave is about). I for one am interested in seeing how this turns out. If the Vaporwave genre continues to grow and spread then it could very well be a huge part of future pop culture.


To celebrate I must consume some more Vaporwave.
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Welp! I'm not sure if anyone discovered this, but in late 2016 there has been news that in Miami a Vaporwave Mall is being built. No joke! Look it up. Some are excited. Others aren't so happy (since it goes against what Vaporwave is about). I for one am interested in seeing how this turns out. If the Vaporwave genre continues to grow and spread then it could very well be a huge part of future pop culture.


Yeah I've heard about it! Personally as a casual fan Vaporwave, it sounds pretty lit and I'd definitely check it out. But I agree, it essentially goes against the core anti-capitalist message of the genre, so hardcore fans wouldn't dare touch that place with a ten foot pole ;D

Yeah I've heard about it! Personally as a casual fan Vaporwave, it sounds pretty lit and I'd definitely check it out. But I agree, it essentially goes against the core anti-capitalist message of the genre, so hardcore fans wouldn't dare touch that place with a ten foot pole ;D


The hardcore fans can dislike it all they want. But I'd love to see it. What is interesting is the fact that there are a lot of people who don't know what Vaporwave is. So they aren't aware of it leaking into pop culture. We see Vaporwave as this dreamy music with a funky aesthetic that gives off an anti capitalism message. But to the normal individual Vaporwave would be this natural change in pop culture. Imagine what it would be like to be a kid who grew up in a world where Vaporwave has given big influence to pop culture. Malls, Grocery Stores, hit songs, fashion, TV etc.

The hardcore fans can dislike it all they want. But I'd love to see it. What is interesting is the fact that there are a lot of people who don't know what Vaporwave is. So they aren't aware of it leaking into pop culture. We see Vaporwave as this dreamy music with a funky aesthetic that gives off an anti capitalism message. But to the normal individual Vaporwave would be this natural change in pop culture. Imagine what it would be like to be a kid who grew up in a world where Vaporwave has given big influence to pop culture. Malls, Grocery Stores, hit songs, fashion, TV etc.


Yep I agree brother! Honestly at this point I want to shake up pop culture. It seems so stagnant and dry since 2013 or so. Annoying ass Teen Pop, Trash rap, uninspiring EDM :P. At least the electronoic music of the 2000's & early 2010's had character and style, but electro music now just seems dry in comparison. So if it means more innovation, heck I'm all for it, along with the visual aesthetics of Vaporwave starting to get big as we speak! Btw this is the article right here:

http://www.factmag.com/2016/09/23/first-ever-vaporwave-mall-miami/


Also I love Midnight Television! Hands down one of my favorite Vaporwave tracks :D :D :D

Out of all of the songs on that album I think this one's the best 8)

FPq5wsMn7JU

There's also an alternative version of the song that sounds pretty good too!

pyTBX7s0J-o

Yep I agree brother! Honestly at this point I want to shake up pop culture. It seems so stagnant and dry since 2013 or so. Annoying ass Teen Pop, Trash rap, uninspiring EDM :P. At least the electronoic music of the 2000's & early 2010's had character and style, but electro music now just seems dry in comparison. So if it means more innovation, heck I'm all for it, along with the visual aesthetics of Vaporwave starting to get big as we speak! Btw this is the article right here:

http://www.factmag.com/2016/09/23/first-ever-vaporwave-mall-miami/

I think the issue is that music today doesn't have much in terms of style. Just artists using the same templates/ideas for their songs. Rap in the 2010s is just terrible. EDM is still somewhat decent, but it depends on where you look. But yeah before electronic dance music had style (for the most part anyways). Vaporwave is interesting as it also has its conflicts of style/blandness. The well known Vaporwave albums and artists are remembered well due to their good styles. Vektroid, Saint Pepsi, Macross 82-99, Yung Bae etc. The bland Vaporwave songs tend to be ignored I see.



Also I love Midnight Television! Hands down one of my favorite Vaporwave tracks :D :D :D

Out of all of the songs on that album I think this one's the best 8)

FPq5wsMn7JU

There's also an alternative version of the song that sounds pretty good too!

pyTBX7s0J-o


YEAH BOI! Love me that Saint Pepsi Future Funk music. The music is so lively, colorful, and dreamlike. This is how I want music to be like in the future (not all music has to be this way, but I'd love for electronic music to be like this). Upbeat tempo and dreamy imagery is what appeals to me.

There's also an alternative version of the song that sounds pretty good too!

pyTBX7s0J-o

I hate to indulge in generationology... but could the "82-99" in the album's title refer to, dare I say it, the semi-commonly used year span of Millennials? :P I mean, they/we're the most nostalgic generation, so it would make a whole lot of sense.

I hate to indulge in generationology... but could the "82-99" in the album's title refer to, dare I say it, the semi-commonly used year span of Millennials? :P I mean, they/we're the most nostalgic generation, so it would make a whole lot of sense.


Hey Hey! None of that generation nonsense in here! But to answer your question the 82-99 doesn't refer to the span of millennials. I think it was that it's named the anime series Macross. It was first released in 1982, and the story happens in 1999. Vaporwave artists tend to have weird names to be honest. Goes with the Vaporwave idea.

I think the issue is that music today doesn't have much in terms of style. Just artists using the same templates/ideas for their songs. Rap in the 2010s is just terrible. EDM is still somewhat decent, but it depends on where you look. But yeah before electronic dance music had style (for the most part anyways). Vaporwave is interesting as it also has its conflicts of style/blandness. The well known Vaporwave albums and artists are remembered well due to their good styles. Vektroid, Saint Pepsi, Macross 82-99, Yung Bae etc. The bland Vaporwave songs tend to be ignored I see.


I agree! I like EDM, lets make that clear, but the genre seems to have stagnated in all honesty. A lot of the modern mid 2010's styles began to get big in 2013 (Harlem Shake, Turn Down For What, etc.) and was pretty fun to listen to. However by 2016 or so the genre seemed to just become monotonous and dry. I discovered Vaporwave around Late 2015 and I've been hooked ever since lol!


YEAH BOI! Love me that Saint Pepsi Future Funk music. The music is so lively, colorful, and dreamlike. This is how I want music to be like in the future (not all music has to be this way, but I'd love for electronic music to be like this). Upbeat tempo and dreamy imagery is what appeals to me.

I agree, another example to why Future Funk is the sh!t 8)!

Another good jam is this:

Jo4K7v8zQ9o

I just love the futuristic sound of this album and of course the futuristic vibe coming from Shibuya as the artwork! & OMG, that Epic Jazz solo in the beginning,

A  T R U E  A E S T H E T I C



I hate to indulge in generationology... but could the "82-99" in the album's title refer to, dare I say it, the semi-commonly used year span of Millennials? :P I mean, they/we're the most nostalgic generation, so it would make a whole lot of sense.


IDK if that was his purpose, however on the topic of generations I don't think its a coincidence that Vaporwave seems to have so far be a huge phenomenon among the Millennial generation. It mixes the things that Millennials find nostalgic (8/16 Bit Sounds, Dial Up Noises, 90's era Kid Pix as visual art, etc.) with the new. However, perhaps this phenomenon would continue to be influential to all generations. And as most people generally agree, youth culture seems to be transitioning to Gen Z at the moment, so this genre could be pretty popular with the generation if you think about it.

I agree! I like EDM, lets make that clear, but the genre seems to have stagnated in all honesty. A lot of the modern mid 2010's styles began to get big in 2013 (Harlem Shake, Turn Down For What, etc.) and was pretty fun to listen to. However by 2016 or so the genre seemed to just become monotonous and dry. I discovered Vaporwave around Late 2015 and I've been hooked ever since lol!


I agree, another example to why Future Funk is the sh!t 8)!

Another good jam is this:

Jo4K7v8zQ9o

I just love the futuristic sound of this album and of course the futuristic vibe coming from Shibuya as the artwork! & OMG, that Epic Jazz solo in the beginning,

A  T R U E  A E S T H E T I C


IDK if that was his purpose, however on the topic of generations I don't think its a coincidence that Vaporwave seems to have so far be a huge phenomenon among the Millennial generation. It mixes the things that Millennials find nostalgic (8/16 Bit Sounds, Dial Up Noises, 90's era Kid Pix as visual art, etc.) with the new. However, perhaps this phenomenon would continue to be influential to all generations. And as most people generally agree, youth culture seems to be transitioning to Gen Z at the moment, so this genre could be pretty popular with the generation if you think about it.


Yeah it's possible that vaporwave could be more popular with Gen Z, if it does break out in the mainstream. To be honest though, I don't think most millennials (or most people in general, for that matter) know about vaporwave right now.

Yeah it's possible that vaporwave could be more popular with Gen Z, if it does break out in the mainstream. To be honest though, I don't think most millennials (or most people in general, for that matter) know about vaporwave right now.


Good point! I don't think Vaporwave is irrelevant within Millennials though, albeit younger Millennials that is. Most of my 20-something friends know what it is (heck it was them who introduced me to it). However, I do agree that the mass popularity of the genre, its sub genre, and the overall aesthetic and styles of the music would most likely reach mass acceptance with Gen Z. As stated before Gen Z youth culture is steadily taking over Millennial youth culture as more members become teens and thus start dictating the trends of the next decade. Gen Z is tech savvy, like Millennials, but 10xx more! So if anything the Vaporwave genre would have insane popularity as the years go by and more older Millennial fans and newer Gen Z fans help propel the movement.

BTW, whats your opinion on some of Vaporwave's subgenres?

I think Gen Z likes Vaporwave because it's like half-remembered wisps of a culture they weren't quite old enough to understand but couldn't help internalizing.

I mean, a lot of elementary/middle schools still had those "aesthetic"-looking computers and technology(Windows 95/98/2000/XP, candy-color iMacs, etc.) until like 2010, some even still have them now. Especially if they have low funding. So I wouldn't be surprised if a 14 year old is familiar with all/most of the stuff Vaporwave is referencing.

I like vaporwave in part because it takes me back to the culture of my youngest childhood before the mid 90s toned down the weird tackiness of the late 80s/early 90s and morphed into the shiny, boy band obsessed - faux dark nu metal - glam rap late 90s.

Plus a lot of vaporwave takes its cues from the music played during 90s weather channel which I enjoyed listening to when I was young.

I think Gen Z likes Vaporwave because it's like half-remembered wisps of a culture they weren't quite old enough to understand but couldn't help internalizing.

I mean, a lot of elementary/middle schools still had those "aesthetic"-looking computers and technology(Windows 95/98/2000/XP, candy-color iMacs, etc.) until like 2010, some even still have them now. Especially if they have low funding. So I wouldn't be surprised if a 14 year old is familiar with all/most of the stuff Vaporwave is referencing.


I do agree with this. I could actually vouch for this as my middle school had those old school CRT PCs running on Windows 98 & ME upto about 2010 ;D. So yeah it wouldn't be far fetched for elementary/middle school students to have some relation to the 'old world'.



I like vaporwave in part because it takes me back to the culture of my youngest childhood before the mid 90s toned down the weird tackiness of the late 80s/early 90s and morphed into the shiny, boy band obsessed - faux dark nu metal - glam rap late 90s.

Plus a lot of vaporwave takes its cues from the music played during 90s weather channel which I enjoyed listening to when I was young.


Good point. I also notice that Vaporwave takes a lot of cues from Windows 95 software, be it sound effects, 90's era visual art, icons, etc. This is a good example of this:

FSGWddJ5Y9A

I've noticed that a lot of Vaporwave users/artists aren't even alive during the eras that Vaporwave represents (either not born or very young). Heck, I've noticed that the big youtubers who use Vaporwave are in their late teens or early twenties. Take Saint Pepsi for example. He is well known for Future Funk, but Saint Pepsi was born in 1993 yet all his tracks are from the late 70s/early 80s. Vektroid (the person who made Macintosh 420 which helped grow Vaporwave into popularity) is a 1992 born yet the original track she used is from 1984. And I've also noticed that as of 2017 Vaporwave seems to turn away from the nostalgia and mainly just focus on the surrealism and wackiness of the genres. If you're in your 30s/40s I you may like Vaporwave for the Nostalgia, but for everyone who is a part of today's youth culture you mainly like it for the surrealism/wackiness of the genre. Vaporwave appeals to millennials or plurals, but for different reasons it seems. And it's funny that I see more plurals (and late millennials) talk about Vaporwave then older and core milllennials on the internet. Also take in consideration to for some older millennials Vaporwave is just a remixing genre. While to plurals Vaporwave sounds original due to never growing up with the original songs.  So for a 15 year old he/she likes Vaporwave due to how cool it sounds and not that it sound of the music transport him/her back to the 1980s. 

And I've also noticed that as of 2017 Vaporwave seems to turn away from the nostalgia and mainly just focus on the surrealism and wackiness of the genres. If you're in your 30s/40s I you may like Vaporwave for the Nostalgia, but for everyone who is a part of today's youth culture you mainly like it for the surrealism/wackiness of the genre. Vaporwave appeals to millennials or plurals, but for different reasons it seems. And it's funny that I see more plurals (and late millennials) talk about Vaporwave then older and core milllennials on the internet. Also take in consideration to for some older millennials Vaporwave is just a remixing genre. While to plurals Vaporwave sounds original due to never growing up with the original songs.  So for a 15 year old he/she likes Vaporwave due to how cool it sounds and not that it sound of the music transport him/her back to the 1980s.

It's because Plurals like taking memes and jamming them into your head like a powerdrill. :P They're more "dank" than Millennials, perhaps.

See also, the Bee Movie, Nutshack, and We Are Number One memes. Memes have always been repeated, but they never did something as extensive "The Nutshack theme but it's 4 hours and every 3 seconds contains scenes from A Clockwork Orange".

It's because Plurals like taking memes and jamming them into your head like a powerdrill. :P They're more "dank" than Millennials, perhaps.

See also, the Bee Movie, Nutshack, and We Are Number One memes. Memes have always been repeated, but they never did something as extensive "The Nutshack theme but it's 4 hours and every 3 seconds contains scenes from A Clockwork Orange".


But that's the funny thing. I tend to find a lot of youtube comments from plurals who say that they don't care that Vaporwave is a meme and really love the genre. Here is what I think happened. Now Plurals being native to internet youth culture due to experiencing it soon as they were old enough to surf the web ended up loving memes. Them dank memes be referenced by plurals much more often to previous generations (except for maybe late millennials, I think). Most late millennials/Plurals got into Vaporwave because it was a meme. But the more they looked deeper into the genre and listened to the music the more they became genuine fans of the genre and the vibes that it gives. Vaporwave as somewhat transcended its meme status. A large community, ton of popular youtube videos, a HUGE extensive amount of albums, artists who have reached somewhat of a big time status (not mainstream popular status, but rather internet popular status as of 2017), and an aesthetic that is slowly finding its way into pop culture.

The reason Vaporwave is special is because it is the only internet genre to not die within just a few years. Lets take the genres Seapunk and Witchhouse. Both are internet based music genres, but Seapunk died pretty early and Witchhouse died and neither have reached Vaporwave's status. There has been many times where people would say that Vaporwave is dead yet get proven wrong as each year the genre keeps having a large amount of popular albums released each year.

Using Google Search popularity is a strange way to prove whether something is popular, but seeing how a Google is used by millions some consider it as one of the ways to determine popularity. Whether you agree is up to you. But anyways lets compared.

Seapunk
https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=Seapunk

Was popular back in between 2012-2013, but immediately faded in popularity in such a fast rate. A lot of you who know of Vaporwave may have never even heard of Seapunk.

Witch House
https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=%2Fm%2F0bxyzjb

Hm, guess Witch house wasn't as dead as I thought it'd be. Popularity seems pretty stagnant, I suppose.

Vaporwave
https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=vaporwave

Was big in the early 2010s, but as kept on rising (or at least maintains popularity) as of 2017.

All Together
https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=vaporwave,Seapunk,%2Fm%2F0bxyzjb

Funny as Seapunk was more popular than Vaporwave at one point. But then Seapunk died and Vaporwave took into popularity it seems. I hearby declare Vaporwave as one of the definitive genres of the 2010s. Also I never knew Russia was where Witch house was most popular.

But that's the funny thing. I tend to find a lot of youtube comments from plurals who say that they don't care that Vaporwave is a meme and really love the genre. Here is what I think happened. Now Plurals being native to internet youth culture due to experiencing it soon as they were old enough to surf the web ended up loving memes. Them dank memes be referenced by plurals much more often to previous generations (except for maybe late millennials, I think). Most late millennials/Plurals got into Vaporwave because it was a meme. But the more they looked deeper into the genre and listened to the music the more they became genuine fans of the genre and the vibes that it gives. Vaporwave as somewhat transcended its meme status. A large community, ton of popular youtube videos, a HUGE extensive amount of albums, artists who have reached somewhat of a big time status (not mainstream popular status, but rather internet popular status as of 2017), and an aesthetic that is slowly finding its way into pop culture.

The reason Vaporwave is special is because it is the only internet genre to not die within just a few years. Lets take the genres Seapunk and Witchhouse. Both are internet based music genres, but Seapunk died pretty early and Witchhouse died and neither have reached Vaporwave's status. There has been many times where people would say that Vaporwave is dead yet get proven wrong as each year the genre keeps having a large amount of popular albums released each year.

Using Google Search popularity is a strange way to prove whether something is popular, but seeing how a Google is used by millions some consider it as one of the ways to determine popularity. Whether you agree is up to you. But anyways lets compared.

I essentially agree for the most part. I feel like most Millennials (that even includes late Millennials like my self) they see the genre first and foremost as a nostalgic escape from the tumultuous present. Between the 2016 election, Brexit, a stagnate economy, & race relations at all time lows it seems that for many 20 & 30 somethings, Vaporwave helps give an escape to their childhoods. Be it Older Millennials getting nostalgic over the funky sounds of the late 80's/early 90's, or younger Millennials getting nostalgic over the visual aesthetics of 90's/early 00's computer art/effects. This combined with the new & modern traits of EDM music today helps keep Vaporwave 'fresh' while still simultaneously being nostalgic at the same time.

My prediction will be that more Millennials (80's & 90's babies) will continue producing more songs and albums, but Gen Z is going to be the main benefactors of the genre. In other words, similar to how most teen pop stars now like Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift, are essentially Millennials targeting Gen Z, Vaporwave artists who are Millennials are going to be targeting Gen Z as well. Like you guys have said, it already is sort of doing that with its use of 'dank memes' and providing a chill vibe for teens to bop to.

I guess you could make a comparison to the rise of New-Wave in the late 70's/early 80's. Most of the New Wave artists were Boomers and initially were targeting Boomers. However, as the genre started to get massively big in the early 80's, they shifted their target audience to the rising Gen X. The aesthetics of New Wave such as voice/sound synthesizers and funky beats, were so revolutionary at the time that many Gen X Icons (Boomers in actuality) incorporated some of these traits in their own hit songs/albums, most notably Buggle's Video Killed The Radio Star and Michael Jackson's Thriller, which was the unofficial 'death' of the Boomer era of youth targeted music.

Since us Millennials (going with the least controversial definition of 1982-2000) are at a similar age to when the Baby Boomers (1946-1964) were in 1981, its only a matter of time until more modern pop stars start (and I've already argued, that they started to use some aesthetics derived from internet culture, particularity Vaporwave) start making a big success using the new  A E S T H E T I C  S T Y L E


Seapunk
https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=Seapunk

Was popular back in between 2012-2013, but immediately faded in popularity in such a fast rate. A lot of you who know of Vaporwave may have never even heard of Seapunk.

Witch House
https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=%2Fm%2F0bxyzjb

Hm, guess Witch house wasn't as dead as I thought it'd be. Popularity seems pretty stagnant, I suppose.

Vaporwave
https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=vaporwave

Was big in the early 2010s, but as kept on rising (or at least maintains popularity) as of 2017.

All Together
https://www.google.com/trends/explore?q=vaporwave,Seapunk,%2Fm%2F0bxyzjb

Funny as Seapunk was more popular than Vaporwave at one point. But then Seapunk died and Vaporwave took into popularity it seems. I hearby declare Vaporwave as one of the definitive genres of the 2010s. Also I never knew Russia was where Witch house was most popular.


One thing that sort of proves my point is that when you look at the graph for when Vaporwave rose in popularity, it was around in 2014/15 (the ultimate Y/Z Cusp School Year). Similarly, New Wave (the last hurrah for Boomers, and subsequently the breakout for Gen X) rose in popularity around 1978/79. This is backed up by wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_wave_music


"Starting in late 1978 and continuing into 1979, acts associated with punk and acts that mixed punk with other genres began to make chart appearances and receive airplay on rock stations and rock discos. Blondie, Talking Heads, the Police and the Cars charted during this period. "My Sharona", a single from the Knack, was Billboard magazine's number one single of 1979. The success of "My Sharona" combined with the fact that new wave albums were much cheaper to produce during a time when the music industry was in its worst slump in decades, prompted record companies to sign new wave groups. New wave music scenes developed in Ohio and Athens, Georgia. 1980 saw brief forays into new wave-styled music by non-new wave artists Billy Joel, Donna Summer and Linda Ronstadt."