The school dance music is tired and outdated

Over the past years, school dances have come and gone. Themes have changed as well as venues, but one thing remains the same; the music, and not in a good way. Songs such as “Fergalicious”, “Young, Wild, and Free” and “Party in the USA” seem to have a chokehold on the DJs of these sweaty high school dances. Don’t get us wrong, timeless classics are great, but it would be nice to hear some newer and different bangers thrown in the mix as well. Artists and songs have continuously risen to popularity and a place on the playlists of many teens. When was the last time a Playboi Carti song was played at a VHS dance? We the youth, demand better, more diverse musical representation!

If we are being completely honest, there is no bigger vibe killer than arriving at a school dance in your best attire and shoes, heels or sneakers, only to stand around in an awkwardly lit “mosh pit” staring into the eyes of your peers along with some faces you’ve never seen before as you all collectively anticipate the moment when that one song comes on that you can finally get hyped to. 

With the excitement of Homecoming at its end, we found it was the perfect chance to reach out to the students of VHS and ask them how they felt about the music played at the annual homecoming dance that occurred Oct. 1. 

Cece Perez ‘23 said, “At one point there was random techno music. It was really weird, and it was like not okay. It was actually awful.There was no good music in my opinion.” 

Up until now, we never knew that there was such a thing as a “Love Sosa-techno” remix, and we’re not sure if we want to hear such a monstrosity ever again.

Carolina Bucio ‘23 said, “It kinda sounded like Kidz Bop music.” 

Harsh feelings aside, we acknowledge that there are rules, guidelines and procedures that come with culminating a school dance playlist. Explicitness and length are a few factors that have to be taken into account, so we talked to ASB to get a behind-the-scenes scoop on the whole debacle. 

ASB Student Affairs President Cailyn Mobley ‘23 said, “We discussed how he [the DJ] would pause music, [and] basically how he did not play half of our requested songs.” 

ASB Extra Curricular Committee member Jillian Zollar ‘23 said, “We mainly tried to focus on the fact that the vibe was obviously off and how if he would’ve played our requested songs, it may have gone way smoother.” 

It’s nice to know the leaders of our school share the same concerns we do, and it is also reassuring to know that the DJ was experiencing technical issues which explains why there were some awkward malfunctions with the music and lighting throughout the night.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  So where do we go from here? Well, we think the DJ should take the music requests of the student body into heavier consideration. We hope for a type of solution that takes into account the musical preferences of the students so that everyone can have a good time to some good tunes and feel like they have a voice. Who knows, maybe we will hear some Steve Lacy at this year’s Senior Ball. Can you even mosh to “Dark Red”?  We will have to wait and see!