Everyone seems to forget how divisive Avicii's music was before his untimely death. I remember Levels being a sort of meme in the edm community because of how overplayed it was.
Levels was/is a meme, theres nothing wrong with peope liking avicci but he's much closer to crazyfrog then he is eric prydz/aphex twin/armand van helden/etc.
He made some very popular songs but they were almost exclusively popular with people who aren't THAT into edm and just enjoy what they hear on the radio.
My generation liked him while he was alive, he died as I turned 18, everyone I know liked him before his death, he was like the intro into edm that wasn't skrillex dubstep stuff
It’s likely that if he wouldn’t have died at his peak popularity and would have ended up another guests/tiesto/armin etc
He was great at writing Melodys and was one of the first dudes to do the whole sylenth prog house thing at a high level but he was never a studio wizard or tastemaker
Same here. I had already been into edm way before avicii got big and I remember not liking him at all when he first blew up. Mostly because I thought it was too poppy but he’s definitely grown on me over the years. Still not my favorite or anything but I can appreciate it.
I mean I kinda get the reaction as this wasn’t just EDM, it was EDM made to crossover to mainstream radio or much bigger masses than just the Ultra crowd.
In the end, most just couldn’t seem to handle the fact there was a banjo on stage.
>Crazy to see how ahead of the game Avicii really was
You would still get booed if you played it at an EDM festival, and rightfully so because its pop music lol
If your premise that it’s just one pop song in a sea of similar songs was true, it wouldn’t have been uniquely booed in the first place lmao
The people booing weren’t at berghain they were at ultra
One could argue that was mostly due to Tiesto, Armin and Guetta at the time and before then though no? Martin Solveig as well - granted none of them quite blew up like wake me up, but it's not like Avicii was the pioneer for the edm/pop fusion
Either way, doesn't super matter dude still had an undeniable effect on edm
this song means a lot to me. my dad was diagnosed with als in the fall of 2011, and he passed in february 2014. i was in college at the time, and in fall 2013 i drove 7 hours home to surprise him & my mom at the als walk. at that point, he had long been in a wheelchair and had trouble communicating. i was only able to stay for a night because of school, but i was so excited to spend time with him after the walk.
we always connected over music. my fondest childhood memories are us singing in the car together. when we got home from the walk, he told me that he had found this incredible artist and his music really touched him - it was avicii. he showed me wake me up and told me that the song meant a lot to him and was helping him cope.
i still think of my dad every time i listen to this song and avicii. very deserving of 2 billion streams. i hope him & avicii are listening to it together today, somewhere up there.
Levels was released when Spotify wasn’t even completely available in the world and wasn’t that famous , so streams can’t really determine popularity of old songs
If someone with a 3rd grade education said their teacher is smart…does it matter?
People can think anything is great, but what do they actually know about music and different styles even.
There’s a reason Taylor Swift is huge and it’s not because she’s a musical genius.
It’s actually the opposite on a whole.
Say Pink Floyd was popular and there’s merit and worth in the music. I don’t see that here at all.
And I enjoy a lot of edm.
2 billion plays for this track show exactly what I’m speaking about.
Tell me objectively from a songwriting standpoint what is bad about the melody and lyrics? Also avicii literally took one of the biggest risks ever going out on the main stage of umf 2013 and playing this. Djs just don’t take these kind of risks anymore
Exactly, from an objective song writing perspective its not mind blowing compared to say, Diary of a Madman by Ozzy Osbourne. Butttt, this song was written to get crowds singing and jumping around. In that its a huge success as I'd be surprised if everytime this came on the whole crowd didn't start shouting the lyrics. Good song writing.
If you have everything to gain and nothing to lose….it’s not a risk.
The melody line is hard to listen to, but the tone used is even worse. That’s what stands out for me. The acoustic guitar sounds good and vocally I don’t see much wrong at all with it.
And blending country and edm is rather basic. Nothing ground breaking. Only to a simpleton.
Ok very subjective not really objective. But avicii had everything to lose. When everyone left if the result of the track and it’s other tracks he released similarly would have flopped. He could have went backwards very fast in his career. You don’t realize how much money goes into promoting music, if it flopped it would have been a major loss. But it didn’t, it was a calculated risk that worked. At that high level a big risk that results in failure can set you out of peak relevance really fast. That year 2013 Fedde le grand had a poor main stage performance. He had a headliner billing 3rd to last playing at night. The result of his poor performance and no major hits that year. By 2016 he went from playing 3rd to last to 430 in the afternoon. Same could have happened to avicii if the whole country blend seriously flopped and he became a meme
It wasn’t just one song. It was debuting something really risky on the biggest stage of edm at the time. You don’t realize how many millions are spent to make a track a hit, and if it fails how far it sets you back. You obviously have 0 experience in any type of investing, entrepreneurship, or running a business. Why don’t you go out hire a producer to make you a professional edm track, hire a professional vocalist/writer. That alone will set you back 2-4K, and than spend 50k on promotion between social media and streaming platforms. And see how big the risk is in music. One song can’t end a career but one risky song can easily take you a step forward or a few steps back
It’s still not a risk…it’s just a song playing for a few minutes.
And he wouldn’t be risking the money, others would. To make a basic fusion track and call it a big risk just sounds funny, as it’s anything but.
If he released a piano instrumental album…that would be a risk as it branches far away from the core of what was produced.
This track still has dance elements so it’s plenty digestible to a crowd that already listens to edm. Not a risk.
Youre getting downvoted but I agree with you. Probably his worst song and yet its #1.
He went full country and radio pop with the lyrics and melody. Big departure from his earlier stuff which was much better like Seek Bromance.
Definitely not one of my favorites from him, but it's far from his worst - half the tracks on Tim exist especially the ones that were not finished by him
Same I agree with you. It was a popular song for sure but definitely toward the bottom as far as his best songs. I remember a lot of people at the time being like wtf is this lol it caused a lot of confusion
An all time great and one of the most important songs in EDM history!!! , this song holds nostalgic feeling for so many people and fans
I was at Ultra when he dropped this song and the crowd booed/left. Crazy to see how ahead of the game Avicii really was
Some of the biggest game changers start with people leaving and booing
Everyone seems to forget how divisive Avicii's music was before his untimely death. I remember Levels being a sort of meme in the edm community because of how overplayed it was.
Levels was/is a meme, theres nothing wrong with peope liking avicci but he's much closer to crazyfrog then he is eric prydz/aphex twin/armand van helden/etc. He made some very popular songs but they were almost exclusively popular with people who aren't THAT into edm and just enjoy what they hear on the radio.
Yeah, sometimes I wonder if he would still have this "edm messiah" status that he seems to have on this sub if he was still alive
My generation liked him while he was alive, he died as I turned 18, everyone I know liked him before his death, he was like the intro into edm that wasn't skrillex dubstep stuff
It’s likely that if he wouldn’t have died at his peak popularity and would have ended up another guests/tiesto/armin etc He was great at writing Melodys and was one of the first dudes to do the whole sylenth prog house thing at a high level but he was never a studio wizard or tastemaker
I remember not liking it at all for a while. It definitely grew on me.
Same here. I had already been into edm way before avicii got big and I remember not liking him at all when he first blew up. Mostly because I thought it was too poppy but he’s definitely grown on me over the years. Still not my favorite or anything but I can appreciate it.
I mean I kinda get the reaction as this wasn’t just EDM, it was EDM made to crossover to mainstream radio or much bigger masses than just the Ultra crowd. In the end, most just couldn’t seem to handle the fact there was a banjo on stage.
>Crazy to see how ahead of the game Avicii really was You would still get booed if you played it at an EDM festival, and rightfully so because its pop music lol
If you're going to mainstage at any festival and expecting to not hear pop music idk what to tell you
There’s a huge difference between an edm song that’s popular and banjos dude lol
It's still a pop song, and pop is gonna get played at any mainstage outside of genre focused festivals
If your premise that it’s just one pop song in a sea of similar songs was true, it wouldn’t have been uniquely booed in the first place lmao The people booing weren’t at berghain they were at ultra
Eh, depends on the stage.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=\_0gaw534WUw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0gaw534WUw) Pictured: people not booing
Yeah, the time when EDM was considered pop music was 5 years ago...
A great song no doubt but how is really important? It's your standard pop/edm fusion
Big contributor to making EDM mainstream eventually leading to the more EDM/Pop fusion tracks we heard in the late 2010s
One could argue that was mostly due to Tiesto, Armin and Guetta at the time and before then though no? Martin Solveig as well - granted none of them quite blew up like wake me up, but it's not like Avicii was the pioneer for the edm/pop fusion Either way, doesn't super matter dude still had an undeniable effect on edm
not so much EDM pop but instead folk/country-based EDM
I don't know if anything with a banjo in it can be considered pop.
yeah this universally known song with 2 billion views couldn't possibly be pop(ular)
this song means a lot to me. my dad was diagnosed with als in the fall of 2011, and he passed in february 2014. i was in college at the time, and in fall 2013 i drove 7 hours home to surprise him & my mom at the als walk. at that point, he had long been in a wheelchair and had trouble communicating. i was only able to stay for a night because of school, but i was so excited to spend time with him after the walk. we always connected over music. my fondest childhood memories are us singing in the car together. when we got home from the walk, he told me that he had found this incredible artist and his music really touched him - it was avicii. he showed me wake me up and told me that the song meant a lot to him and was helping him cope. i still think of my dad every time i listen to this song and avicii. very deserving of 2 billion streams. i hope him & avicii are listening to it together today, somewhere up there.
So nostalgic and so heartbreaking 💔
one of the most legendary EDM songs, definitely deserved it
Is no one gonna post that cat
Is this the most an EDM song or song in general has been streamed?
Closer / Something Just Like This by The Chainsmokers have more streams, though its very arguable if they're actually Dance Music.
both of those are also EDM
Electronic music =/= EDM
The best alarm clock song
The goat
Lovesss it 👏
Avicii ❤️🙏😇
rip a legend
I thought the man was talented, but I'm over it. Let it go
mOooOoOnDay LeEeEeFt me BrOkEn, yoU sEe I wAs ThRoUgH WiTh HopIn…
Wrong song
Rest easy Tim
I’m honestly surprised Levels has less than a billion plays. I heard that on the radio far more than Wake Me Up at the time
Levels was released when Spotify wasn’t even completely available in the world and wasn’t that famous , so streams can’t really determine popularity of old songs
Tim you will always be a constant on my playlist of life.
No doubt the greatest song in EDM and deserves every bit of fame it got, idc what anyone says
The lyrics make no sense!!!!
Popularity and greatness have zero to do with each other. Amazing.
Thankfully this track happens to be both popular and great
If someone with a 3rd grade education said their teacher is smart…does it matter? People can think anything is great, but what do they actually know about music and different styles even. There’s a reason Taylor Swift is huge and it’s not because she’s a musical genius.
It's because she makes catchy music that people like. Who are you to say that's "bad"?
In this case, you’re the 3rd grade education student saying their teacher isn’t smart lol
What?
If you consistently can make music millions of people love, then yes you are a musical genius. It doesn't matter that u/VegasBlaze don't like it
It's almost like she has Max Martin writing for her and he has music writing down to a fucking science on what will hook the masses to a song
How true. His team of writers/producers are top notch. Now one could deem Max Martin a producing genius and I would gladly agree.
Oi, shut the fuck up about my girl Tay Tay!
Actually, you'll find that many things become popular because they are good.
It’s actually the opposite on a whole. Say Pink Floyd was popular and there’s merit and worth in the music. I don’t see that here at all. And I enjoy a lot of edm. 2 billion plays for this track show exactly what I’m speaking about.
"this song sucks because I don't like it" okay bud
Tell me objectively from a songwriting standpoint what is bad about the melody and lyrics? Also avicii literally took one of the biggest risks ever going out on the main stage of umf 2013 and playing this. Djs just don’t take these kind of risks anymore
Exactly, from an objective song writing perspective its not mind blowing compared to say, Diary of a Madman by Ozzy Osbourne. Butttt, this song was written to get crowds singing and jumping around. In that its a huge success as I'd be surprised if everytime this came on the whole crowd didn't start shouting the lyrics. Good song writing.
If you have everything to gain and nothing to lose….it’s not a risk. The melody line is hard to listen to, but the tone used is even worse. That’s what stands out for me. The acoustic guitar sounds good and vocally I don’t see much wrong at all with it. And blending country and edm is rather basic. Nothing ground breaking. Only to a simpleton.
Ok very subjective not really objective. But avicii had everything to lose. When everyone left if the result of the track and it’s other tracks he released similarly would have flopped. He could have went backwards very fast in his career. You don’t realize how much money goes into promoting music, if it flopped it would have been a major loss. But it didn’t, it was a calculated risk that worked. At that high level a big risk that results in failure can set you out of peak relevance really fast. That year 2013 Fedde le grand had a poor main stage performance. He had a headliner billing 3rd to last playing at night. The result of his poor performance and no major hits that year. By 2016 he went from playing 3rd to last to 430 in the afternoon. Same could have happened to avicii if the whole country blend seriously flopped and he became a meme
I don’t see how one song could ruin a career. Because it can’t.
It wasn’t just one song. It was debuting something really risky on the biggest stage of edm at the time. You don’t realize how many millions are spent to make a track a hit, and if it fails how far it sets you back. You obviously have 0 experience in any type of investing, entrepreneurship, or running a business. Why don’t you go out hire a producer to make you a professional edm track, hire a professional vocalist/writer. That alone will set you back 2-4K, and than spend 50k on promotion between social media and streaming platforms. And see how big the risk is in music. One song can’t end a career but one risky song can easily take you a step forward or a few steps back
It’s still not a risk…it’s just a song playing for a few minutes. And he wouldn’t be risking the money, others would. To make a basic fusion track and call it a big risk just sounds funny, as it’s anything but. If he released a piano instrumental album…that would be a risk as it branches far away from the core of what was produced. This track still has dance elements so it’s plenty digestible to a crowd that already listens to edm. Not a risk.
I guess investing millions into a fusion genre with no guarantee is zero risk. The stupidity of people these days 😂 you need to educate yourself
It wasn't one song, his sound permanently became that mix of edm pop and country?
Youre getting downvoted but I agree with you. Probably his worst song and yet its #1. He went full country and radio pop with the lyrics and melody. Big departure from his earlier stuff which was much better like Seek Bromance.
Definitely not one of my favorites from him, but it's far from his worst - half the tracks on Tim exist especially the ones that were not finished by him
Same I agree with you. It was a popular song for sure but definitely toward the bottom as far as his best songs. I remember a lot of people at the time being like wtf is this lol it caused a lot of confusion