CLUBBING 2020
caitlin javech
clubbing & wellness
In the last five to ten years, the popularity of a new type of club experience called “conscious clubbing” or “clean raving” has been slowly growing in NYC and LA. Clubbing looks largely different than it did in the 80’s and 90’s and has taken on new forms and approaches that challenge the norms of the eclectic history of clubbing in these metropolitan cities. This new era of clubbing is an unsurprising result of the capitalization of the wellness industry and boom of the era of self-care amongst millennials, Gen X, and Gen Y. For this project, I will express the commonalities and contrasts between clubbing as it has been known and understood since its emergence in NYC and LA and the newly growing popularity of “conscious clubbing.”
Some may argue that the wellness industry is killing clubbing as we know it, and they might be right. It has become clear to me that yes, that argument has significant validity when comparing these two distinct experiences. “Conscious clubbing” prioritizes wellness, deeper connections between club-goers, and creating safe-spaces that allow for both music and dancing to serve as cathartic exploration and self-expression, without the need of drugs and alcohol. In contrast, the LA and NYC niche nightlife club scenes, prior to the emergence of the fusion between wellness and clubbing were commonly known and defined by their DJ’s and artists. They were further characterized by their established vibes, notoriety, exclusivity, location, and ability to bring the club-goer into an altered state that is more often than not facilitated by drugs and alcohol.
What has become more interesting to me is whether or not “clubbing as we know it” and “conscious clubbing” can exist and succeed simultaneously in the same cities. Are they distinct enough in their differences to maintain and expand their clientele base while building a sense of community? Will capitalism and the booming wellness industry create too much competition between these two types of experiences? Will the evolution of young adults who more commonly prioritize wellness, being present, and reducing their drug and alcohol consumption while partying ever become so strong that “clubbing as we know it” will become irrelevant? In order to look at these questions with both curiosity and skepticism, I will take a deeper dive into what “conscious clubbing” really entails. While it is certainly a departure from “traditional clubbing,” I believe both clubbing experiences share commonalities in structure, social-impact, and attractiveness to those looking for immersive nightlife experiences.
From my research, I can conclude that the popularity and growth of “conscious clubbing” in NYC and LA respectively emerged as a result of a growing connection between partying and clean living. Many millennials, Gen X and Gen Yers have become more attracted to environments that provide healthier party environments that may integrate yoga, meditation, sound experiences, and building community. Having the space to move and express themselves without the expectation of being inebriated or in pursuit of sexual encounters has increasingly become a priority for these generations of club-goers. In an article in The Guardian titled, ‘Clean Raving; How Club Culture Went Wild For Wellness;’ writer Hariet Gibsone explains how “...the unexpected relationship between clubbing and clean living has been building for a few years now. In 2014, for example, there was a craze for voga, a fitness class combining yoga and voguing. But the latest wave is more bohemian. It includes the club awakening a “Conscious Rave” where cacao and smoothies are served, there are classes in hip-hop hot yoga, and meditation sessions are accompanied by expert gong practitioner Mona Ruijs of Sound Interventions.” She later goes on to explain that the success of this alternative club experience is deeply connected to the “pairing of wellness and music” that has become mainstream and highly profitable. This is exemplified by artists like DJ DRĖĖĖMY (Reem Abdou) who I researched for my “Clubbing In Covid Project,” who have successfully created music labels that integrate wellness, music, and ‘cleaner’ or ‘more mindful’ nightlife experiences. While DJ’s, music labels, and clubbing venues like BAE may not be as well-known as mainstream name-drop-worthy clubs, they are succeeding financially and seem they are on a path to continuous popularity growth.
It is clear that the era of conscious clubbing stems from the popularization of clean living, the booming wellness industry, and how these elements shift in societal preferences for what a great night out looks like. In looking at two conscious club scenes in NYC and LA, Esme Benjamin in an article on Culture Trip summarizes this shift very clearly. Benjamin explains “...the rise of conscious clubbing feels inevitable at a time when more young people are becoming curious about sobriety, and it’s unfashionable to brag about how heavily you drank the night before. The haze of inebriation is a barrier to being fully present, and events like The Get Down and Ecstatic Dance offer a more nurturing form of nightlife. One that, crucially, facilitates deeper connections. Dancer to dancer. Human to human.” This societal shift in preferences is evident in environments created at clubs like The Get Down in NYC and Ecstatic Dance in LA, that prioritize wellness, deeper connections between club-goers, and a focus to create safe-spaces that allow for both music and dancing to serve as cathartic exploration and self-expression without the need of drugs and alcohol.
These two examples, and many other popular conscious clubbing venues share many common values and ‘rules of engagement’ that are upheld within their respective clubs. Some common values include, but are not limited to, the following: prioritizing the power of freedom of movement, supporting judgement-free self-expression through dance parties, inclusivity, radical self-expression, clarity in presence and embodiment of the present moment and eliminating intoxicants and personal electronics during the experience. Conscious club scenes also encourage sex-positivity, some version of a “fuck yes” consent policy (if the answer isn’t fuck yes, then it’s a no), creating judgement free environments, encouraging connection to your deeper self and the community around you and keeping the dancing and music as the driving forces of the club environment.
The values of what I will call “traditional clubbing” for the lack of a better term, contrasts the values and rules of engagement in this new era of “conscious clubbing.” In this new type of nightlife, connection to self and the present moment are at the heart of the experience, while more “traditional clubbing” values an escape from the realities of everyday life. In an article from The Guardian, Jochen Eisenbrand, chief curator of last year’s Night Fever exhibition at the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein, Germany, explains how “...the 1960s and 70s were most interesting because that’s when the nightclub was being defined as a typology of its own. Clubs, he says, are forerunners of spaces that create an experience temporarily. Clubbing has always been about creating a parallel world for the night, right down to how a typical club is laid out: a stairway descending into an underground playground of disorienting lights and sounds.” What remains at the core of the clubbing experience, as Eisenbrand articulates, is a sense of ephemerality and pleasure that comes out of the artful integration of the architectural design and sensorial elements a club offers. In my opinion, the attraction to this “traditional clubbing” experience is based on a natural human attraction to mystery, the unknown, and a temporary transcendence away from reality to a new world with a satisfying warped sense of time and space. I believe that such an experience is often more fully realized with the consumption of drugs and would argue that it may even be a non-negotiable element for the club-goer to have the out of body experience they may be seeking.
The cultural experience of “traditional clubbing’” is painted in a similar light in an article titled, “The Rave: Spiritual Healing In Modern Western Subcultures” by Scott R Hudson. In his research, Hudson articulates how “...the postmodern approach views the rave as a culture of abandonment, disengagement, and disappearance.” What makes this escapism possible and a clubbing or raving experience successful is the world created by the club’s lack of subjectivity paired with “...the style of dance1, the relative anonymity of the DJ, the nature of the music2, the ego-reducing effects of Ecstasy [MDMA]3, and the occurrence of raves in out-of-the-way places at times when the rest of the population sleeps.” This researched perspective supports my argument that the attraction to the “traditional clubbing” experience is towards being transmitted to another state of being through pleasure and overloading the senses. The use of drugs in combination with the environmental and social elements of the club are essential elements to accessing this altered state. This approach to clubbing is not in pursuit of becoming more in touch or tapped into one's deepest internal self, but rather to create the ideal set up for a complete and blissful escape from the self. This experience is explained clearly by an authoritative rave journalist quoted in Hudson’s article who “...summarizes the postmodern interpretation elegantly: rave culture is geared towards fascination rather than meaning, sensation rather than sensibility; creating an appetite for impossible states of hyperstimulation."
Both Eisenbrand and Hudson’s research on the function and aim of traditional club or rave experiences aligns with the many diverse examples of “traditional clubbing” we have learned about throughout the semester in our ‘Clubbing’ course. While the exact environment, client type, focus, and nuance of each club or clubbing experience are all distinct in their own way, they all share a common thread in their function. “Traditional Clubbing” creates a departure from the ordinary, facilitates a sense of ‘home’ or welcoming to those who may never feel at home in society at large, and provides a space for freedom and unbound expression in movement, sexuality, community, and musicality. These commonalities shared amongst the variety of “traditional clubbing” examples we have unpacked in this course are not completely contradicting with the values of “conscious clubbing.” In my opinion, both traditional and conscious clubbing aim to provide immersive experiences where the club-goer can tap into parts of themselves in the presence of others through sound, movement, and community. “Traditional clubbing” is colored by a craving for escaping the norm and creating an alternative reality where one can either fully embody who they are or transform into whatever they want, whoever they want, and however they want while “conscious clubbing” aims to bring the club-goer closer to themselves, facilitate a more rooted presence in their body and in the space, and create a safe and drug-free alternative to exploring oneself through movement and music.
Along with establishing the differences in the two approaches to clubbing, it can be argued that all club-goers are looking to reach the same ends, just by different means. In Hudson’s article on rave culture, an interviewee argues that the rave experience they are having is not dependent on drugs and is primarily a result of the other elemental factors of the club. The interviewee explains the experience is brought to life when “...with the help of the DJ's ecstatic techniques, ravers enter areas of consciousness not necessarily related to everyday ‘real’ world experiences. Though Ecstasy enables altered states of consciousness, drugs are not necessary4. In this sense, raves are similar to the trance dances of the Dobe Ju/'hoansi, which do not involve any mind-altering substances. In both cases, altered states of consciousness are stimulated by a combination of upbeat rhythmic drumming, exhaustive all-night dancing and flickering light.” In reading this, one could argue that all forms of clubs and raves, whether drugs are frequently used (in “traditional clubbing”) or adamantly banned (in “conscious clubbing”), are more dependent on the music, dancing, design and sound elements of the space to bring the club goer to the desired altered state. Perhaps what “conscious clubbing” is now capitalizing on is part of what club-goers have always been looking for, just via a new wellness-driven avenue. Whether it’s by taking ecstasy and seeking sex or by drinking a CBD infused drink and taking hip-hop yoga, those who “club traditionally” or “club consciously” seem to be after a similar sensorial experience.
Both types of clubbing are a means to an end, and I don’t believe one to be more or less valuable than the other. While I think it would be ideal for both to continue to successfully grow and thrive in the coming generations, I am not sure they can. In comparing the two, it is imperative to recognize that both “traditional clubbing” and “conscious clubbing” are dependent on capital to stay in business. They will both be working to attract the same young adults in metropolitan cities like LA and NYC, and I believe the competition will grow more intense overtime. Within the demographic of adults ranging from their twenties to their fifties that club promoters will be trying to reel in, there will be specific demographics that will be more drawn to “conscious clubbing,” and some that are more drawn to traditional clubbing. In my opinion, “conscious clubbing” will become a preference for the upcoming generations of young adults, and traditional clubs may suffer the consequences.
Upon reflection of my research, I think “conscious clubbing” will continue to gain momentum and strength based on new scientific, psychological, and wellness-focused research about what conscious clubbing can do FOR your body vs. what traditional clubbing can do TO your body. The shift in societal views on clubbing and a magnetism towards a more mindful approach to a night-out has already been set in motion and I believe it will continue to gain prominence. These societal shifts are in part due to a movement among young adults towards living healthier lives, and the common practices and nightlife environments of traditional clubbing do not align with this movement towards wellness. Author, stylist, and blogger, Navaz Batiwalla, articulates this societal shift very clearly in her article for Dazed Digital titled ‘Has The Wellness Industry Killed Clubbing As We Know It’ when she explains “...this shift in the culture of clubbing isn’t just about opting out of alcohol to avoid hangovers and therefore make you a better worker. It’s also not just about alleviating the mental health complications associated with drinking. It’s an impulse reflection of our changing attitude towards health and wellness. No longer merely about avoiding illness and disease, the growing wellness movement has shifted our concern to actively improving one’s physical, emotional and spiritual health.” In this new paradigm, it seems much more likely that the type of clubbing whose branding, marketing, and offerings focus on increased wellness will become increasingly more attractive.
Although I believe that “conscious clubbing” will continue to thrive as the wellness industry grows and the desires of young adults shifts, I don’t think it will take “traditional clubbing” venues out of business. There will be competition between “traditional clubbing” and “conscious clubbing,” but they will conditionally alter based on the desires of the public each year. Who can predict whether after the insane life changing year of 2020 in which a global pandemic turned everyone's worlds upside down if society will be more obsessed with wellness or rush back to the clubs for an intoxicated escape from the harsh reality? Regardless, as I argued before, all club goers are looking for a sensorial experience. Whether the pursuit is created via drugs and fantasy or by integrating meditation, to escape the self or to come closer to the self, there are still commonalities in the ends being seeked. While I believe there will be a crowd that will still remain primarily attracted to and financially invested in “traditional clubbing,” the popularity of “conscious clubbing” will grow stronger as the wellness industry and scientific research continue shifting the priorities of young adults in their approaches to partying. Navaz Batiwalla articulates the growing success of conscious clubbing succinctly when she writes, “What these events have in common is an unspoken mission to nourish the mind and soul; a form of mindful escapism that’s much needed as economical, ecological and political turmoil continue to hurl challenges at Generation Anxious. Fueled by a desire for pin-sharp mental clarity in a befuddled world, clubbers are realizing that being proactively healthy is, to use a hackneyed word, empowering.”
The current pandemic may strengthen the value of conscious clubbing to serve as a form of wellness, clarity, and empowerment for “Generation Anxious.” With changing attitudes and values of the young and upcoming generation of club-goers, it would not be surprising if the “traditional clubbing” experiences will become less popular than clubbing experiences that promote socializing on a deeper, and healthier, level. According to The Future Laboratory’s senior futures analyst Victoria Buchanan, “We’ll see club spaces pushing even further into the health and wellbeing arena to encompass sustainability, learning and more sensorial experiences.” Later in the article, Batiwala asks the question “...is getting into it the new getting out of it?” which gets at the heart of the difference between conscious and traditional clubbing that I am researching. What I believe Batiwala is getting to when she talks about “getting into it” is the growing attraction to more mindful clubbing experiences, rather than the previous popularity of clubbing as a means to escape from reality. Buchanan provides an eloquent response that highlights the value of conscious clubbing to and the growing irrelevance of “traditional clubbing” for Gen Z and Millennials. She says, “In the future, hedonism and escape will need to provide enrichment or risk being seen as empty, shallow and wasteful to this purpose-driven audience.”
In conclusion, I think it would be nonsensical to claim that conscious clubbing will not only grow in its success but change the future of clubbing as a whole. While I cannot predict the future, the mindset shifts and needs of young people will certainly continue to make waves in what clubbing, raving, and partying look like in the coming generations. In Batiwala’s article, this idea is explained as the “...collective embrace of a more conscious club culture as a necessary shift in mindset.” The article argues that “...people want empowering, engaging experiences in every area of their life. That includes raves that make you feel like pure ecstasy – without necessarily having to take it.” All good, clean fun then – see you at the seltzer bar.” Time will only tell whether the future of clubbing will be dependent on the ecstasy of the drug or the feeling of ecstasy by other means, even if that feeling comes from CBD-infused cacao smoothies and hip-hop yoga.
Citations
Some may argue that the wellness industry is killing clubbing as we know it, and they might be right. It has become clear to me that yes, that argument has significant validity when comparing these two distinct experiences. “Conscious clubbing” prioritizes wellness, deeper connections between club-goers, and creating safe-spaces that allow for both music and dancing to serve as cathartic exploration and self-expression, without the need of drugs and alcohol. In contrast, the LA and NYC niche nightlife club scenes, prior to the emergence of the fusion between wellness and clubbing were commonly known and defined by their DJ’s and artists. They were further characterized by their established vibes, notoriety, exclusivity, location, and ability to bring the club-goer into an altered state that is more often than not facilitated by drugs and alcohol.
What has become more interesting to me is whether or not “clubbing as we know it” and “conscious clubbing” can exist and succeed simultaneously in the same cities. Are they distinct enough in their differences to maintain and expand their clientele base while building a sense of community? Will capitalism and the booming wellness industry create too much competition between these two types of experiences? Will the evolution of young adults who more commonly prioritize wellness, being present, and reducing their drug and alcohol consumption while partying ever become so strong that “clubbing as we know it” will become irrelevant? In order to look at these questions with both curiosity and skepticism, I will take a deeper dive into what “conscious clubbing” really entails. While it is certainly a departure from “traditional clubbing,” I believe both clubbing experiences share commonalities in structure, social-impact, and attractiveness to those looking for immersive nightlife experiences.
From my research, I can conclude that the popularity and growth of “conscious clubbing” in NYC and LA respectively emerged as a result of a growing connection between partying and clean living. Many millennials, Gen X and Gen Yers have become more attracted to environments that provide healthier party environments that may integrate yoga, meditation, sound experiences, and building community. Having the space to move and express themselves without the expectation of being inebriated or in pursuit of sexual encounters has increasingly become a priority for these generations of club-goers. In an article in The Guardian titled, ‘Clean Raving; How Club Culture Went Wild For Wellness;’ writer Hariet Gibsone explains how “...the unexpected relationship between clubbing and clean living has been building for a few years now. In 2014, for example, there was a craze for voga, a fitness class combining yoga and voguing. But the latest wave is more bohemian. It includes the club awakening a “Conscious Rave” where cacao and smoothies are served, there are classes in hip-hop hot yoga, and meditation sessions are accompanied by expert gong practitioner Mona Ruijs of Sound Interventions.” She later goes on to explain that the success of this alternative club experience is deeply connected to the “pairing of wellness and music” that has become mainstream and highly profitable. This is exemplified by artists like DJ DRĖĖĖMY (Reem Abdou) who I researched for my “Clubbing In Covid Project,” who have successfully created music labels that integrate wellness, music, and ‘cleaner’ or ‘more mindful’ nightlife experiences. While DJ’s, music labels, and clubbing venues like BAE may not be as well-known as mainstream name-drop-worthy clubs, they are succeeding financially and seem they are on a path to continuous popularity growth.
It is clear that the era of conscious clubbing stems from the popularization of clean living, the booming wellness industry, and how these elements shift in societal preferences for what a great night out looks like. In looking at two conscious club scenes in NYC and LA, Esme Benjamin in an article on Culture Trip summarizes this shift very clearly. Benjamin explains “...the rise of conscious clubbing feels inevitable at a time when more young people are becoming curious about sobriety, and it’s unfashionable to brag about how heavily you drank the night before. The haze of inebriation is a barrier to being fully present, and events like The Get Down and Ecstatic Dance offer a more nurturing form of nightlife. One that, crucially, facilitates deeper connections. Dancer to dancer. Human to human.” This societal shift in preferences is evident in environments created at clubs like The Get Down in NYC and Ecstatic Dance in LA, that prioritize wellness, deeper connections between club-goers, and a focus to create safe-spaces that allow for both music and dancing to serve as cathartic exploration and self-expression without the need of drugs and alcohol.
These two examples, and many other popular conscious clubbing venues share many common values and ‘rules of engagement’ that are upheld within their respective clubs. Some common values include, but are not limited to, the following: prioritizing the power of freedom of movement, supporting judgement-free self-expression through dance parties, inclusivity, radical self-expression, clarity in presence and embodiment of the present moment and eliminating intoxicants and personal electronics during the experience. Conscious club scenes also encourage sex-positivity, some version of a “fuck yes” consent policy (if the answer isn’t fuck yes, then it’s a no), creating judgement free environments, encouraging connection to your deeper self and the community around you and keeping the dancing and music as the driving forces of the club environment.
The values of what I will call “traditional clubbing” for the lack of a better term, contrasts the values and rules of engagement in this new era of “conscious clubbing.” In this new type of nightlife, connection to self and the present moment are at the heart of the experience, while more “traditional clubbing” values an escape from the realities of everyday life. In an article from The Guardian, Jochen Eisenbrand, chief curator of last year’s Night Fever exhibition at the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein, Germany, explains how “...the 1960s and 70s were most interesting because that’s when the nightclub was being defined as a typology of its own. Clubs, he says, are forerunners of spaces that create an experience temporarily. Clubbing has always been about creating a parallel world for the night, right down to how a typical club is laid out: a stairway descending into an underground playground of disorienting lights and sounds.” What remains at the core of the clubbing experience, as Eisenbrand articulates, is a sense of ephemerality and pleasure that comes out of the artful integration of the architectural design and sensorial elements a club offers. In my opinion, the attraction to this “traditional clubbing” experience is based on a natural human attraction to mystery, the unknown, and a temporary transcendence away from reality to a new world with a satisfying warped sense of time and space. I believe that such an experience is often more fully realized with the consumption of drugs and would argue that it may even be a non-negotiable element for the club-goer to have the out of body experience they may be seeking.
The cultural experience of “traditional clubbing’” is painted in a similar light in an article titled, “The Rave: Spiritual Healing In Modern Western Subcultures” by Scott R Hudson. In his research, Hudson articulates how “...the postmodern approach views the rave as a culture of abandonment, disengagement, and disappearance.” What makes this escapism possible and a clubbing or raving experience successful is the world created by the club’s lack of subjectivity paired with “...the style of dance1, the relative anonymity of the DJ, the nature of the music2, the ego-reducing effects of Ecstasy [MDMA]3, and the occurrence of raves in out-of-the-way places at times when the rest of the population sleeps.” This researched perspective supports my argument that the attraction to the “traditional clubbing” experience is towards being transmitted to another state of being through pleasure and overloading the senses. The use of drugs in combination with the environmental and social elements of the club are essential elements to accessing this altered state. This approach to clubbing is not in pursuit of becoming more in touch or tapped into one's deepest internal self, but rather to create the ideal set up for a complete and blissful escape from the self. This experience is explained clearly by an authoritative rave journalist quoted in Hudson’s article who “...summarizes the postmodern interpretation elegantly: rave culture is geared towards fascination rather than meaning, sensation rather than sensibility; creating an appetite for impossible states of hyperstimulation."
Both Eisenbrand and Hudson’s research on the function and aim of traditional club or rave experiences aligns with the many diverse examples of “traditional clubbing” we have learned about throughout the semester in our ‘Clubbing’ course. While the exact environment, client type, focus, and nuance of each club or clubbing experience are all distinct in their own way, they all share a common thread in their function. “Traditional Clubbing” creates a departure from the ordinary, facilitates a sense of ‘home’ or welcoming to those who may never feel at home in society at large, and provides a space for freedom and unbound expression in movement, sexuality, community, and musicality. These commonalities shared amongst the variety of “traditional clubbing” examples we have unpacked in this course are not completely contradicting with the values of “conscious clubbing.” In my opinion, both traditional and conscious clubbing aim to provide immersive experiences where the club-goer can tap into parts of themselves in the presence of others through sound, movement, and community. “Traditional clubbing” is colored by a craving for escaping the norm and creating an alternative reality where one can either fully embody who they are or transform into whatever they want, whoever they want, and however they want while “conscious clubbing” aims to bring the club-goer closer to themselves, facilitate a more rooted presence in their body and in the space, and create a safe and drug-free alternative to exploring oneself through movement and music.
Along with establishing the differences in the two approaches to clubbing, it can be argued that all club-goers are looking to reach the same ends, just by different means. In Hudson’s article on rave culture, an interviewee argues that the rave experience they are having is not dependent on drugs and is primarily a result of the other elemental factors of the club. The interviewee explains the experience is brought to life when “...with the help of the DJ's ecstatic techniques, ravers enter areas of consciousness not necessarily related to everyday ‘real’ world experiences. Though Ecstasy enables altered states of consciousness, drugs are not necessary4. In this sense, raves are similar to the trance dances of the Dobe Ju/'hoansi, which do not involve any mind-altering substances. In both cases, altered states of consciousness are stimulated by a combination of upbeat rhythmic drumming, exhaustive all-night dancing and flickering light.” In reading this, one could argue that all forms of clubs and raves, whether drugs are frequently used (in “traditional clubbing”) or adamantly banned (in “conscious clubbing”), are more dependent on the music, dancing, design and sound elements of the space to bring the club goer to the desired altered state. Perhaps what “conscious clubbing” is now capitalizing on is part of what club-goers have always been looking for, just via a new wellness-driven avenue. Whether it’s by taking ecstasy and seeking sex or by drinking a CBD infused drink and taking hip-hop yoga, those who “club traditionally” or “club consciously” seem to be after a similar sensorial experience.
Both types of clubbing are a means to an end, and I don’t believe one to be more or less valuable than the other. While I think it would be ideal for both to continue to successfully grow and thrive in the coming generations, I am not sure they can. In comparing the two, it is imperative to recognize that both “traditional clubbing” and “conscious clubbing” are dependent on capital to stay in business. They will both be working to attract the same young adults in metropolitan cities like LA and NYC, and I believe the competition will grow more intense overtime. Within the demographic of adults ranging from their twenties to their fifties that club promoters will be trying to reel in, there will be specific demographics that will be more drawn to “conscious clubbing,” and some that are more drawn to traditional clubbing. In my opinion, “conscious clubbing” will become a preference for the upcoming generations of young adults, and traditional clubs may suffer the consequences.
Upon reflection of my research, I think “conscious clubbing” will continue to gain momentum and strength based on new scientific, psychological, and wellness-focused research about what conscious clubbing can do FOR your body vs. what traditional clubbing can do TO your body. The shift in societal views on clubbing and a magnetism towards a more mindful approach to a night-out has already been set in motion and I believe it will continue to gain prominence. These societal shifts are in part due to a movement among young adults towards living healthier lives, and the common practices and nightlife environments of traditional clubbing do not align with this movement towards wellness. Author, stylist, and blogger, Navaz Batiwalla, articulates this societal shift very clearly in her article for Dazed Digital titled ‘Has The Wellness Industry Killed Clubbing As We Know It’ when she explains “...this shift in the culture of clubbing isn’t just about opting out of alcohol to avoid hangovers and therefore make you a better worker. It’s also not just about alleviating the mental health complications associated with drinking. It’s an impulse reflection of our changing attitude towards health and wellness. No longer merely about avoiding illness and disease, the growing wellness movement has shifted our concern to actively improving one’s physical, emotional and spiritual health.” In this new paradigm, it seems much more likely that the type of clubbing whose branding, marketing, and offerings focus on increased wellness will become increasingly more attractive.
Although I believe that “conscious clubbing” will continue to thrive as the wellness industry grows and the desires of young adults shifts, I don’t think it will take “traditional clubbing” venues out of business. There will be competition between “traditional clubbing” and “conscious clubbing,” but they will conditionally alter based on the desires of the public each year. Who can predict whether after the insane life changing year of 2020 in which a global pandemic turned everyone's worlds upside down if society will be more obsessed with wellness or rush back to the clubs for an intoxicated escape from the harsh reality? Regardless, as I argued before, all club goers are looking for a sensorial experience. Whether the pursuit is created via drugs and fantasy or by integrating meditation, to escape the self or to come closer to the self, there are still commonalities in the ends being seeked. While I believe there will be a crowd that will still remain primarily attracted to and financially invested in “traditional clubbing,” the popularity of “conscious clubbing” will grow stronger as the wellness industry and scientific research continue shifting the priorities of young adults in their approaches to partying. Navaz Batiwalla articulates the growing success of conscious clubbing succinctly when she writes, “What these events have in common is an unspoken mission to nourish the mind and soul; a form of mindful escapism that’s much needed as economical, ecological and political turmoil continue to hurl challenges at Generation Anxious. Fueled by a desire for pin-sharp mental clarity in a befuddled world, clubbers are realizing that being proactively healthy is, to use a hackneyed word, empowering.”
The current pandemic may strengthen the value of conscious clubbing to serve as a form of wellness, clarity, and empowerment for “Generation Anxious.” With changing attitudes and values of the young and upcoming generation of club-goers, it would not be surprising if the “traditional clubbing” experiences will become less popular than clubbing experiences that promote socializing on a deeper, and healthier, level. According to The Future Laboratory’s senior futures analyst Victoria Buchanan, “We’ll see club spaces pushing even further into the health and wellbeing arena to encompass sustainability, learning and more sensorial experiences.” Later in the article, Batiwala asks the question “...is getting into it the new getting out of it?” which gets at the heart of the difference between conscious and traditional clubbing that I am researching. What I believe Batiwala is getting to when she talks about “getting into it” is the growing attraction to more mindful clubbing experiences, rather than the previous popularity of clubbing as a means to escape from reality. Buchanan provides an eloquent response that highlights the value of conscious clubbing to and the growing irrelevance of “traditional clubbing” for Gen Z and Millennials. She says, “In the future, hedonism and escape will need to provide enrichment or risk being seen as empty, shallow and wasteful to this purpose-driven audience.”
In conclusion, I think it would be nonsensical to claim that conscious clubbing will not only grow in its success but change the future of clubbing as a whole. While I cannot predict the future, the mindset shifts and needs of young people will certainly continue to make waves in what clubbing, raving, and partying look like in the coming generations. In Batiwala’s article, this idea is explained as the “...collective embrace of a more conscious club culture as a necessary shift in mindset.” The article argues that “...people want empowering, engaging experiences in every area of their life. That includes raves that make you feel like pure ecstasy – without necessarily having to take it.” All good, clean fun then – see you at the seltzer bar.” Time will only tell whether the future of clubbing will be dependent on the ecstasy of the drug or the feeling of ecstasy by other means, even if that feeling comes from CBD-infused cacao smoothies and hip-hop yoga.