ELECTRONIC DANCE MUSIC by Jeremy Hess and Amber Poer

String the beats together. Buildup. Drop the bass.

And there you have: dubstep.

The popularity of dubstep has exploded in recent years, and some have taking to making their own beats at home.

Andrew Dietz, a student at Heritage High specializes in electronic dance music and some of the many forms of dubstep.

He used to be really into heavy metal and rock music, until his cousin showed him some dubstep. And then he was hooked.
He started mixing about two and half years ago.

“It puts me in that feeling that, you know, nobody can bother me, my worries are gone,” Dietz says. “Music really is my passion because I have been interested in music basically my whole life and it’s just something I hope I’ll go forward with.”

As time went on he enjoyed it more and more, perfecting each song.

“When making a song, I work backwards. I kind of think of a melody first, then I start using the beats. After that, I lay down some melody and progressions. Then I start to add effects, do some layering and add more sounds on top of the melody so it’ll sound better.”

Like most artists, he tends to overanalyze his work, perfecting everything until it’s good enough to be sent out into the world. It takes time, but in the end, he feels it’s worth it.

“It’s just extreme pride when I finish a song and think it’s great,” he says. “And then I just hope that other people would enjoy it.”
Throughout the years he has acquired fans that appreciate his work and make him feel good. He encourages everyone to do their best and follow their heart and do what they love to do.