Philly Club Music Is Taking Over the World, One TikTok At a Time
Philly Club Music Is Taking Over the World, One TikTok At a Time
Sound Signal

Philly Club Music Is Taking Over the World, One TikTok At a Time

The genre is growing past its local city borders and appearing in some of the year's biggest hits.

This piece originally appeared on June 15, 2023 in Sound Signal, our biweekly newsletter that identifies emerging artists, scenes, and trending tracks, crafted by the world's best writers and curators. Sign up here to never miss our take on what's next in music.

Philly Club, the energetic second-cousin to the bass-dominant dance music established in Jersey and Baltimore Club, is shaking up the masses. Everything about Philly Club is more pugnacious than its predecessors; the songs typically have a faster BPM and the lyrics can be borderline antagonistic. Established by local producers like DJ D Wizz and DJ Sega in the 2010s, the high-octane dance music could have remained a regional phenomenon, but the style has crept into the mainstream, serving as the soundtrack to hip-heavy dance routines throughout millions of videos across social platforms.

As Jersey and Baltimore Club music’s biggest hits continue to be created by people with no ties to the city, Philly Club is still run by its hometown heroes. 2Rare is a leader in the second-coming of this scene. After the 22-year-old teased the sample-laden track “Q-Pid” featuring Lil Durk on TikTok, the post received nearly 4M views and over 400K likes. Now an established gold-selling act, 2Rare has nearly 3M monthly Spotify listeners who have gravitated to his iterations of Philly Club. Similarly, Philly Goats—a collective comprised of D Sturdy, PGS Spence, and Sou—had a major taste of virality with “Get Off the Wall,” a vibrant track that interpolates Kool & The Gang’s 1981 hit “Get Down On It.” A snippet of the track was previewed in April and garnered over 1.5M creations on TikTok before receiving an official release in early June.

Still, Philly’s emerging artists aren’t the only ones finding success with the sound. North Philly native Lil Uzi Vert’s platinum-selling nod “Just Wanna Rock'' is one of the biggest rap songs in the past year. The 2023 Super Bowl anthem for the Philadelphia Eagles spent 32 weeks on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart. The top 10 hit also has over 400M spins on Spotify and more than 1M creations on TikTok. Drake hopped on the wave as well, utilizing Philly Club for his Honestly, Nevermind cut “Sticky.” The song spent 13 weeks on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, peaking at No. 6. If you look closely, you can even find a cameo from 2Rare in the music video.

If you’re aiming to uncover emerging artists, grasp key cultural shifts, or gain actionable insights from data-driven research, Third Bridge Creative delivers the expertise you need. Connect with our Music Intelligence team today to learn how we can help your organization navigate the cultural zeitgeist with precision and impact.

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