The Superbowl was a big step forward for EDM in America

Last night’s Superbowl broadcast on NBC, which is also America’s biggest television event of the year, was an important milestone in the evolution and acceptance of dance music as a commercially viable art form in the US. Madonna performed at halftime with guest appearances from Cee Lo, LMFAO, Nicki Minaj and M.I.A and included her new track “Give Me All Your Luvin’ which she produced with French electronic artist Martin Solveig. This fact alone is worthy of note as past artists have traditionally been more rock or pop with the thinking being that those genres would resonate most strongly with the general population. But the real story of what unfolded last night was that key brands are now throwing their weight behind electronic artists in large-scale marketing efforts.

Anheuser-Busch’s Bud Light property unveiled a massive campaign to introduce their new “Platinum Lager” and kicked things off with a spot featuring Swedish DJ Avicii along with his hit song “Le7els.” America’s biggest brewer later followed that up with another advert featuring the music of “Party Rock” artists LMFAO who, in addition to also performing with Madonna, lent their music to a new M & M’s commercial as well. There are also indications that more underground varieties of electronic music are penetrating the larger consciousness as The Martinez Brothers now have a Blackberry ad that's getting widespread television play. The writing has been on the wall for a while now that dance music in America has been crossing over and gaining a wider audience than ever before, but the barometric implications that accompany the country's biggest brands throwing their power behind these artists and their music cannot be ignored. Check out Madonna’s halftime performance along with Avicii’s Bud Light Platinum and The Martinez Brothers' Blackberry ads below.