How did y'all get addicted to Hardstyle?

[Chordata]

Really enjoying these posts! To share my own history getting to hardstyle a bit, I was gifted a "now that's what I call music" compilation CD and a knockoff walkman around my 10th birthday. The CD was filled with pop and rnb music I didn't care for at all but I was obsessed with two tracks that I played over and over: Ian Van Dahl - Castles in the Sky and DJ Sammy & Yanou - Heaven (Candlelight Mix). Around the same time the home versions of DDR (Dance Dance Revolution) became popular and I was obsessed with it and was introduced to a lot of early 2000s trance (Armin, Gabriel & Dresden, Lange, etc.).

Then came YouTube and at some point (must have been around 06/07) saw a clip of Yoji playing Hardstyle Disco at Sensation Black 2004 and thought it was so cool. Around this time I was also playing In The Groove (American version of DDR) a lot and it was possible to add custom songs, so I was introduced to a lot of electronic music of various genres, including some hardstyle (like Basshunter's hardstyle remix of Welcome to Rainbow, lol) that way. This was also the era of LimeWire, and through LimeWire I ended up downloading and constantly listening to Zany's Fusion of Sound and Blutonium Boy's Hardstyle Dimension albums. Besides those I also remember listening to the DBSTF remix of Decibel Anthem (not my favorite nowadays but at the time I thought it sounded so cool) and various early Noisecontrollers tracks. Also listened to Showtek's 2009 album but not their first for some reason. It was very scattershot what I found and didn't search widely but listened to what I had a *lot* for a couple years, but never really searched out or engaged with the hardstyle scene more broadly.

Life went on and I mostly listened to classical and electronic music, though never trying hard to find new stuff. Then I got really into EDM during the EDM boom years of 2013-2015, and from there made my way back to hardstyle (around the time DBSTF and Heady returned) through trance. From that time I was finally interested in exploring label back catalogues and now here I am.

[Qre8ive]

I got into Hardstyle in 2002. After always buying the Sensation White compilation CDs because I loved the trance, I decided to try the Sensation Black ones too, which got me hooked on the harder sound that eventually became Hardstyle. Fast forward 22 years, and I couldn't imagine what my life would be like without Hardstyle, as almost all major events in my life have been related to it. I may not be as addicted to it as I was between 2005 and 2015, partly because I'm almost 37 now and also actively work in the scene, but it's still a daily part of my life.

[macdz]

Welp. That's mine:
interesting cause it was my sister who introduced hardstyle to me. What I mean by that? She used to party a lot driving her car and having music on a full blast and I, you ask? I used to stay at home a lot still having a couple of friends. Wasn't into going anywhere cause I was simply poor. Had no job. To your surprise, now it's otherwise (talking about partying/friends). Back then, she showed me the sets of Kai Tracid, Daniele Mondello, Technoboy Qlimax 2003 and I started digging OBSESSIVELY. I still do remember Technoboy's set with Listen to me mama by Dj Scot Project. Oh boy. That track still hypes me big time. Back then, I was absolutely in love. In the end, my sister stopped listening to hardstyle. I straight up love it, but pls change the fucking kicks

[il tonny]

Hi a lot of nostalgia here is my first post since I think 5 years or more, I started with hard house music in 98' then trance music, but I was looking for something similar to hard but more melodic and the internet took me to a sensation black site, It was amazing everything I was looking for in an event, I fell in love with the concept and the music. Unfortunately I never went to a sensation event or even a hardstyle one. This year I visited Nederland for the first time but sadly 1 mount before Defqon1, It was like a unplanned visit, but I hope come back next year and jump in to a big event.

[Soundphase]

I got addicted to hardstyle back in 2004 because the sound was different, unique, and hard

[DjVero]

Welp. That's mine:
interesting cause it was my sister who introduced hardstyle to me. What I mean by that? She used to party a lot driving her car and having music on a full blast and I, you ask? I used to stay at home a lot still having a couple of friends. Wasn't into going anywhere cause I was simply poor. Had no job. To your surprise, now it's otherwise (talking about partying/friends). Back then, she showed me the sets of Kai Tracid, Daniele Mondello, Technoboy Qlimax 2003 and I started digging OBSESSIVELY. I still do remember Technoboy's set with Listen to me mama by Dj Scot Project. Oh boy. That track still hypes me big time. Back then, I was absolutely in love. In the end, my sister stopped listening to hardstyle. I straight up love it, but pls change the fucking kicks

Ah yeah, Qlimax 2003 . I own the DVD - which I watched over and over, Technoboy had to translate Mondello 'coz he couldn't speak English -, the CD - of which I can still pretty much dream all the tracks lol - and all the livesets, fucking loved Mondello's set and too bad Technoboy's was cut short after like 10 minutes or something.

[GerHSUploadz]

It was 2001 when i heard a Set from ''Warmduscher'' on Radio Sunshine Live. He played a lot of Hard Trance, then in 2002 he played Hardstyle and so I was hooked. Back then, Hardstyle was almost always the order of the Day at our school during the Breaks, so we almost always had the latest Samplers, as many of my classmates had the same Taste.

[cccc5]

Jiglojay PK video in 2008 (Builder - Hardbeat Market). Then found Builder - Her Voice from searching that artist. Was hooked fast.

[SKRWD]

Little anecdote:

It already started with me being a toddler dancing to Eurodance/Trance. I randomly stumbled across Hardcore through very old Thunderdome CDs from my brother-in-law. However, I found that music was quite monotonous and too fast for me. Few years later I needed a PC in order to do my homework for IT class. But since my family didn't have the money, I stole components from a garbage dump to build one by myself. Once I had access to a computer and the internet I discovered Wreck The Rmx (Beholder & Max E Remix) by Hardheadz and was immediately sold. But if it wasn't for listening to tunes by DBSTF and HHZ in 2006/2007, it wouldn't have become my addiction

[Outer_Mind]

Around 2009-2010 I watched a lot of Jumpstyle videos with Jumpstyle and Hardstyle music, the tune that made me fall in love with Hardstyle music was "2 Best Enemies - Les Drums (Technoboy Remix)" :3

Few years later, in around late 2012 I was thinking, why not producing some Hardstyle? In mid 2015 I started uploading my music and that's how the love of (especially classic) Hardstyle continued <3