During and after the counterculture movement in the 1960s, the Grateful Dead accumulated a loyal fanbase known as Deadheads. This group of dedicated music lovers were known for following the band across the country and developing their own subculture, as well as giving people a greater looking into the workings of fan culture.
Now, distinct artists having strongly devoted fanbases is quite common. Particularly, in electronic music, the Tipper community garners a great amount of intrigue and is one of few fan cultures that draws great similarities to Deadheads.
Dave Alexander Tipper’s music career under his surname stage alias has spanned nearly 30 years, accumulating a fanbase across generations and countries. His penchant for sonic and rhythmic experimentation enabled Tipper to be a pioneer or on the precipice of the birth of several different genres across his career, including nu skool breaks, glitch hop, and trip hop. His production abilities and innovations, in combination with the breadth of his career and discography, demanded the attention and respect of audiophiles and appreciators of sound system culture. Undoubtedly, these fans laid the foundation for the Tipper community to build upon.
While Tipper’s discography impressed listeners, he hooked many more over the years during his live performances. Once more drawing parallels to the Grateful Dead, Tipper became notorious for his live performances rife with unreleased tunes and scratching his own sounds over songs; a turntablist element that further ensures a unique live performance every time Tipper takes the stage. This new music, new experience guarantee from an artist ensures that an enthusiastic fanbase will travel far and wide for a live performance. And for Tipper, they do.
In the vein of live performances, another aspect that has contributed to carving out a ravenous fanbase is the Tipper & Friends curated events. Finely tuned and carefully assembled by specifically his team, these events during the late 2010s and early 2020s called for the gathering of his fanbase to enjoy a special event, made seemingly just for them, with other artists assured to fit their tastes. Indeed, the Tipper & Friends events contained excellent sound systems, visuals, and lineup, as well as a certainty to be surrounded by people of like mind and heart (for music).
With internet forums and groups becoming wildly accessible during the course of Tipper’s music career, the community was able to find each other with ease to discuss their love for the artist and the subculture they have created together. It, furthermore, has allowed the word of the community to proliferate - both the good and the bad. While some cite the Tipper community as being pretentious, people cannot allow that to define the entire community. There will always be some stinkers and holier-than-thou heads in any fanbase, especially when scrolling online spaces. However, there are plenty of kind and welcoming people in the Tipper community that encourage anyone to join - just start listening to the music!
Although this is just a brief peek into the Tipper community, the best way to learn more about it is in-person; Tipper announced his retirement from touring in 2025, so be sure to keep up and try to catch one of the elusive live performances before they can only be re-lived online.
