Rave Fashion Research Paper

Research Topic: How Electronic Dance Music Festivals Influence Generation Z Fashion: The Impact on Rave and Festival Styles

Research Report & Artefact | Fashion Enterprise Project Launch

CREDIT: Project mentored by Dr Tamzin Rollason | Research Assitant, PhD in Sustainable Fashion Consumption

RATIONALE: The "So-What?" Dimension: Why This Research Matters
Current scholarship on rave culture remains predominantly focused on three conventional aspects: historical origins (particularly 1990s nostalgia), EDM musicology, and substance use research, leaving a critical gap in understanding contemporary manifestations—particularly regarding fashion and generational evolution. My research addresses this oversight by examining how Generation Z has reinterpreted rave culture through sartorial expression and digital-era community building, tracing its aesthetic and ideological evolution from the 1990s to the 2020s. Through a mixed-methods approach—including a 20-question survey (N=103) of active Gen-Z ravers and 10 in-depth interviews—I document how modern rave fashion reflects shifting values like sustainability, gender fluidity, and digital-native creativity. The inclusion of visual ethnography (interview clips and outfit showcases) provides tangible evidence of how Gen Z reconciles nostalgia with progressive values through fashion. By bridging cultural theory with psychological insights, this work offers a new framework for understanding rave fashion as both personal expression and generational statement, while providing the fashion industry and cultural scholars with timely data on youth-driven style evolution.