HexD: Difference between revisions – Wikipedia

{{Infobox music genre

| name = HexD

| native_name =

| etymology =

| other_names = * Surge

* Hex

| image =

| alt =

| caption =

| stylistic_origins = * [[Hyperpop]]

* [[Trap music|trap]]

* [[breakbeat]]

* [[emo rap]]

* [[electronic music]]

* [[trance music]]

* [[cloud rap]]

* [[lo-fi music]]

* [[digicore]]

| cultural_origins = Late 2010s to early 2020s; United States

| instruments = {{hlist|[[Drum machine]]|[[autotune]]|[[synthesizer]]|[[pitch shifter]]|[[Sampler (musical instrument)|sampler]]|[[hi-hats]]}}

| subgenrelist =

| subgenres = * Crushed trap

| fusiongenres = * Hexdbient

* Hexdtrance

* Hexd hardcore

| local_scenes =

| other_topics = {{hlist|[[Internet rap]]|[[microgenre]]|[[hyperpop]]|[[sigilkore]]|[[internet aesthetics]]}}

| footnotes =

}}

”’HexD”’ (also known as ”’surge”'<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zhang |first=Cat |date=2021-12-14 |title=The Year in Music on TikTok 2021 |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/article/tiktok-songs-2021/ |access-date=2025-07-27 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref>) is a [[microgenre]] of [[hip-hop]] music that emerged in the late 2010s to early 2020s, characterized by heavy use of [[Bitcrusher|bitcrushing]], mixed with sped-up and [[Pitch (music)|pitched]]-up vocals, resulting in a distorted, digital, hazy and [[Psychedelic music|psychedelic]] sound.

Notable acts include $pirit Gurlz, Fax Gang, Hexcastcrew, Sienna Sleep, Yabujin, purity://filter and Hi-C.

== Etymology and characteristics ==

HexD is primarily characterized by the use of [[Bitcrusher|bitcrushing]], a production technique that produces [[Distortion (music)|distortion]] through the reduction of bandwith and [[digital audio]] data. HexD artists usually apply bitcrushing to specific instruments or the entire master track, speeding and [[Pitch (music)|pitching]] up vocals, as well as overall instrumentation.<ref name=”:2″>{{Cite web |last=Press-Reynolds |first=Kieran |date=2025-07-23 |title=Meet the Most Cracked Music Archivist Online |url=https://pitchfork.com/thepitch/meet-the-most-cracked-music-archivist-online/ |access-date=2025-07-27 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref>

The visual aesthetics of HexD draws influence from [[anime]], [[internet aesthetics]] and early [[web 2.0]] era iconography and artwork primarily associated with the 2006 online [[GIF]]-editor [[Blingee]].<ref name=”:3″>{{Cite web |last=chalcopyrite |date=2024-03-07 |title=A Brief History of Lobit Music |url=https://wknc.org/2024/03/07/a-brief-history-of-lobit-music/ |access-date=2025-07-27 |website=WKNC 88.1 FM – North Carolina State University Student Radio |language=en-US}}</ref>

== History ==

=== Origins ===

In 2011, Untranced released a mixtape titled “Deleted Seniors,” which featured [[EDM music]] mixed with heavy bitcrushing, marking one of the first times the extreme use of the effect was incorporated as an aesthetic quality in music.<ref name=”:3″ /> Although the use of bitcrushing in [[trap music]] was originally pioneered by [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]]-based producer she_skin. The term “hexD” was later coined by Hexcastcrew member Stacy Minajj, who released the DJ mix ”Rare RCB hexD.mp3” in late 2019, which samples and remixes songs from the influential [[Internet rap|online rap]] collective Reptilian Club Boyz.<ref name=”:1″>{{Cite web |last=Meyer |first=Tom |date=14 September 2020 |title=The Influence of Rare RCB + HexD MP3 |url=https://www.passionweiss.com/2020/09/14/the-influence-of-rare-rcb-hexd-mp3/ |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=Passion of the Weiss}}</ref>

Subsequently, YouTube channel and [[netlabel]] Dismiss Yourself, which focused on obscure internet music, uploaded the Stacy Minajj RCB mix to their channel on August 23, 2019, which became instrumental to the wider proliferation of the hexD genre.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-07-08 |title=How Dismiss Yourself Became a Hub for Internet Weirdness |url=https://daily.bandcamp.com/label-profile/dismiss-yourself-label-profile |access-date=2025-07-19 |website=Bandcamp Daily}}</ref><ref name=”:2″ /><ref name=”:1″ /><ref name=”:0″>{{Cite web |date=30 April 2024 |title=THE FACE’s guide to the American rap underground |url=https://theface.com/music/underground-internet-rap-rage-carti-yeat-ambient-plugg-iokera-terror-jerk-krushclub-lumi-athena |access-date=30 June 2025 |website=The Face |language=en-gb}}</ref><ref name=”:2″ /><ref name=”:3″ /><ref>{{Cite web |last=Zhang |first=Cat |date=2021-12-14 |title=The Year in Music on TikTok 2021 |url=https://pitchfork.com/features/article/tiktok-songs-2021/ |access-date=2025-07-27 |website=Pitchfork |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Matulaityte |first=Giedre |title=10 musicians who are shaping the underground scene on SoundCloud |url=https://www.altpress.com/soundcloud-underground-scene-artists/ |access-date=2025-07-28 |website=Alternative Press Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>

== See also ==

* [[Hyperpop]]

* [[Internet aesthetics]]

* [[Microgenre]]

* [[Sigilkore]]

== References ==