Since first appearing as a stylistic outgrowth of the D.C. hardcore scene, emo has expanded across the world and to every corner of the internet. Like the genre’s often pubescent audience, this emergence has come with its own growing pains. For every twinkly guitar riff, therapeutic sing along, and cathartic breakdown there is an equally noisy discourse on the genre’s relationship to commercialization, gender, sexuality, race, depression, DIY cultures, etc.,. In fact, to even evoke the term “emo” draws raised pitchforks from both early fans who thought the term was redundant at best and akin to placing a target on one’s back at worst and modern fans who preciously defend the borders of what constitutes “real emo” with an almost nationalistic fervor. In the same way that trends in the genre have swayed between the popular and the underground, the contemplative and the impulsive, and the artisanal and the visceral so to have debates shifted to favor specific philosophic, aesthetic, and moral systems. Running parallel to the genre’s splintering into a number of multifaceted discourses is a small but growing body of literature on the genre, uniting scholars from a number of disciplines together to investigate the genre (Williams 2007, Peters 2010, Carillo-Vincent 2013, De Bosie 2014, Fathallah 2020, 2021, Mack 2021, DiPiero 2023, Chandrasekhar forthcoming). This literature challenges us to think about how emo fans and artists navigate complex performances of identity, affectivity, and conformity against the backdrop of 40 years of social change. Emo comments on, challenges, and conforms to a number of social, cultural, and musical discourses that require a detailed engagement with theoretical frameworks, emo cultures, and the music itself.
In a hope to expand this body of literature and build a robust network of emo scholars, we are proud to announce “A Conference…but it’s Midwest Emo,” what we believe to be the first conference dedicated to the study of emo music. We invite scholars of all fields and disciplines to submit proposals of up to 500 words that contend with any aspect of emo music, emo cultures, as well as emo-adjacent genres such as screamo, post-hardcore, pop-punk, etc.,. Undergraduates and non-academics are also encouraged to apply. While we will accommodate virtual attendance, we expect all presentations to be in person. Pending funding, we hope to make some travel grants available. Proposals are due on January 15th. Proposals should be sent to emocon2026@gmail.com. Those who submit abstracts will be notified of the decision on February 1st. The conference will be hosted by Washington University in Saint Louis on April 11th, 2026. Please follow @emocon2026 on Instagram for more conference updates.
The conference will feature academic talks, two keynote talks, and a public performance at a local venue. The first keynote will come from Steven Lamos. A professor of Writing and Rhetoric at the University of Colorado-Boulder, Dr. Lamos is also the drummer for the seminal second-wave emo band American Football. Lamos’ current book project is tentatively titled Resonant Rhythms: Drumming, Writing, and Professing a Literate Life. It explores intersections between his academic work and his work as the drummer/trumpet player for American Football. The second keynote will feature a talk from author Dan Ozzi. Both Ozzi’s book Sellout: The Major Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore (1994-2007) (Day Street Books 2021) and the co-authored Fahrenheit-182: A Memoir (Day Street Books 2025) with Blink-182 bassist/vocalist Mark Hoppus have provided numerous insider insights about the popularization of emo and pop-punk in the late 90s and early 2000s.