As of 2003, a new generation of DJs and promoters, including James Zabiela and Mylo, were emerging, determined to kickstart a more underground scene and there were signs of a renaissance in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit and other racially-mixed cities, as well as in Canada, Scandinavia, Scotland and Germany. For example, in 2004 the Montreal club Stereo celebrated its sixth year in operation and in 2005 The Guvernment in Toronto with Mark Oliver is celebrating its 9th anniversary. Stereo, opened in 1998, was modeled after the seminal New York City club Paradise Garage, focusing the experience on the quality of sound and lighting. The key to house music was re-invention. A willingness to steal or develop new styles and a low cost of entry encouraged innovation. The development of computers and the Internet play a critical role in this innovation. One need only to examine how house music has evolved over time to evaluate the effect computers and the Internet have had on house music and music in general.

In 2005 house music finds itself at a crossroads. The soulful black and latin-influenced sound that enjoyed popularity in the late '90s and early '00s has lost momentum and has been alienated from almost all generic and hit music radio stations. Audiences all over the world are fragmenting into different camps based around the old-guard house sound and a darker, more synth-driven sound influenced by '80s retro sentiment. Opinions are split on the new music that's trending in. Some consider it directionalism, and others see it as an entirely new genre of music, having more to do with techno, electonica and EBM music than house.

Just recently, Richard Daley, Mayor of Chicago proclaimed August 10, 2005 to be House Unity Day in Chicago last July 27, 2005 in celebration of House Music's 21st anniversary. DJ's like Frankie Knuckles, Marshall Jefferson, Paul Johnson and Mickey Oliver were cited among the many other DJ's who came together to celebrate the proclamation at the Summer Dance Series event organized by Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs.