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| "Most of my lyrics are contradictions. I'll write a few sincere lines, and then I'll have to make fun of [them]." |
He replied: "Yes. But stop qualifying yourself."
In other words, if someone asks to read your writing, say "yes"...and then stop talking.
It was a revelation. What I had thought of as a witty introduction to my writing was actually a neon sign that flashed, "I suck." Actually, it flashed, "I kinda, sorta, think that maybe I could possibly be an OK writer, but I'm probably not, and anyway, if you hate it, I won't judge you, because it's not good, and I really, really want you to like it, but I doubt you will, but..."
Being an artist takes balls. It's not hard work the way paving streets or waiting tables or tilling soil is hard work, but it is hard. Great artists make it look as easy as breathing. Even the earliest Picasso looks effortless, Bjork sails through impossible vocal arrangements without breaking a sweat, and Tom Waits was obviously born under some sort of lucky star that prevents him from ever doing anything that doesn't work.
But it's not easy. It takes a lifetime of work to be great. Many people are born talented, but greatness...that's something else entirely. And I guarantee you that nobody great ever walked around saying, "Well, it's kinda OK, I guess. You might like it. Or you could hate it. Or, well, maybe..."
Or, if they did, then they lived and died in obscurity. Emily Dickinson comes immediately to mind. I wonder how she spoke of her writing? Or Vincent van Gogh.
Some artists will lead you to believe that they think of themselves as mediocre, but don't buy it. Kurt Cobain may have derided Nirvana for playing 3-chord progressions, but he spent hours perfecting his sound, including his playing and his voice. Nothing about Nirvana's success was accidental or spontaneous.
It's not that self-deprecating humor is never charming. Sometimes it is. And many of us would rather err on the side of humor than be thought of as pretentious pricks. But no matter how witty you are, verbally eviscerating your work is always self-destructive. An artist who makes fun of his own songs is also making a mockery of his fans, even if he doesn't mean to. (Of course, in his case, he regularly mocked his fans, whom he didn't like. But that's really just another qualifier, isn't it?)
I think, in almost every case, qualifying is used as an insurance policy. If I say it first, then they can't hurt me with it. Right?
Unfortunately, it doesn't really work that way. When Cobain qualified himself, what he really did was shape the definition of his own work. "Simple" became "stupid" and "popular" became "inane." And there's no reason to do that. Simple + popular = classic, right? But by apologizing for the work in advance of criticism, instead of protecting himself and his work from that critique, he invited it. Hell, even HE thinks the songs are stupid and inane--I guess they must be. Or, if they're great, then maybe it's by accident. He wasn't a great musician, just a druggie who got a lucky break.
If you are a successful artist, people will line up to hate you and your work. It doesn't matter how great or new or popular or beautiful it is. In fact, the more successful you are, the hungrier they will be. It is impossible to pre-empt them. All you'll do is add fuel to a fire that is going to burn regardless.
As Stereo Console prepares to release its debut album, we switch from creation mode to promotion/marketing mode--and it's not a place I particularly want to be. But I believe in the project. I love it from start to finish. If nobody else in the world wants to listen to it, I will. On repeat.
Now all I have to do is unload a lifelong habit of qualifying so that I can promote it the way it deserves to be promoted.
Ready... Set......
-Lex
right on. i'm always annoyed when people think something like (your example) nirvana "just happens." that shit doesn't just happen, it's hard relentless fucking work.
ReplyDeleter.e.m. does this by dissing some of their own popular songs from their past, acting like the band is "above" playing them anymore. and you're right, they come off as total pricks.
no qualifying. i will work on that.