You neatly captured something I've been struggling to articulate for the longest time. Thank you.

And in the same time, in my eyes "success" for true artists is NOT being recognised, fame, money, whatever. For me true success as an artist is in the act itself, if making art changes you, make you evolve as a human being, then this is a success. I see the classic success we think of as simply a byproduct, a metric saying how much you are able to fully express yourself; but not e reliable metric there are too many factors like marketing or others that plays a role in that byproduct.

It’s like people talking. Everyone’s got something to say, not everyone is trying to say something worthwhile, sometimes it’s just noise to fill a silence.

Definitely! The reality is that excellence is not something that can be identified by democratic procedures, because it takes skills to identify quality. Social media algorithms delegate to random dudes the power to determine what emerges, and lead to the total disaster that is now the mainstream. It's like making a pool of whether Einstein's theories are interesting or correct. That's why decades ago music was much more original, more well crafted, and more interesting.

The people who are really winning right now are the curators, theyve essentially become the new gatekeepers. They determine the taste and who gets to be seen bc their massive follow counts are the only way to reliably cut through that signal to noise ratio. Its probably still more of an open playing field right now than ever though

I’m just wondering what is “true artistry?”

I think about this often. Instead of gate keeping, what we need are shepards and concierges to help people develop their own critical analysis of art and music to their own tastes. Someone to uncover the diamonds in the rough. It’s what I miss most when personal blogs were at their peak.

It’s not a problem depending what you consider true artistry. The art you prefer to see will eventually shine through. You’ll find great art the same way we’ve done for ages, digging for that golden nugget of inspiration and transcendence through mountains of garbage. But again, some garbage is considered gold to certain people. The only gate keeping going on now comes from the end consumer. How much money are they willing to pay to own the art? Is it worth owning?

Nobody was listening to Van Gogh in his time, he was run out of several villages, a heretic. Who cares if MOMA or Spin Magazine ignores you? The new realty is that the world has become a kaleidoscope and as artists we should play now, freely. F*** the audience, fans and groupies. Art is for artists and music is for musicians. Just figure out how to pay rent and eat. Lights are optional.

That's why I make the art that I make, to hopefully raise the bar so that people can see that the light hasn't been forgotten, or traded in for a sense of belonging. I accept that I'm different, and will continue to struggle to be seen as long as I stay true to myself.