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Dear Shaun,
My brother puts Michael Jackson and R. Kelly on playlists for parties. He can separate the art from the artist but apparently I can’t. Please tell him that it is not okay to put those songs on. Should I stay on my high horse and go dance in the mud with him?
-Remix to Ignition
Dear Remix to Ignition,
Recently I was in Fort Myers, Florida for a wedding. There were a lot of intense “this is a different part of the country” things that happened. Right after we got there we went to the beach and within minutes of being there, the DJ at the outdoor bar and beach area stopped his Top 40 hits to just play the National Anthem. The entire beach within ear shot of these speakers stopped what they were doing and put their hands over their heart and stood still. It was this solemn and jarring happenstance. My friends and I did not know what to do. I don’t think I have respected the National Anthem playing since I was in middle school. We didn’t put our hands over our hearts, but we did stop still and practically play Patriotic Possum. When the song ended, the DJ went right back into The Eagles or whatever, the volleyball game continued and people continued drinking their frozen drinks. We all stayed still, unsure of how to proceed.
Eventually we ate some tacos, got a beer and put our feet into the Gulf of America (Mexico). I started to lean into the absurdity of the experience. I bought a “Gulf of America” shirt actually, which is full of typos and grammatical oddities. I also started saying “hell yeah, brother” to every man that walked by. No one found it ironic and no one kicked my ass. One of us wanted some more food and we sat down at a Margaritaville spin-off restaurant. Next door was an outdoor pool and DJ set-up. That DJ may have been playing your brother’s playlist. We heard Kanye, we heard R. Kelly, we heard Michael Jackson, we heard Chris Brown and if we stayed any longer we were convinced we were going to hear “Anthem of the German Republic” with a hip-hop beat. The vibes were immaculate in the pool, and absolutely sour at our table.
I really was envious of the people at the pool. I was envious of the DJ. I was envious of everyone enjoying themselves and not thinking beyond the base-level of happiness. As far as those folks sipping a daquiri while on a floaty flamingo, “Gold Digger” is just a song they loved to dance to in high school. They weren’t thinking about Kanye’s current behavior and antisemitism. They were thinking about their old crush and what they are up to now. That’s what music can do for us. They can bring back sensory memories and nostalgia. I was envious of their ignorance.
Let your brother play his music. He is ignorant. You know what, you should play it too. Let’s all stop having a conscience. Let’s ignore the brutalities of the world. Let’s reward those who don’t give a fuck. It seems to be working for a lot of folks. Why can’t we lean into it? These folks have victims and we shouldn’t care. We should just worry about having a good time, for us, right here right now. Let’s dance ‘til our feet bleed. Now, please remove your caps and stand for our National Anthem.
NEWS
Friday (tonight) I am on a show that is truly unique. The only way for me to really explain it is for you to just show up and watch. It is at The Hotel Vernon and it is called The Made Up Show. It is hosted by Nate Hanet and features a ton of Worcester-based talent. It is at 8PM.
Saturday we have Casey Crawford headlining at Hunchback Gallery. Casey has been seen on Jimmy Kimmel Live! and has a new album out, “Joke Writer.” If you love dumb one liners that are actually incredibly smart and self-deprecating you’re going to want to come to this show. Grab your tickets here!
Today's post presents a classic conundrum, Shaun. The "tipping point" was Michael Jackson's vast catalogue being flushed down the toilet by folks trying to maintain some sense of false virtue. I think it's less about the music or artistic body of work, and more about how eager folks are to judge. Your last paragraph of advice for Remix to Ignition ("Let your brother.....) is spot on. There's eight billion people on earth and a similar number that don't give a shit about what you think.