Last week I wrote about patience, and I just had to share Thembisa’s excellent commentary on the common misconceptions found amongst new artists on being a star vs. being celebrity, which of course is extremely related to the idea of being patient.
“[...]A generation of creative people and recording artists [are] impaired by what I call ‘The Microwave Mentality’ in my book. If the Microwave Mentality had a Twitter page, it’s bio would say “gimme 30 seconds, and I’mma be HOT!” It consumes so many of today’s emerging artists that I spent a full chapter on it. Unbeknown to them, mediocrity is the order of the day, because it’s easier to get away with than ever. It has crippled the music business and polluted the broadcast industry. This mentality is the gateway to temporary celebrity. It is the anti-stardom! It makes anyone think they can just show up and become stars.”
What a great metaphor! The microwave mentality is widespread, and an artist’s ability to be successful is in large part determined on whether they can resist it. One controversial video posted on Perez Hilton might give you a huge temporary attention boost, but one great song will give you revenue forever. Tabloids shooting you on your date with some Hollywood starlet will make people pay attention, but a great album or live show could give you a long-term career.
(The above quote is part of a speech Thembisa gave at the #140 conference in London. Read it in full here. )