Things are always happening in this great big world of ours, every second, minute and hour of every day.
While most of the time these things have no correlation with each other, sometimes even the most unrelated subjects will spark a unique connection in one's mind.
While most of the time these things have no correlation with each other, sometimes even the most unrelated subjects will spark a unique connection in one's mind.
That's what happened to me over the past couple of weeks. First, the death of Robin Williams, then the news that Taylor Swift has left country to go pop.
Both stories had my brain thinking and rethinking about a myriad of things, but nothing that I put into print, until now.
It's safe to say that there are few people in this world who haven't heard the names Robin Williams and Taylor Swift.
Robin came zooming into our lives as alien Mork from the planet Ork; first on Happy Days, then in his own series, Mork & Mindy, with Pam Dawber.
Nearly 30 years later, Taylor grasped fame as a fresh faced 16 year-old singer, ready to take the country world by storm.
Comparing these two side by side, you might think they have little to nothing in common with each other, and for the most part you'd be right.
It's been said that Robin Williams was born to make people laugh; and it's a job he was excellent at doing. Laughter is what Robin was best known for in his life.
On the flip side, Williams' talent was so vast, he was able to play more serious characters in the movies, and still have viewers enthralled with his work; it's a rarity that few in his business have experienced. No one questioned if he was capable of being so diverse, it was just accepted that he was.
That's why, when it was reported Robin Williams had taken his own life, it didn't surprise me as much as the public's reaction to the news.
Despite the dramatic roles Williams has done, people still categorize him as a comedian, who happens to do some serious work as well.
More than one report I heard though, expressed surprise that Williams would have committed suicide, because he always seemed like such a happy guy. Every time I heard that, all I could think was, "that's what people saw on the outside, you don't know what was going on in his head".
In reality, most comedians are in the business as a form of self therapy. Their personal lives aren't that great, and being able to make fun, laugh, and have others laugh at the things a comedian says, helps ease the pain the person is feeling inside.
There have been so many stories of comedians, before Robin Williams, that have told of the sadness in their lives. Freddie Prinze, John Belushi, and John Candy are just a few who had life issues they dealt with through comedy; so why the surprise that they weren't happy in life?
Then there's Taylor Swift.
I'll be the first to admit, when Taylor hit the country music scene, I dismissed her as just a kid that would burn out quickly, or grow up and air her issues, like other artists had done.
The more she did, and the more control she had of what she did, and how she did it, the more I thought my first impression was correct.
However, as the years went by, and Swift matured, I came to discover that this girl is the real deal. I now believe she was given so much freedom early in her career, not because she was spoiled, but rather because someone had the foresight to see the true talent the girl has.
At the same time I was changing my mind, the naysayers were stepping forward to bash anything and everything Taylor has done in her short life. It's like they waited until she was an adult, and all the negativity began surfacing. It's to a point that it seems Swift can't even breath correctly in some peoples' opinions.
So when Taylor recently announced her next album will be pop, not country, it wasn't a big surprise that it caused an uproar.
Except for die-hard Taylor Swift fans, people began saying all kinds of mean things about Taylor and her decision, without knowing all the facts, (which is usually the case).
While Swift is a singer/songwriter and Robin Williams was a comedian/actor; this is where the two share common ground; with different reactions to that shared space.
Robin Williams was readily accepted as both a comedian and serious actor. While some critics may have doubted Williams' ability, they were few and far between. Whether age, or maturity, had anything to do with this, who knows, and it doesn't really matter. The fact is, Williams was given the opportunity to shine, and show the various facets of, at least his public life.
Taylor Swift has grown up in the public eye. From the age of 16, to almost 25 years old, the public has watched Swift grow and mature in her craft as well as her age.
Like any young adult, Taylor is still learning about herself and her likes and wants in this world. The difference for her though, she's done her growing up in front of the entire world. For some reason people seem to think, because of this, Swift should be different from others her age. She's consistently put down for behaving like a normal young adult. And now the change from country, to pop is being used as one more strike against her.
Country and pop have been crossing genres for decades now, so it surprises me that people are in such an uproar that Taylor is exploring that road.
Much like Robin Williams doing comedy and dramatic roles, why shouldn't Taylor Swift be able to explore different genres of music? It's not like it hasn't been done before. CMT Crossroads is a great example of mixing genres of music. Justin Moore's current single, "Home Sweet Home", is a cover of Motley Crue, and even features Vince Neil from the band.
In the recent past, country has warmly received artists like Kid Rock, Uncle Kracker, and Sheryl Crowe, as well as a number of actors and actresses throwing their hats into the country ring. If country can accept pop/rock artists into their genre, why do they not want to share their country artists with the pop/rock world? The logic that's supposedly behind this thinking escapes me.
And there it is, what has been swimming around in my mind the last couple of weeks. The thoughts and theories that I'm trying to sort out. So far, what I've come to conclude is this: What it boils down to is, all celebrities are just normal people like the rest of us. They have highs and lows; they get sick and have pain like the rest of us. They have varied interests, ideas, plans, etc., like the rest of us. The ONLY thing that separates celebrities from the rest of us is, more people know their names. Yes, each one of them had to have some kind of talent to make it as far as they have; far enough to be considered more than just a flash in the pan. They've survived longer than the 15 minutes of fame each of us dreams of, and they work to stay at that level.
The bottom line always returns to the same thing though; they're human. They make mistakes, they're vulnerable, maybe even more so than the rest of us. Why? Because they're living their lives for the world to see. Yes, fame was their choice; however, that doesn't mean they can be perfect 100% of the time. Instead, it means they tend to hide more and more of what's really going on inside themselves, good and bad.
So while the suicide of a beloved comedian, or the switch in genres of a young singer catches the public off guard, it really shouldn't; after all, even celebrities need normalcy in their lives.
All of this is still a huge mish-mash in my mind; it's not easy trying to put everything going on inside one's self in print, and convey it perfectly. After all, none of us can fully know what another thinks and feels; we'll never have all the answers we want as to why people do what they do.
For myself, this post is a way to set my thoughts free from my head. Thank you for taking the time to read it.
On the flip side, Williams' talent was so vast, he was able to play more serious characters in the movies, and still have viewers enthralled with his work; it's a rarity that few in his business have experienced. No one questioned if he was capable of being so diverse, it was just accepted that he was.
That's why, when it was reported Robin Williams had taken his own life, it didn't surprise me as much as the public's reaction to the news.
Despite the dramatic roles Williams has done, people still categorize him as a comedian, who happens to do some serious work as well.
More than one report I heard though, expressed surprise that Williams would have committed suicide, because he always seemed like such a happy guy. Every time I heard that, all I could think was, "that's what people saw on the outside, you don't know what was going on in his head".
In reality, most comedians are in the business as a form of self therapy. Their personal lives aren't that great, and being able to make fun, laugh, and have others laugh at the things a comedian says, helps ease the pain the person is feeling inside.
There have been so many stories of comedians, before Robin Williams, that have told of the sadness in their lives. Freddie Prinze, John Belushi, and John Candy are just a few who had life issues they dealt with through comedy; so why the surprise that they weren't happy in life?
I'll be the first to admit, when Taylor hit the country music scene, I dismissed her as just a kid that would burn out quickly, or grow up and air her issues, like other artists had done.
The more she did, and the more control she had of what she did, and how she did it, the more I thought my first impression was correct.
However, as the years went by, and Swift matured, I came to discover that this girl is the real deal. I now believe she was given so much freedom early in her career, not because she was spoiled, but rather because someone had the foresight to see the true talent the girl has.
At the same time I was changing my mind, the naysayers were stepping forward to bash anything and everything Taylor has done in her short life. It's like they waited until she was an adult, and all the negativity began surfacing. It's to a point that it seems Swift can't even breath correctly in some peoples' opinions.
So when Taylor recently announced her next album will be pop, not country, it wasn't a big surprise that it caused an uproar.
Except for die-hard Taylor Swift fans, people began saying all kinds of mean things about Taylor and her decision, without knowing all the facts, (which is usually the case).
While Swift is a singer/songwriter and Robin Williams was a comedian/actor; this is where the two share common ground; with different reactions to that shared space.
Taylor Swift has grown up in the public eye. From the age of 16, to almost 25 years old, the public has watched Swift grow and mature in her craft as well as her age.
Like any young adult, Taylor is still learning about herself and her likes and wants in this world. The difference for her though, she's done her growing up in front of the entire world. For some reason people seem to think, because of this, Swift should be different from others her age. She's consistently put down for behaving like a normal young adult. And now the change from country, to pop is being used as one more strike against her.
Country and pop have been crossing genres for decades now, so it surprises me that people are in such an uproar that Taylor is exploring that road.
Much like Robin Williams doing comedy and dramatic roles, why shouldn't Taylor Swift be able to explore different genres of music? It's not like it hasn't been done before. CMT Crossroads is a great example of mixing genres of music. Justin Moore's current single, "Home Sweet Home", is a cover of Motley Crue, and even features Vince Neil from the band.
In the recent past, country has warmly received artists like Kid Rock, Uncle Kracker, and Sheryl Crowe, as well as a number of actors and actresses throwing their hats into the country ring. If country can accept pop/rock artists into their genre, why do they not want to share their country artists with the pop/rock world? The logic that's supposedly behind this thinking escapes me.
And there it is, what has been swimming around in my mind the last couple of weeks. The thoughts and theories that I'm trying to sort out. So far, what I've come to conclude is this: What it boils down to is, all celebrities are just normal people like the rest of us. They have highs and lows; they get sick and have pain like the rest of us. They have varied interests, ideas, plans, etc., like the rest of us. The ONLY thing that separates celebrities from the rest of us is, more people know their names. Yes, each one of them had to have some kind of talent to make it as far as they have; far enough to be considered more than just a flash in the pan. They've survived longer than the 15 minutes of fame each of us dreams of, and they work to stay at that level.
The bottom line always returns to the same thing though; they're human. They make mistakes, they're vulnerable, maybe even more so than the rest of us. Why? Because they're living their lives for the world to see. Yes, fame was their choice; however, that doesn't mean they can be perfect 100% of the time. Instead, it means they tend to hide more and more of what's really going on inside themselves, good and bad.
So while the suicide of a beloved comedian, or the switch in genres of a young singer catches the public off guard, it really shouldn't; after all, even celebrities need normalcy in their lives.
All of this is still a huge mish-mash in my mind; it's not easy trying to put everything going on inside one's self in print, and convey it perfectly. After all, none of us can fully know what another thinks and feels; we'll never have all the answers we want as to why people do what they do.
For myself, this post is a way to set my thoughts free from my head. Thank you for taking the time to read it.
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