The role/burden of celebrity in protecting the general public’s suspension of disbelief is so fascinating to me. We demand cultural idols we can believe are perfection because then we don’t have to apply messy human morality to the larger industries that produced what we consume. And once we apply morality, we have to start questioning whether our consumption has helped feed something we consider evil. And that’s a really scary thing to just start thinking about. So instead, we demand they put on a performance of completely inhuman perfection while simultaneously stroking our necks promising this is who they really are. And, like Charli said, anyone who breaks that fantasy has the culture turned against them in an effort to preserve itself
this is so spot-on and such a smart take honestly. it's true cause corporations look to us consumers to inform them what to put out but it is easier to just blame an artist for being inauthentic than realise we played a role in creating that demand
I think deeper than chopping up hating celebrities to being a patriarchal issue, it’s a societal issue. Millions of Americans started off November without knowing where their next meal was going to be from. People can’t afford shit anymore, the country is run by billionaires, so yes, celebrity hate is thus a target of these frustrations. It’s exhausting to see celebrities walk red carpets, take lavish trips, and all the while people gotta commute an hour to their 9-5 job where they are getting paid in chump change. Just a thought 😭
I thought exactly this when I read that part of this post. While I agree that being a female popstar means that she has to deal with loads of bullsh*t coming at her as products of patriarchy, she is still a privileged person right now (as she herself admits) and maybe the main reason why people spew hate towards celebrities is because they themselves don't have these privileges -- and most celebrities today don't care about helping ordinary people reach justice in the system, despite the fact that they have an enormous platform to do that. In fact, today more and more celebs with growing platforms and influence just turn their backs on the state of the world completely, they say that they don't like to mix art and politics and continue to hoard money from the exact social groups they say they don't care about. Charli very well reminds herself in the essay that as a pop star she's a fantasy product that people are supposed to "consume", well I think that it'd benefit her a lot to look at the cultural impacts of brat (for instance) and how her hymns about "bumpin' that" came at the time most people couldn't/still cannot even afford the sort of hedonism she puts on the pedestal in this essay. Most people in the world cannot afford to go to her gigs at all, some cannot even afford to listen to music as such, and that's the fact. I appreciate her attempts to step outside the bubble, though. What she has to navigate isn't easy and I guess you can lose yourself along the journey before you begin to search for yourself again. I am afraid, though, that just the fact she's British originally won't save her from being blind to the actual structures which are oppressive but which she herself helps to feed...
Even if most can't afford her level of hedonism, they can still inhabit the fantasy-performance that she has created as an artist, and have fun watching it / supporting it.
Yeah, obviously people are misogynistic, but feel like its more frequently due to this… and also, there are so many talented artists out there, so it feels strange to me that a few popular artists are held up to such worship. People probably like to bitch about it to make sure they’re not the only ones who feel differently (eg is Taylor Swift good at writing lyrics? Arguably, sometimes. Does she come close to like half of the incredibly small artists you can find? Not at all. Is Beyonce confident and sexy as an artist and performer? Absolutely! Does she fit everyone’s tastes? Of course not, and it’s crazy people can’t really say ‘Not my personal thing’ without being viewed as odd).
I would love to see more celebrities take the MrBeast path, of spreading the wealth with others. Part of the problem is that people have a tendency to look a gift horse in a mouth and come up with reasons why MrBeast's giving is problematic. As if buying a yacht would've been better somehow. It makes no sense.
Maybe charli could address this problem by letting her fans vote on the target of her philanthropy somehow, perhaps by selecting a small focus group at random. Then if the general public gets cranky about her giving, her fans will naturally come to her defense, since they made the choice.
its not different that was already described at the dawn of modernity in the xvii century, thats the point of classical literature, helping you survive fakeness and your own ego
The reason people resent celebrities is because Hollywood is a trillion dollar industry that is characterized by violent consumption, destruction of the planet, and political propaganda to pacify the masses. Meanwhile our world is experiencing ecocide, genocide, mass destruction, endless wars, villages filled with plastic and clothes from American consumption, poverty, and things most celebrities never think about or even know about because you are often pawns (and often happy to be pawns) for capitalism and colonialism.
thank u lol. obviously YES misogyny plays a role, and not a small one, in peoples resentment and/or disdain for female celebrities. but i feel like this piece completely ignores the even larger reason behind that resentment, which comes down to growing socioeconomic inequality and an exhaustion with late stage capitalism
Yeah, I was with her until the second to last paragraph about connecting moral responsibility and fame. With all of the looming catastrophes, a celebrity has something that the people who really care about these issues almost never have - a platform with people who care about what you say. To choose to portray hedonism and consumption in these circumstances is interesting.
I completely disagree with this-with great wealth (which I think is the underlying issue here) comes great responsibility. People are really sick of very rich people acting like the rules don't apply to them-mostly because they don't-and as such are looking for some evidence that the individual to whom much has been given understands that. Extremely wealthy adult artists behaving like unmoored juveniles-or worse, like destructive junkies-is a huge turn off now, and I suspect, in this modern gilded era of robber barons will continue to be so.
I appreciate you as an artist, I am so interested in reading thoughts of someone living the life of a pop star, it makes it as close to imagining that life as it gets.
However, I think the rage and anger you speak of are not a product of merely patriarchal misogyny, even when I agree that we are trained to hate women, to hate ourselves, to never be able to escape our internalized male surveyor. The underlying issue, I believe, is as per usual, the dystopian, capitalistic world we live in. The life of a pop star is a dream I think most of us are sold as children (speaking as a Gen Z, but I'm sure it applies to all generations), whilst, completely unaware, we still carry hope to dream big and imagine a life for ourselves we deem possible. As we grow up, the system is working against us and we begin to realize it. The vast vast vast majority of us have either given up on dreaming of becoming pop stars, famous painters, Hollywood cinematographers, poets, fashion designers, a long time ago. It isn't a matter of disinterest, nor a lack of talent, or love for the art. Nor does one who loves the art feel bored creating ; creating is like gold for the artist. I personally know so many talented artists, of various media, some are parents, some are grandparents, they never made a living out of art, even though they've been continuously pursuing it.
It's a matter of lack of time, resources!!! and most of all luck. Capitalism sells the dream of success to fuel the worker. Anyone can get famous, anyone can be rich. Anyone can be appreciated enough to be personally invited to gallery openings and renowned restaurants, if they work hard enough (or put/risk the money) (,or if they are child prodigies!). But this is so far from the truth, even if the algorithm gets you famous overnight, it's luck, too, it doesn't necessarily equal the work you've put in. And besides, how much work can you put in, in your art, your well-being AND in your social media presence, WHILE working hard to support yourself and your loved ones? The math isn't mathing. I'm not saying it's impossible, my favourite artists literally gained population from tiktok and are now rightfully winning awards. But it costs money to make art, it is a risk, not many of us are willing to take when what's at stake is paying rent, bills and food. And if it isn't money, it is very very very very very very very good luck.
So, maybe an aspect of the rage isn't personal. It IS uncalled for and an anti-human behaviour I condemn. But we are experiencing dystopian times. I humble myself for my everyday anxieties by reminding myself how my struggling everyday life is so many people's ideal life, as so many are suffering, genocides and wars going on as we're all having online discussions on a Friday.
My friends and I are considered middle class in my European! country and we think twice when ordering a second beer. We can't afford concerts to see our favourite artists or the Ticketmaster war, we work so much just to get by and watch our mental health shutter as we watch our dreams turn to pieces, because we have to abandon them. To watch your youth, the potential you've managed to work up to, become something you cannot afford to achieve. All the while, while the media that's pushed to us is celeb fued, yellow page shit, pointless Temu hauls, Elon Musk becoming a trillionaire (the autocorrect on my browser doesn't even recognize this word). We follow celebrities and pop star's accounts to take a glimpse at the sweet life of LIVING ( and! BEING RICH!) BY DOING WHAT YOU LOVE, we witness the parties and the dresses and the drugs and the friendships with cool admirable people, and pr packages with and abundance of shit, luxurious hotels and plates that cost more than my rent. And we call that entertainment, rewind time on the couch after work. Oh, and time, time to live your life, to do your art, to connect with your friends, to not go insane or depressed. I'm sorry if it sounds harsh, but a system that allows this much inequality between classes is dystopian, it isn't merely personal, even as it is patriarchal and sexist.
i know charli doesn't care about astrology (v chic imo) BUT MY GOD her gemini mars. my favorite writerly placement ever of all time. lily allen has this placement too. loved this pov of the pop star life from a human being who isn't afraid to openly discuss ~the machine~
Being a popstar is so freaking weird because you can’t complain about the life you’ve been given because there are so many beautiful perks, but you also feel super isolated and alone to your community because nobody understands you besides your peers and the team around you.
I wonder if any of that has to do with the human perception of image and if a medium like long form writing allows people to see your intentions in your heart and brain more clearly.
I also like that you brought up the green rooms because 99% of the time they’re fucking gross!
“I’ve always wondered why someone else’s success triggers such rage and anger in certain people and I think it probably all boils down to the fact that the patriarchal society we unfortunately live in has successfully brainwashed us all.”
Maybe this is why so many people think poorly of pop stars, because they see everything through a lens of imaginative envy and jealousy. The repercussions of a capitalist society are represented tenfold by the superimposed power available to them for simply making music. Thus, success is achieved through the enslavement of others. As Billy Eilish once said, “no one should be a billionaire” but realistically, no one should earn millions for singing some songs. No one should win 20 million at the lottery while a vast majority of the population is unable to feed themselves. We all know this, but somehow we can look past it when we are truly entertained. The truth is, the new pop stars are not that entertaining. We used to have pop stars that were excelling at their jobs. Micheal Jackson, Prince, Madonna… they all stood for something real and they were all creative geniuses.
Charli is one of the few celebs I want to see on this app. You can tell she puts her art first, and I deeply respect her for it.
Giiirl, i need to read a book written by you. Thanks for being real <3
Please write a book
Instant collector item
"memoirs of a party girl"
We NEED a book! Please! Yes!
I would love to share Songs of Civilization with you.
https://albywriting.substack.com/p/born-a-musician
Don’t tempt her…(in a good way)
I wrote a novel-in-dialogue for you about Raymin and his manager.
https://albywriting.substack.com/p/born-a-musician
Books take time
Good ones anyway
I'm very happy to share my novels-in-dialogue with you. It's hilarious.
UMUT
Can I tell you what's on my mind?
The singer gave her a suggestive smile. He didn’t want to confront anyone straight away like this.
He tried to dodge fate with one word.
RAYMIN
Depends.
UMUT
Are you ever going to come back to Kipchakstan?
RAYMIN
I AM in Kipchakstan.
https://albywriting.substack.com/p/born-a-musician
The role/burden of celebrity in protecting the general public’s suspension of disbelief is so fascinating to me. We demand cultural idols we can believe are perfection because then we don’t have to apply messy human morality to the larger industries that produced what we consume. And once we apply morality, we have to start questioning whether our consumption has helped feed something we consider evil. And that’s a really scary thing to just start thinking about. So instead, we demand they put on a performance of completely inhuman perfection while simultaneously stroking our necks promising this is who they really are. And, like Charli said, anyone who breaks that fantasy has the culture turned against them in an effort to preserve itself
this is so spot-on and such a smart take honestly. it's true cause corporations look to us consumers to inform them what to put out but it is easier to just blame an artist for being inauthentic than realise we played a role in creating that demand
« Here we are now entertain us » Kurt Cobain
agreed
I think deeper than chopping up hating celebrities to being a patriarchal issue, it’s a societal issue. Millions of Americans started off November without knowing where their next meal was going to be from. People can’t afford shit anymore, the country is run by billionaires, so yes, celebrity hate is thus a target of these frustrations. It’s exhausting to see celebrities walk red carpets, take lavish trips, and all the while people gotta commute an hour to their 9-5 job where they are getting paid in chump change. Just a thought 😭
I thought exactly this when I read that part of this post. While I agree that being a female popstar means that she has to deal with loads of bullsh*t coming at her as products of patriarchy, she is still a privileged person right now (as she herself admits) and maybe the main reason why people spew hate towards celebrities is because they themselves don't have these privileges -- and most celebrities today don't care about helping ordinary people reach justice in the system, despite the fact that they have an enormous platform to do that. In fact, today more and more celebs with growing platforms and influence just turn their backs on the state of the world completely, they say that they don't like to mix art and politics and continue to hoard money from the exact social groups they say they don't care about. Charli very well reminds herself in the essay that as a pop star she's a fantasy product that people are supposed to "consume", well I think that it'd benefit her a lot to look at the cultural impacts of brat (for instance) and how her hymns about "bumpin' that" came at the time most people couldn't/still cannot even afford the sort of hedonism she puts on the pedestal in this essay. Most people in the world cannot afford to go to her gigs at all, some cannot even afford to listen to music as such, and that's the fact. I appreciate her attempts to step outside the bubble, though. What she has to navigate isn't easy and I guess you can lose yourself along the journey before you begin to search for yourself again. I am afraid, though, that just the fact she's British originally won't save her from being blind to the actual structures which are oppressive but which she herself helps to feed...
Even if most can't afford her level of hedonism, they can still inhabit the fantasy-performance that she has created as an artist, and have fun watching it / supporting it.
Yeah, obviously people are misogynistic, but feel like its more frequently due to this… and also, there are so many talented artists out there, so it feels strange to me that a few popular artists are held up to such worship. People probably like to bitch about it to make sure they’re not the only ones who feel differently (eg is Taylor Swift good at writing lyrics? Arguably, sometimes. Does she come close to like half of the incredibly small artists you can find? Not at all. Is Beyonce confident and sexy as an artist and performer? Absolutely! Does she fit everyone’s tastes? Of course not, and it’s crazy people can’t really say ‘Not my personal thing’ without being viewed as odd).
I would love to see more celebrities take the MrBeast path, of spreading the wealth with others. Part of the problem is that people have a tendency to look a gift horse in a mouth and come up with reasons why MrBeast's giving is problematic. As if buying a yacht would've been better somehow. It makes no sense.
Maybe charli could address this problem by letting her fans vote on the target of her philanthropy somehow, perhaps by selecting a small focus group at random. Then if the general public gets cranky about her giving, her fans will naturally come to her defense, since they made the choice.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RulfDhT8UyU
if any celeb is gonna have a substack, I'm so glad it's charli. Loved this
I wonder how much harder it is these days to be a pop star with social media and parasocial fans.
i feel like they get to control the narrative a little more versus a million tabloid magazines making stuff up about you
True!
its not different that was already described at the dawn of modernity in the xvii century, thats the point of classical literature, helping you survive fakeness and your own ego
The reason people resent celebrities is because Hollywood is a trillion dollar industry that is characterized by violent consumption, destruction of the planet, and political propaganda to pacify the masses. Meanwhile our world is experiencing ecocide, genocide, mass destruction, endless wars, villages filled with plastic and clothes from American consumption, poverty, and things most celebrities never think about or even know about because you are often pawns (and often happy to be pawns) for capitalism and colonialism.
thank u lol. obviously YES misogyny plays a role, and not a small one, in peoples resentment and/or disdain for female celebrities. but i feel like this piece completely ignores the even larger reason behind that resentment, which comes down to growing socioeconomic inequality and an exhaustion with late stage capitalism
this.. we live in such dystopian times
Yeah, I was with her until the second to last paragraph about connecting moral responsibility and fame. With all of the looming catastrophes, a celebrity has something that the people who really care about these issues almost never have - a platform with people who care about what you say. To choose to portray hedonism and consumption in these circumstances is interesting.
Literally lol it has more to do with this and less of trying to put women in a box (tho that can be true)
I completely disagree with this-with great wealth (which I think is the underlying issue here) comes great responsibility. People are really sick of very rich people acting like the rules don't apply to them-mostly because they don't-and as such are looking for some evidence that the individual to whom much has been given understands that. Extremely wealthy adult artists behaving like unmoored juveniles-or worse, like destructive junkies-is a huge turn off now, and I suspect, in this modern gilded era of robber barons will continue to be so.
I appreciate you as an artist, I am so interested in reading thoughts of someone living the life of a pop star, it makes it as close to imagining that life as it gets.
However, I think the rage and anger you speak of are not a product of merely patriarchal misogyny, even when I agree that we are trained to hate women, to hate ourselves, to never be able to escape our internalized male surveyor. The underlying issue, I believe, is as per usual, the dystopian, capitalistic world we live in. The life of a pop star is a dream I think most of us are sold as children (speaking as a Gen Z, but I'm sure it applies to all generations), whilst, completely unaware, we still carry hope to dream big and imagine a life for ourselves we deem possible. As we grow up, the system is working against us and we begin to realize it. The vast vast vast majority of us have either given up on dreaming of becoming pop stars, famous painters, Hollywood cinematographers, poets, fashion designers, a long time ago. It isn't a matter of disinterest, nor a lack of talent, or love for the art. Nor does one who loves the art feel bored creating ; creating is like gold for the artist. I personally know so many talented artists, of various media, some are parents, some are grandparents, they never made a living out of art, even though they've been continuously pursuing it.
It's a matter of lack of time, resources!!! and most of all luck. Capitalism sells the dream of success to fuel the worker. Anyone can get famous, anyone can be rich. Anyone can be appreciated enough to be personally invited to gallery openings and renowned restaurants, if they work hard enough (or put/risk the money) (,or if they are child prodigies!). But this is so far from the truth, even if the algorithm gets you famous overnight, it's luck, too, it doesn't necessarily equal the work you've put in. And besides, how much work can you put in, in your art, your well-being AND in your social media presence, WHILE working hard to support yourself and your loved ones? The math isn't mathing. I'm not saying it's impossible, my favourite artists literally gained population from tiktok and are now rightfully winning awards. But it costs money to make art, it is a risk, not many of us are willing to take when what's at stake is paying rent, bills and food. And if it isn't money, it is very very very very very very very good luck.
So, maybe an aspect of the rage isn't personal. It IS uncalled for and an anti-human behaviour I condemn. But we are experiencing dystopian times. I humble myself for my everyday anxieties by reminding myself how my struggling everyday life is so many people's ideal life, as so many are suffering, genocides and wars going on as we're all having online discussions on a Friday.
My friends and I are considered middle class in my European! country and we think twice when ordering a second beer. We can't afford concerts to see our favourite artists or the Ticketmaster war, we work so much just to get by and watch our mental health shutter as we watch our dreams turn to pieces, because we have to abandon them. To watch your youth, the potential you've managed to work up to, become something you cannot afford to achieve. All the while, while the media that's pushed to us is celeb fued, yellow page shit, pointless Temu hauls, Elon Musk becoming a trillionaire (the autocorrect on my browser doesn't even recognize this word). We follow celebrities and pop star's accounts to take a glimpse at the sweet life of LIVING ( and! BEING RICH!) BY DOING WHAT YOU LOVE, we witness the parties and the dresses and the drugs and the friendships with cool admirable people, and pr packages with and abundance of shit, luxurious hotels and plates that cost more than my rent. And we call that entertainment, rewind time on the couch after work. Oh, and time, time to live your life, to do your art, to connect with your friends, to not go insane or depressed. I'm sorry if it sounds harsh, but a system that allows this much inequality between classes is dystopian, it isn't merely personal, even as it is patriarchal and sexist.
I got carried away, but i think as many others i have strong feelings :'))
happy i managed to steal the time to type this all out
well put.
I think maybe we all feel it in some form, if we’re struggling financially. But some people turn their envy into hate and rage.
i literally drop anything to read ur posts… feels funny in my head i hear ur voice when i read… and u slamming the laptop once i finish.
i know charli doesn't care about astrology (v chic imo) BUT MY GOD her gemini mars. my favorite writerly placement ever of all time. lily allen has this placement too. loved this pov of the pop star life from a human being who isn't afraid to openly discuss ~the machine~
she doesnt care about astrólogo because she is a scientific minded person, thats part of why she is smart
i think its just cuz she's a leo tbqh
It’s so interesting that she has all these strong placements in Leo (sun, mercury, venus) … but then her Chiron is right there too. What a legend.
As another Leo Sun / Gemini Mars we don’t talk we give soliloquies. Sprinting yappers
Being a popstar is so freaking weird because you can’t complain about the life you’ve been given because there are so many beautiful perks, but you also feel super isolated and alone to your community because nobody understands you besides your peers and the team around you.
I wonder if any of that has to do with the human perception of image and if a medium like long form writing allows people to see your intentions in your heart and brain more clearly.
I also like that you brought up the green rooms because 99% of the time they’re fucking gross!
This is a really articulate and well put piece of writing about something incredibly unexplored and fascinating.
Thank you for writing this, and starting this whole substack; I look forward to reading future outpit
charli is THE MOMENT.
Damn I’m early
Litt
“I’ve always wondered why someone else’s success triggers such rage and anger in certain people and I think it probably all boils down to the fact that the patriarchal society we unfortunately live in has successfully brainwashed us all.”
Maybe this is why so many people think poorly of pop stars, because they see everything through a lens of imaginative envy and jealousy. The repercussions of a capitalist society are represented tenfold by the superimposed power available to them for simply making music. Thus, success is achieved through the enslavement of others. As Billy Eilish once said, “no one should be a billionaire” but realistically, no one should earn millions for singing some songs. No one should win 20 million at the lottery while a vast majority of the population is unable to feed themselves. We all know this, but somehow we can look past it when we are truly entertained. The truth is, the new pop stars are not that entertaining. We used to have pop stars that were excelling at their jobs. Micheal Jackson, Prince, Madonna… they all stood for something real and they were all creative geniuses.