MEGHAN KARSYNRAP
June of this year saw headlines breaking news of the artists XXXtentacion ' s death. Xxtentacion who was only 20 was shot dead in a drive by shooting. The conversation that followed stirred a moral debate over social media. The 20 year old was known for being physically abusive, sexist and wrought with violent habits. The question that then spurred was: did he deserve to die? Twitter agressively campaigned against the young artist.
The underlying question that stands is: can we separate the art from the artist? Do only those with power and money escape scotch free? Can we let someone who advocates bad behavior continue to write music? Would our consumption of their art delegitimize a crime?
Xxxtentacion was an influential figure with a large teenage following. Often times the artists was inappropriate, he had been charged with various crimes over his career and even before he rose to fame. Parents can only hold a disfigured smile around the issue- they want better role models for their kids even though this often censors artists. For example, Teenage stars who try to transition to a more mature ideal tend to get backlash from society. There are many columns about Disney stars who went wild. Some artists like Rhianna even go out of their way to say that they shouldn ' t be considered role models.
So then is the purging of music the right way to deal with the situation? People forget that a song isn ' t just the artist ' s hard work. There are people behind the scenes working to market the song make videos and produce the song. XXXtentacion was removed from Spotify because his behavior clashed with their principles. While spotify retains it ' s morally right status consumers lose out on music and maybe this is the right solution? After all can we let someone who uses their mugshot as cover art for their music as though it ' s an achievement be allowed to get away with it?
In the past classical musicians like Wagner out rightly supported Hitler, the repercussions of which continue today. His Operas receive backlash in Israel. One can argue if it ' s really okay to listen to his music knowing that he was anti-semitic and racist? Beethoven was moody and dislikeable, Fritz Reiner was cruel and legendary Spanish guitarist Andrès Segovia would torment other guitarists who were not of his standards. We often say artists are Prima Donnas and should be allowed some eccentricity. But do we let such artists play over the silent ones. Can these artists hold a flame to good and honest artists? Shouldn ' t we be appraising the right behavior?
The consumption of art today is a little bit of a performance: it defines your identity and it compartmentalises your personality. The consumer has stake in the production as musicians want you to like what they ' ve made. Consumers are so important today that they can decide whose career they would like to end. So ideally the artists need to be on their best behaviors. But should we really have this power? Is this not limiting art when those with talent could help the culture grow vastly?
You, as a consumer, have to decide for yourself if you can consume art without context. Do you listen to music because of the artist or because of the art?
The Score Magazine
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