I didn’t really live through the 90’s as a culture consumer (born in 87) so I found Chuck Klosterman’s account of it a couple of years ago to be fascinating. He basically posits that alt culture creators were fundamentally anti-consumerist and could carve out a (paradoxically) upper-middle-class lifestyle by doing so. Pearl Jam taking on Ticketmaster, indie film production companies like Miramax, etc. By the 00’s, the idea of selling out, the idea of consumerism being worse than capitalism, this was all basically gone because of the internet and the rise of streaming. It was waiting to be turned into poptimism. Zoomers were born into this poptimism, but millennials basically created it, and neither one remembers what it was like to be a 90’s tastemaker.
Yeah I would even argue that the 90s anti-consumerism was off-putting to second wave Millennials in the '10s and with our current moment, the '90s dismissiveness is more attractive. I'm leaving a link that goes over parallels between Gen Z and Gen X. Enjoy! https://supculture.substack.com/p/gen-z-most-hated-generation-since
The Sophocles line reminds me that sometimes I wonder: What distinguishes "biography" from "celebrity gossip"? The historical impact of the subject? I wince at "news" about the private lives of pop stars, but how much do we need to know about JD Salinger's private life or Philip Roth's to appreciate or understand what they did -- or about Lincoln's or JFK's?
Long live local scenes. We are probably already at the point of amazing new albums from the vaporwave, hyperpop, and allied genres being debuted at listening parties in the living rooms of the composers' friends.
we don't have a lot of widely shared touchstone celebrities anymore. Taylor Swift might be the last one, forever, or at least for a very long time, someone hundreds of millions of people adore together for similar reasons, and I absolutely think that she peaked in the last year - there is nowhere to go but down from the Eras tour having the economic impact of a small country. And it is an indication of how our culture will evolve in the post-2020 world. We won't really understand what changed fully for another few years, like with 9/11, but things have twisted (and already were in the midst of twisting). I don't think celebrity will be a popular word 20 years from now.
When I was a cranky teen dickhead, I decided I'd go for uncool musicians concerned with mastering a tradition and adding to it. And I've never had any regrets
I didn’t really live through the 90’s as a culture consumer (born in 87) so I found Chuck Klosterman’s account of it a couple of years ago to be fascinating. He basically posits that alt culture creators were fundamentally anti-consumerist and could carve out a (paradoxically) upper-middle-class lifestyle by doing so. Pearl Jam taking on Ticketmaster, indie film production companies like Miramax, etc. By the 00’s, the idea of selling out, the idea of consumerism being worse than capitalism, this was all basically gone because of the internet and the rise of streaming. It was waiting to be turned into poptimism. Zoomers were born into this poptimism, but millennials basically created it, and neither one remembers what it was like to be a 90’s tastemaker.
Yeah I would even argue that the 90s anti-consumerism was off-putting to second wave Millennials in the '10s and with our current moment, the '90s dismissiveness is more attractive. I'm leaving a link that goes over parallels between Gen Z and Gen X. Enjoy! https://supculture.substack.com/p/gen-z-most-hated-generation-since
FACTS
The Sophocles line reminds me that sometimes I wonder: What distinguishes "biography" from "celebrity gossip"? The historical impact of the subject? I wince at "news" about the private lives of pop stars, but how much do we need to know about JD Salinger's private life or Philip Roth's to appreciate or understand what they did -- or about Lincoln's or JFK's?
Yeah whereas nowadays the biography is the work
Long live local scenes. We are probably already at the point of amazing new albums from the vaporwave, hyperpop, and allied genres being debuted at listening parties in the living rooms of the composers' friends.
we don't have a lot of widely shared touchstone celebrities anymore. Taylor Swift might be the last one, forever, or at least for a very long time, someone hundreds of millions of people adore together for similar reasons, and I absolutely think that she peaked in the last year - there is nowhere to go but down from the Eras tour having the economic impact of a small country. And it is an indication of how our culture will evolve in the post-2020 world. We won't really understand what changed fully for another few years, like with 9/11, but things have twisted (and already were in the midst of twisting). I don't think celebrity will be a popular word 20 years from now.
When I was a cranky teen dickhead, I decided I'd go for uncool musicians concerned with mastering a tradition and adding to it. And I've never had any regrets
As a gen Xer ( 47 ) I grew up with Kurt telling me how lame celebrity was. He was the first and last celeb I listened to.
I never understood it or got into it.
But its always there circling ... hard to get away from it.
Artists YES. CREATIVITY !!!
Now we have Celeb worship turned into a way of life.
SAD.
CREATE !!!
Im very glad to meet fellow ARTISTS here on Substack. And I haven't seen any dipshit Celebs here...
I guess the written word is not a medium for them.
Great Article :)
Thanks. Just wait though. They got to podcasting, no?