Music Banter - View Single Post

Toxic Fame · 11-24-2010, 04:04 AM

(feel free to add your own)

Mine is, when musicians say they don't care what other people think of their music, do you believe them? Or do you think it's just a front, a pretence that says “I don't care because caring about what other people think is weak and a sign of insecurity, etc”. Doesn't the whole indifference attitude stem from rebel culture anyway?

I would posit, that the majority of musicians who take up playing an instrument or join a band, usually do so out of a basic desire to be liked by others. Self-expression stems from the very human desire to be liked on some level. We all seek acceptance, and we hate rejection. Now, it doesn't mean musicians all want to be rock stars, showered with adulation but all surely possess a basic desire to be liked by (certain) people, right? Most musicians do want to be liked by other people, and have their music enjoyed by others (even the smallest number of people) much like we all do in other areas of our lives.

I'm not denying that playing music can be a huge source of fun (it is fun), but why do you think musicians perceive it as fun? The reason humans like music at all in the first place, is because it played a pivotal function in our evolution; a vehicle for social bonding, mating, etc. Seriously, think of music back in primitive times; it was tribal drums and rhythms, it was about group solidarity and bringing people together. Fitting-in with the group and being liked by others was very important to people back then if you wanted to benefit from the group.

Even if you just play by yourself, in your bedroom/basement and tell noone you're a musician, you still enjoy music because the human brain is hardwired to find pleasure in musical patterns, organised sound and the opportunity to be creative. But it is hardwired this way for reasons that had to do with being liked by others, for mating purposes, etc.

So anyways, back to the question, whether bands really mean it when they say, they don't care what people think. Does that apply to people who like the band, or just people who don't like the band? Because if you're going to say you don't care what people think, you'd have to include everyone in this, no?

“We don't care what people think, we play for ourselves” ... yet, we still read reviews and take pride in the fact that people do enjoy our music....

Doesn't that betray their position of claiming to not care what people think?

11-24-2010, 04:04 AM	#1 (permalink)
Toxic Fame Groupie Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 10	Musician Statements (feel free to add your own) Mine is, when musicians say they don't care what other people think of their music, do you believe them? Or do you think it's just a front, a pretence that says “I don't care because caring about what other people think is weak and a sign of insecurity, etc”. Doesn't the whole indifference attitude stem from rebel culture anyway? I would posit, that the majority of musicians who take up playing an instrument or join a band, usually do so out of a basic desire to be liked by others. Self-expression stems from the very human desire to be liked on some level. We all seek acceptance, and we hate rejection. Now, it doesn't mean musicians all want to be rock stars, showered with adulation but all surely possess a basic desire to be liked by (certain) people, right? Most musicians do want to be liked by other people, and have their music enjoyed by others (even the smallest number of people) much like we all do in other areas of our lives. I'm not denying that playing music can be a huge source of fun (it is fun), but why do you think musicians perceive it as fun? The reason humans like music at all in the first place, is because it played a pivotal function in our evolution; a vehicle for social bonding, mating, etc. Seriously, think of music back in primitive times; it was tribal drums and rhythms, it was about group solidarity and bringing people together. Fitting-in with the group and being liked by others was very important to people back then if you wanted to benefit from the group. Even if you just play by yourself, in your bedroom/basement and tell noone you're a musician, you still enjoy music because the human brain is hardwired to find pleasure in musical patterns, organised sound and the opportunity to be creative. But it is hardwired this way for reasons that had to do with being liked by others, for mating purposes, etc. So anyways, back to the question, whether bands really mean it when they say, they don't care what people think. Does that apply to people who like the band, or just people who don't like the band? Because if you're going to say you don't care what people think, you'd have to include everyone in this, no? “We don't care what people think, we play for ourselves” ... yet, we still read reviews and take pride in the fact that people do enjoy our music.... Doesn't that betray their position of claiming to not care what people think?