Yesterday’s class included an album presentation on K-Pop band EXO. I listened to the students convey a narrative about how hard it is for these young wannabe stars. They seemed to feel sorry for them and for mental health issues that come up for some of them. Seemed like no one else in the class was raising another view so I interrupted and tried to gently point out other young people also have these issues and without any incentive at the end of the day like becoming rich and famous. They work janitor graveyard shifts or at McDonalds etc., could they be even more anguished and anxiety riddled trying to get by on minimum wage? How much is this about entertainment and capitalism and how much is it about original music making? There’s a line of thought in the R.Murray Schafer materials about “disruption” and I like that word but my attempt to disrupt them didn’t last long. By the end it seemed everyone was still feeling sorry for these poor stars that can dance and rap and fantastically use a blow dryer.
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My taller half was just saying he’d read where people are feeling so much sympathy for the isolation of today’s youth due to covid19, and I thought Sheesh, what if they didn’t have the internet, hundreds of TV channels, smartphones (or phones at all), radios, enough food, safe shelter, and so on? They are better situated in these times than young people in any times facing worse things — war, dirty thirties, etc. — have ever been. Granted, our youth haven’t lived through hard times and are woefully unprepared. But my sympathies lie elsewhere. -Kate