It used to be that if you didn’t like something, you got to change the channel or walk away. Not anymore. Today’s electronic platforms give everyone a chance to unleash their inner critic. Harsh, rotten-to-the-core, “bashing as commentary” critiquing skills have become all the rage. Consider, for example, teenager Rebecca Black, the young lady (some of you have hot sauce in your pantry older than her) who recorded the recent viral sensation “Friday” that was recorded by ARK Music Factory. No profanity, no nudity and seemingly no animals were harmed during the audio or video taping of her song, yet this innocuous four minute video has received some of the most negative media coverage in history. Excuse me. Let me repeat that for those of you who couldn’t hear me: In. History.
How could a 13 year old girl become the center of such negative outpouring of emotion? Branding bunnies? Hurling bags of flaming fertilizer on the Whitehouse lawn? Putting tacks on the chairs of underpaid, under appreciated junior high school educators? No. Rebecca Black became the poster child of all things dark and evil because of viral music video that has currently received nearly 100 million hits. Wha? That’s it? Oh, I should explain it is because some folks didn’t care for the saturated sounds of Auto-Tune (seriously, someone, please shoot Auto-Tune and put it out of my misery); or despised the lyrics that were considered too silly by some; or simply felt that the overall video was kind of wacky. Because of a bubblegum pop music video the fresh-scrubbed teen who said she just wants to make music that is “appropriate and clean” has received tens of thousands of nasty comments on YouTube, hate mail and even death threats. Comments that should have been reserved for more heinous crimes, not the warbling of a girl who is about 5,000 days old who just wants to have fun.
It is so easy to tear down. It is the base form of expression and the one most often used by bullies. Stand on the playground and point out the shoes you don’t like or the hair that should be curlier or how stoooopid those girls are because they don’t think/act/walk/talk or believe like you. Put a little effort behind it and you’ll discover how truly difficult it is to try and raise someone up. Arduous, yes – but in the end, it’s worth it.
Don’t misunderstand me, as I think we’re all entitled to our opinions. You’ll find mine falling out of my head on a regular basis. So, I’m all about giving props to you if you want to announce to the world that you distrust the artistic intentions of some of the biggest, most philanthropic musicians performing today because of the way they dress or act (“She isn’t called Lady Behave Herself”, as Chris Rock said) or cheer on your favorite sitcom star no matter what crazy antics he chosen to engage in today, Sheening all over himself. You rock on as you enjoy your very own Thomas Jefferson moment in the sun. But, if you really don’t like something based on emotion? You know… pure and simple, by-way-of-your-bile-duct emotion? Kindly, move on. Press your lips into tiny little crackers and step away from the keyboard. You’re only hurting yourself. And quite possibly the gentle soul of someone who never meant to harm anyone on her way to kickin’ in the front seat, sittin’ in the back seat while figuring out which seat to take.
“Public opinion, I am sorry to say, will bear a great deal of nonsense. There is scarcely any absurdity so gross, whether in religion, politics, science or manner, which it will not bear.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson.
“Its name is Public Opinion. It is held in reverence. It settles everything. Some think it is the voice of God.” — Mark Twain
"…and she'll sing her song to anyone that comes along." Seven Years by Lee Alexander (sung by Norah Jones)
