[ The debut of "The Steady" ]
My new music and culture column for KC Metropolis debuted this morning. Take a look:
"The Steady" chronicles the lives of working performers
By Vi Tran Tue, Jun 2, 2009
Imagine for a moment that you are a professional performing artist: an actor, dancer or musician.
Not a superstar, mind you, just a working-class artist who makes a significant portion of his or her income through their craft. Discard fantasies of stardom, riches and sordid tabloid romances. Those are the fruits of celebrity, not artistry, and while the two aren't mutually exclusive, there is a distinct difference. The greedy fame-chaser seeks celebrity; the artist intrinsically pursues his or her craft.
So for our purposes, let's say you're just an artist, plain and simple. In that case, there are days when you wake up and look yourself in the mirror and think:
This is the life I've chosen for myself.
Some days, during a dry spell, after pulling a bartending double to make this month's rent, it's an exhausted rueful look. Other mornings, a triumphant grin stares back at you because you know you've got gigs booked months in advance. Nevertheless, the phrase remains the same, reminding you that the artist's journey is littered with both humiliating disappointments and intoxicating glory.
Read the entire column at KCMetropolis.org
"The Steady" chronicles the lives of working performers
By Vi Tran Tue, Jun 2, 2009
Imagine for a moment that you are a professional performing artist: an actor, dancer or musician.
Not a superstar, mind you, just a working-class artist who makes a significant portion of his or her income through their craft. Discard fantasies of stardom, riches and sordid tabloid romances. Those are the fruits of celebrity, not artistry, and while the two aren't mutually exclusive, there is a distinct difference. The greedy fame-chaser seeks celebrity; the artist intrinsically pursues his or her craft.
So for our purposes, let's say you're just an artist, plain and simple. In that case, there are days when you wake up and look yourself in the mirror and think:
This is the life I've chosen for myself.
Some days, during a dry spell, after pulling a bartending double to make this month's rent, it's an exhausted rueful look. Other mornings, a triumphant grin stares back at you because you know you've got gigs booked months in advance. Nevertheless, the phrase remains the same, reminding you that the artist's journey is littered with both humiliating disappointments and intoxicating glory.
Read the entire column at KCMetropolis.org