Art saves the world.
I honestly believe that. Politics divide people but art unites them.
“That’s one of the great things about music. You can sing a song to 85,000 people and they’ll sing it back for 85,000 different reasons.” – Dave Grohl
Rock stars can get up on stage and wave their arms, and the audience will wave back. That’s real power and influence. Politicians, world leaders and corporate executives can rack their brains trying to motivate, influence and rally their troops with inspiring words and promising visions. But people seek arts, from music to movies, without being told to do so, and willfully engage and follow.
Why is that?
It’s because art connects and validates. Instead of solving problems, art simply says I feel you, I hear you, I am with you where you’re at. It reminds us that we are not alone. There was this artist somewhere in time who injected his/her/their feelings into the art, and as an audience you are now connecting to it.
Being heard and validated is apparently among the most basic and strongest need humans have. Without listening, even the most astute solutions have a whole lot of convincing to do to be received. But humans trust sources that first listen and validate them. John Lennon was a very flawed human being but when he sang “Imagine” we bought into his vision.
I was so wrong for many years, trying to prove and demonstrate that I had something impressive and marketable, instead of making honest art. Nevertheless, I am an artist, a human with hard-wired impulse and need to create things that express who I am. I am learning to surrender and just make art. Without worrying whether it’s going to appeal to 85,000 people or just 1 person.
It’s not up to the artist to decide how many people will connect, anyway. We just make art, knowing that every piece has the seed, the potential to make someone else feel heard and validated. It is supremely important work. Humanity depends on it to survive and continue to evolve.
So let us make art, in whatever capacity that we can. And support artists among us. Listen and engage, let art validate you. Because that’s what they were made to do.
