The realities of being a pop star

Post by richardfulop » Sun, Nov 23, 2025, 3:51 PM UTC

throwup238 wrote: post #168

abc123abc123 wrote: post #139

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I always feel like this is elitist (oh, look at your silly little problem, I risked death, and you are complaining about rent. And I always respond with, yes, not everyone risked death, and they do have a right to complain about rent. You did it because of your own free choice. Another aspect of this silly stance is that if we always compare with death, nothing ever gets done. It is perfectly reasonable to have every…

> You did it because of your own free choice. Since when is getting drafted a free choice? Over 60% of US soldiers in WWWI had no choice whatsoever.

Post by [deleted] » Sun, Nov 23, 2025, 4:12 PM UTC

abc123abc123 wrote: post #139

WalterBright wrote: post #54

> especially when your old friends mock and ridicule you for caring about something absolutely pointless. My dad flew 32 missions over Germany. He watched men die. 80% of his cohort did not return. He expected to die and made his peace with it. He told me once that when he returned home, he was struck by the trivial problems people had and obsessed over. After all, they weren't flying a mission tomorrow with near cer…

I always feel like this is elitist (oh, look at your silly little problem, I risked death, and you are complaining about rent. And I always respond with, yes, not everyone risked death, and they do have a right to complain about rent. You did it because of your own free choice. Another aspect of this silly stance is that if we always compare with death, nothing ever gets done. It is perfectly reasonable to have every…

Post by pardon_me » Sun, Nov 23, 2025, 5:02 PM UTC

bitwize wrote: post #24

The Dire Straits song "Money for Nothing" is one of my all-time favorite 80s hits. Mark Knopfler pretty much composed the lyrics simply by transcribing some remarks he overheard from blue-collar servicemen working at an appliance store, and adjusting them a bit to make them scan and rhyme. The deliberate irony is that contrary to the servicemen's belief that rock stars live a life of ease, the life of a musician can…

Post by cindyllm » Sun, Nov 23, 2025, 5:44 PM UTC

derektank wrote: post #206

CoastalCoder wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I was interested by the part in the middle talking about society not tolerating women stepping too far out of traditional roles. I'm a 50-ish years old American man, and I just don't notice anything like that in my own attitudes or of those around me. I wonder if one or both of us have biased vision, or alternatively maybe we just live in different societies.

I certainly believe that if you want to be a successful musician, not even a pop star necessarily just one that's able to draw crowds large enough to sustain you financially, you probably are bound by certain norms and expectations. Not necessarily because audiences hate women (or men for that matter) that break the mold, but they're not as easy to digest. It adds friction. And when there are thousands of other artis…

Post by WalterBright » Sun, Nov 23, 2025, 6:31 PM UTC

nikhizzle wrote: post #194

WalterBright wrote: post #54

> especially when your old friends mock and ridicule you for caring about something absolutely pointless. My dad flew 32 missions over Germany. He watched men die. 80% of his cohort did not return. He expected to die and made his peace with it. He told me once that when he returned home, he was struck by the trivial problems people had and obsessed over. After all, they weren't flying a mission tomorrow with near cer…

Thanks for sharing this. Needed something meaningful this morning.