I recognized myself in a song today. I wish I could say it was an inspirational song of praise by Chris Tomlin or a feel good anthem by India Arie, but it was neither. The artist, Jazmine Sullivan, is an amazing talent- her smoky voice reminds me of a cross between Lauryn Hill and Mary J. Blige. I have become a great fan of her music. Her style is never clean and pretty, but it is always honest.
Her latest gem is a song called simply, “Famous.” Click here to review the lyrics and hear the song before you read on. I was initially drawn in by the raw beauty of her vocals on the chorus but the lyrics are a powerful commentary on our culture of self. On its face the song is the artist’s confessional declaration that she is driven by the promise of celebrity. Jazmine sings,
No one wants to be invisible
Everyone just wants to be seen.
I know one thing is so irresistible
Cause we all need a reason to be.
Everyone just wants to be seen.
I know one thing is so irresistible
Cause we all need a reason to be.
In hearing those words, I thought about the exploding popularity of Twitter and Facebook and our societal obsession with telling anyone who will listen about the mundane details of our lives through tweets and status updates. I thought about the implied influence that correlates with a high number of Twitter followers, Facebook fans, blog subscribers/followers, linkedin connections etc. I thought about the willingness of people to video themselves participating in everything from brutal bullying attacks to having sex and post it on youtube to be viewed by the world.
I wanna matter to the world.
Although I have never aspired to the kind of household name fame that Jasmine will certainly achieve, her words resonate with my own desire to be known. As she sang the chorus, I reflected on my feelings of validation whenever I post an opinion on Facebook (or this blog) and someone else posts a comment endorsing my perspective. I remembered all the times I’ve called some public figure a “nobody” because they are not a member of my mental “A-list.” I considered my dream of writing a bestselling novel and my plan to build the readership of this blog as a platform for that project. I thought about all of the blogs and books I read about building my personal "brand."
I share these thoughts with trepidation. I know my true purpose is to point others to Christ in all I do and I am concerned that the connection I feel to this song reveals that I have been contaminated by self. I'm honestly not sure how to feel about the way I feel. Is it wrong to be passionate about something (in my case, writing) and want to be known for my ability to do it well? Is the virtuous mind one that only seeks to achieve excellence for its own sake?
What do you think Dear Readers? Can you relate?
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This is my second time attempting to answer your question. I ran out of time on my first attempt, therefore, I will answer your question first in case I dont get to go into detail as to why my answers are such. I can relate to your thoughts on this issue. In short, I think that balance and faithfulness are key in pursuing success on any level for Christians. The potter formed us with funtions in mind that should glorify Him. I think those functions are recognized in the love, passion and talents we recognize about ourselves, or our children throughout our lives. God has given us talents and dreams along with those talents. If there is clear direction, it is best we submit. However, during times when direction isnt clear, we know that we were given talents and passions for His glory. Yes, it is in us all to want attention/fame/success and motives for the desires is where we examine balance and faithfulness. What would you use these achievements for once attained? In all or our works, we are not our own.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the thoughtful comment! You are so right that in all our works, we are not our own. Without him we can do nothing.
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