Television makes stars.

Didn’t we learn this during the MTV era, when suddenly Duran Duran came out of nowhere and started selling prodigious amounts of product? Some consider “Off The Wall” to be superior to “Thriller,” but the latter far outsold it, because of the videos, because of the airplay, it became a phenomenon, and although it was Michael himself who came up with the moniker “The King of Pop,” he was certainly the most famous and successful musician in the world at that time.

Politics is show business for ugly people. And these ugly people, usually better educated with greater powers of reasoning than the faces on TV, believe they rule.

But they don’t, not in the consciousness of America. The political class has disconnected from the populace, Washington, D.C. is in a bubble, the average person is clueless as to Congress, maybe not even knowing the name of their own representatives, but they’re aware of Donald Trump, because he’s on TV.

Furthermore, despite being deep into his sixties, Trump understands the modern star paradigm, which is to keep yourself in the news day after day, to create story. Funny how Kim Kardashian and Donald Trump are smarter than all the marketers in Hollywood, yet they’re excoriated for it. But not by the public, the people they’re appealing to adore them.

And you know television… You beam into people’s homes and they think they know you, even if this is far from the truth.

And sure, some of the people on TV have become wealthy, but those with the money, like the Koch Brothers, like every billionaire in America, believe that cash is king.

But that is untrue.

Personality is king. Identity is king. We adhere to those we know, and if you’re an unknown you’re kept at a distance. We are family in America, it’s a tribal country, and Donald Trump has a huge tribe.

And he’s educated and worldly and somewhat intelligent. This is not a nincompoop who hasn’t be around the block who’ll ultimately kill his chances with an inane comment betraying his lack of sophistication. That’s Ben Carson, who might have gone to Yale, but when he started pontificating on the pyramids…he lost us.

And in today’s world you don’t admit your mistakes. If caught in a lie you might ultimately laugh about it, but then you move on. This is another place where Hollywood has it wrong. If you’re going to rehab for an offense, doing a mea culpa, you’ve already lost. Does Kanye apologize? No, he keeps doubling down. The public is sick of wimps. They want someone to take a stand.

And Donald Trump has.

It’s irrelevant if what he’s spewing is rational or doable. Most people know that D.C. is gridlocked, no one individual can have that big an impact. So, they figure why not give this guy a chance, he’s not one of the usual suspects.

Unlike the lifers in D.C. Who are confused as to whether they’re selling experience or popularity. This is the vortex Hillary finds herself in. Instead of just listing her CV, putting her accomplishments on LinkedIn, she’s trying to be touchy-feely, she’s trying to triangulate, and that’s so nineties. Today you bite back. We can take it. It’s only those inured to the old game who are offended.

As for the rest of the media… Do you really expect struggling outlets which are all about subterfuge and linkbait and advertorial to stand for truth, justice and the American Way? They’re not Superman, they too are enthralled by money and fame, which is why Judith Miller helped lead us into the Iraq war. The public trusted the “Times,” little did people know that Miller was not on their side.

And I know it’s a head-scratcher, on so many levels Trump is not on the little guy’s side. But compared to the establishment, compared to Mitt Romney, compared to Antonin Scalia, compared to elected officials, never mind lobbyists, he’s a paragon of purity.

Come on, Scalia takes a free trip to shoot birds with Bohemians on the property of someone who got a favorable ruling from the Supreme Court? You expect the public to trust the congresspeople who keep lauding him?

And most of America tuned Romney out when they found out he transported his dog on the roof of his car. You can’t harm a pet, can’t put one in jeopardy, and expect to maintain the public’s trust.

Furthermore, it’s not just about Trump, once again it’s about television. Pollster John Dick found out that voters prefer Mark Cuban to Donald Trump, check it out:

What if Mark Cuban Ran Against Donald Trump for President?

But Cuban’s not running.

Not that he’s ruled it out in the future.

And if you’re waiting for a return to normalcy, you’re probably anticipating a return of respect for lawyers, which plummeted in the aftermath of Watergate and has never recovered.

It’s about constant messaging. And a dollop of truth. And they haven’t had that spirit in the GOP for oh so long. Trying to get the poor to vote against their interests by trumpeting moral causes… But the truth is everybody has a gay relative. And most people like government sponsored health care. And cutting taxes on the rich hasn’t helped them one bit. The GOP needs a new message.

And Donald Trump is laughing all the way to the bank. Arguably his brand has increased in value more than he’s spent on his campaign.

You shouldn’t be surprised. Entertainers have been heroes for decades.

But that was back when income inequality wasn’t rampant and people believed their elected officials represented them.

The joke is on us.

We liked the Trump story.

The media liked selling it to us, for the ratings, for the advertising.

Sure, he’s got unfavorables. Then again, everybody wanting to be liked has faded in the rearview mirror, today it’s about displaying your edges and consolidating your adherents, this is what the Democrats can’t understand about the Tea Party.

I don’t know if Trump will win the nomination. It’s a crazy year where data statisticians have been wrong time and again. Because despite the computerization of our society it comes down to people.

And media/technology.

Who could predict Rubio would turn into a robot, quashing his chances?

Not someone living in the past, who doesn’t realize we live for train-wreck YouTube videos. Best to be yourself and fly off the cuff as opposed to appearing inhuman as you play a game we deplore.

Does Romney really expect the public to jettison Trump after nearly a year’s worth of wall to wall coverage?

Then he’s probably expecting Kanye to fade too. A man who has made one outrageous comment after another, but is still in the public eye.

And both take their message straight to the public. Actually, they play both sides, they manipulate the media too.

How long did it take Trump’s competitors to tweet?

Furthermore, the Donald had already accumulated followers. His competitors may have been laying pipe in politics, but he’d been collecting followers for years, and it’s these followers who’ve put him in the position he’s in.

Who knows if he says what he believes.

What we do know is Donald Trump realizes politics is a game. And right now he’s playing it better than any of the established players. Because he realizes the rules have changed, whereas they keep wanting to go back to the past, like a record company insisting people buy CDs and artists complaining about streaming.

You deal with the hand that’s dealt you.

Past may be prologue, but tech has taught us every few years an unseen product comes along and wipes the slate clean.

Bob Dylan had it right all along…

He not busy being born is busy dying.

I’ve been meaning to write about “Bang a Gong (Get It On),” which I’ve heard on Sirius twice in the last two weeks, and the deejay on Deep Tracks said he was gonna play some T. Rex, but he started out with some Klaatu, and I pushed the button to Top Tracks and heard this.

People forget that “Led Zeppelin III” was a dud. History has been rewritten, its experimentation and acoustic elements have been trumpeted. But the truth is after “II” it was a disappointment, the band had hit the mainstream, they were superstars, and then not only did they veer from the track, they didn’t deliver upon their own expectations.

And then came “IV.”

It started off with the two-headed punch of “Black Dog” and “Rock and Roll,” assaulting the listener with something to prove, the band illustrated that not only was it back but there were no contenders.

And then came “Battle of Evermore,” my personal favorite, with the vocal abrasions of one Sandy Denny, delivering on the promise of “III,” this is what they meant to do.

And side two featured the introspective “Going to California,” which immediately grabbed you and made you think of the Golden State, and “When the Levee Breaks,” the heaviest track ever recorded and…

Right smack dab in the middle was “Stairway to Heaven.”

The cognoscenti had abandoned the band. They felt Jimmy and the crew had steered too far from their blues roots.

But the hoi polloi embraced “IV” because of the radio airplay. They didn’t need no stinkin’ rock magazine to tell them what to listen to, they knew excellence when they heard it.

And after the opening rockers, what they heard on the airwaves was “Stairway to Heaven.” Over and over again. Back when rock ruled the world they had the top 500, the inspiration being the Indianapolis car race, and “Stairway to Heaven” always topped it, always.

Usually “Free Bird” was number two.

And oftentimes “Kashmir” was number three.

And what they all had in common was their length, their exploration, they were not quite what had come before, but they were ultimately what the audience was looking for.

But today when you hear those intro notes you usually push the button, you know “Stairway” by heart, you don’t need to hear it again, you’ll play it when you want to online, on demand, which won’t be very often, because it’s like that person you went to summer camp with but lost touch with, you know them through and through, a revisit is unnecessary.

But today I let the track play.

And it was a revelation.

Unlike today it’s subtle. Multiple hooks are not inserted ad infinitum to ensure we don’t lose interest, the track is not begging for our attention, it seems to be cut in a world where the audience doesn’t exist, making it ever more interesting.

They say we live in an interactive world, where we’re all in touch and the walls are closing in, but the truth is our minds are just as separate as ever before. And we want art that stimulates us and takes us away, reminds us of what once was, gets us in touch with our emotions, shines light on what can be…and that’s what “Stairway” does, it seems to be cut just over the hill and not that far away, and we want to go there.

And the lyrics seem straightforward and then they are not, you get images but have a hard time following the narrative, and then there’s a switch, it makes you wonder, it really makes Robert wonder. He’s been the opposite of his image, crooning instead of belting, but now an intensity is evidenced.

There’s a feeling I get
When I look to the west
And my spirit is crying for leaving

Oh, how many times I felt the same way, growing up on the east coast, the self-professed most important area of the country, I yearned to go where the mountains were tall, to California, where my soul would be free.

But it’s not only Robert’s vocalization, it’s Jimmy’s guitar playing, it’s like a warm embrace from someone who understands you, who is not wearing a three piece suit but has a full sleeve tattoo. It’s a lullaby for grown-ups.

And a new day will dawn
For those who stand long
And the forests will echo with laughter

As it once was it is now again, we’re waiting for a new dawn, eager for a new dawn, we want to believe our values will triumph, we want to be happy and free, we’re sick of being oppressed.

The guitar twinkles, as if the message is being beamed down from the heavens, and then Bonzo finally hits the skins and the track starts to transition, not that you know this at first, but you’re still surprised every time it happens, as if the song goes from black and white to Technicolor, from 480 to 4K.

You’re on an aural trip, you’ve transcended your body, you’ve melded with the music, you’re locked on to the beat and then…

MAJESTY!

The guitar army emerges from behind the curtain, a force that cannot be conquered, and Jimmy starts to wail, not like Yngwie and the rest of the pretenders who don’t realize fast and more is usually less, but like someone with experience, who’s paid his dues, who’s not fresh to the game but is an experienced veteran who can hit the home run again and again.

And suddenly the Robert we know emerges from the wings after Jimmy’s machinations and starts to belt. The band is firing on all cylinders, it’s a monolith we can only pay fealty too, it dwarfs everything in its path.

And then it fades and is gone.

And you only have one choice, to play it again. And again. And buy the album, to find out what else this band has to say.

And what Led Zeppelin said back in ’71 is that you’re best doing it your way, by yourself, with your peeps, than hiring outside hands to meddle with your vision. That we react to and love most that which is personal and human. That length is irrelevant if you achieve excellence. That the audience has no idea what it’s looking for but when it finds it it embraces it. And if you grab the brass ring you own the world, your acolytes will follow you anywhere, you can sell out stadiums, people will hang on every word, you’ll be more powerful than any politician, any business titan, because you own hearts and minds.

And hearts and minds are everything.

I’ll take this over OK Go any day of the week.

Watch this video.

At first you’ll think it’s gimmicky, created to get your attention and go viral.

But then you’ll find the music is actually hooky and good, it starts to stick in your brain, to the point you feel forced to queue it up again and see what it’s all about and go deeper.

And then you realize as cool as the machine is it’s about the music, a switcheroo we haven’t seen since the nineties, when MTV became more about flash than substance.

And you can’t help but contemplate the journey involved, building this creation. It reminds you of the sixties, when artists went off on singular pursuits, driven by their muse more than a desire to please the audience, and as a result we bonded ever closer to them.

We haven’t had this kind of innovation around here for a very long time. It’s stuff like this that will break the logjam, in a world where everybody’s trying to do it like everybody else.

And funny how it comes from Sweden, a land of social safety nets that is supposed to be no rival for the vaunted USA. But Spotify came from Sweden, along with Max Martin. It seems that when you’re not busy looking for your next meal, when you’re no longer desperate and can explore, you end up pushing the envelope in ways those down in the trench cannot.

You don’t have to play the game, you just have to be different, and great.

And never forget, indelible art is not about execution, but conception. That’s the ethos of punk and so many other notable artistic movements, musical and visual. You may be able to create an abstract expressionist canvas, but could you come up with the idea?

Here’s to those throwing off the shackles and trying something new.

This video is not just about train-wreck value, it’s not something you view once and pass on. It sets your mind ‘a wandering. You start to wonder about this guy, who is he, how did he come up with this, why did he come up with this?

And that’s how we got intrigued by our heroes and bonded to them in the old days.

That’s right, this hearkens back to the old, but is certifiably new.

Like all great art.

More like this please.

Wintergatan

 

Could it be that no one wants to hear what actors have to say, which generally speaking is nothing?

We’re at the threshold of the death of baby boomer constructs, and art too. The belief was that when classic rockers passed, concert attendance would crumble, but live events are burgeoning, there are more stadium acts now than there were at the beginning of the century, youngsters have an attachment to performers from their era, and are interested most in those who have something to say.

Well, it’s complicated. We have too many two-dimensional stars in music, those who are propped up by the work of others. But no one doubts that Taylor Swift’s words are her own, that’s what made her the biggest star in the land, along with a plethora of hooks. But actors, playing roles, reading the lines of others, there’s no there there.

If you want to entice the younger generation you’ve got to include their heroes, not only their infrastructure. Sure, it’s great to employ Snapchat, to shoot selfies, but today’s adolescents are enthralled by YouTube stars and others who evidence a personality, there’s a human bond between them and their heroes and there’s this feeling that the famous and the hoi polloi are in it together, it’s not about being put on a pedestal, especially not in a culture where kids view themselves as stars, especially on Instagram. Right now that site is driving the culture, it’s mostly where you’ve been with whom, but also about fashion, and no one can afford the outfits worn by the stars Sunday night, but they can put together a look from cheap and vintage clothing.

So the Oscars have become unmoored from their audience. This self-hating outfit, which sells lowest common denominator cartoon tripe to the masses leaves those flicks in the rearview mirror and trumpets low-grossing adult fare at awards time and no wonder younger people don’t care, they’re not adults! Either make the show about what they’re interested in, acknowledge they’re propping up the industry, or they’ll abandon you, because today we’ve got endless entertainment options and if you don’t purvey what we like, we’re gone.

That’s what baby boomers can’t fathom, the inability of today’s kids to stay tuned in at length to that which they don’t care about and think is lousy. Kids today don’t have short attention spans, they just have incredible shit detectors. If it doesn’t appeal to them, NEXT!

Now I’m not saying long form visual entertainment has no future. Story is king. And we are looking for rallying points, that’s why “Star Wars” became a phenomenon, why the big become even bigger, trumping all contenders. But I am saying that you can’t keep going by the old playbook and continue to win.

The Oscars is a bad TV show. It wouldn’t get sold to HBO and despite being on network is canceled in the minds of so many. We keep hearing that a billion people are watching… If only 34.4 million are viewing in the U.S., who is watching this live telecast elsewhere? Just another lie in an era where people are searching for truth. There’s no bite, no edge, just endless formula. And one thing the internet has taught us is people are constantly in search of new.

But more interesting is what other baby boomer constructs will fall by the wayside.

It’s boomers who keep terrestrial radio alive. Youngsters can’t tolerate the commercials, they believe music is an on demand item, and he who disbelieves this is forced to throw out their DVR and cancel their Netflix and Spotify accounts.

And jokes are forever, but Chris Rock is 51, it was really Kevin Hart’s gig. But the oldsters in charge would say “Kevin who?” You don’t play it safe, you take risks, isn’t that how the techies took over the country?

At least the Grammys featured music, that’s what everybody tuning in wants to see. They don’t want to hear speeches, they don’t want to see TV stars, they only care about a few awards and…remember when there used to be classical segments? Those were excised long ago, because most viewers don’t care. Tragic, but if you’re making a show for consumers…

That’s right, if the Oscars were a party, not a telecast, it would be fine to please the members. Then again, the membership does not reflect America. Still, it would end up more like the Golden Globes, but with teeth and true humor, with put-downs and references and all the elements that make everyday life interesting and what’s made for mass consumption boring.

That’s the story of 2016. You want authenticity, credibility, from those with edges who are willing to display them. If you want to succeed with millennials you’ve got to deliver your truth, something they can bite into, digest and reflect upon.

Otherwise you’re the Oscar telecast, a barge set out to sea in search of a port that no longer exists.