It’s a great big country with a vast number of people who may not see things the same way those in L.A. and NYC do. I rode the lift with fiftysomethings who’d never left the state and had great-grandchildren, they lived for their families.

Not everybody has money. It would be so great if the incomes of the wealthy trickled down to those with less, because then those without could spend and boost the economy. That’s right, the American economy is driven by consumer spending. And I saw more straight skis and aged boots worn on the feet of those who deserve better, if only they could afford it.

There’s a thin layer of super-intelligent, super-educated upscale 25-50 year olds living a lifestyle that most are unaware of and couldn’t fathom if they encountered it.

The spoils go to those who pay their dues. For all the stories of the success of college dropouts, there are many more tales of those who went to a good school and a top-notch graduate school and not only got ahead, but are running our country. I’m not saying you cannot make it from a state school, but so many who did then went on to Harvard Business School, or Columbia. Or to an Ivy undergrad and then a state school for business, law or medicine. Life is a long hard slog and if you give up early, don’t bother to get an education, chances are you’re not going to win later, and you’re certainly going to suffer in income. The spoils go to those who stick it out. If you’re eager to get out into the world as opposed to being educated…the joke’s probably gonna be on you.

And this was always true, but not as much as now. Today’s best and brightest know how tough the world is and want to buy insurance to make sure they get ahead, and that’s what education is. Not partying your ass off but getting good grades and networking nonpareil. If you take time off after college to find yourself you’re already being left behind. And it’s your choice, but don’t complain when you hit forty and are left behind.

The wealthy are willing to risk. A friend told me he was willing to lose his two million dollar investment, he didn’t want to, but not all startups succeed. If you’re protecting your assets and afraid of risk you’re gonna get nowhere, the wealthy make big bets.

The successful see the world as their oyster, have confidence that they can change the game, that they’re just as competent as the established movers and shakers.

Today’s younger generation respects its parents. It’s very different from the baby boomer ethos where our parents were clueless and we were doing our best to extract ourselves from their clutches. Parents are heroes, people you look up to, and you’re doing your best to please them, oftentimes doing exactly what they tell you to do.

The winners search for the real story. They don’t stop at the surface. Truth is a labyrinth, an onion, an orange that is peeled. If you stay engaged and listen long enough you might just find out that silent people are in power whilst those bragging have a minimal impact.

It comes down to money. Getting those with it, who have expertise, to commit. And once they do…they ultimately hold all the cards.

Trump truth appeals to the young wealthy, whose success is based on truth. I heard eagerness for Trump to confront Hillary with Bill’s peccadilloes in a debate. In a duplicitous country where image is everything and fakery rules the younger generation with cash and influence and those burdened by modern economics are dealing with reality every damn day, they want to see it evidenced on the political stage. They don’t care that Trump might not have any power if he wins, they want to see things shaken up. Yes, the tech entrepreneurs are all about shaking things up.

Change comes from outside. I know, this is well-documented. But whenever an entrenched player at the corporation tells you about his or her new idea…tune out. The future will be made by those presently not in the business, who are not burdened with any preconceptions, who are not worried about protecting the traditional players. It started with Napster, it’s only gonna get worse.

Stimulation is the essence of life. Sure, some want to do drugs and check out, but they’re missing out. We want to be engaged, in conversation, physical activity, we want to feel alive. And you never feel as alive as you do when you meet new people, who stimulate you and make you look at the world in a different way.

You can’t get to the top from the bottom. Being born with a silver spoon in your mouth helps, but not as much as knowing the right people. Life comes down to who you know. And I’m not saying to jettison your friends who are nice and supportive, I’m just saying if you want to win in business you’ve got to know those who are winning already.

The truly rich might want to hang with other truly rich, but not in numbers. They want exclusivity and privacy. A place where their children can be safe. And so many of the young movers and shakers have families.

The pivot is everything. I met many lawyers who no longer practice law as well as those who’ve turned their companies into something else.

Entrepreneurship is not something you can learn, it’s innate, some people think big and are risk-takers, others are not.

The winners are always thinking about money, that’s how they frame every opportunity, it’s what they learned in business school. If you’re jealous of their cash, you should go to business school too. Even if you don’t start a company, you’ll meet people who can give you a job.

The business people can’t be artists and the artists can’t be business people. But they’re chasing each other’s tails. As much risk as a business person might take, they don’t know how to let go of preconceptions, to truly jump off the cliff because they feel like it. They’ve invested too much in their education, they’re so busy winning they can’t risk losing, not at life. As for artists, once they start telling you about their app and other tech plays tune out, they can’t compete with the big boys. But artists can encapsulate emotions in their work and speak truth to power. In an era where we need the artistic voice most most artists have capitulated.

Time has moved on. Classic rock is in the rearview mirror. For many, Mariah Carey embodies the superstar paradigm. Boomers may have fostered change, they may be a huge part of the population, but their time is nearly done.

Winners try to help you as well as themselves. They ask questions and are always networking. If a winner doesn’t ask you for your Twitter handle or to friend you on Facebook or for your e-mail address, you’re a loser, you’ve got to change your style, you’re doing something wrong, learn how to stop selling and be warm and caring, that draws people to you.

Most people have no idea what’s going on. They think they do, they’ll tell you they do, but they don’t. You can learn a lot on the internet, but you learn most by traveling and actually meeting people. Because people will surprise you. They tend not to be what they appear. Gossip and fame are diversions from reality, they keep you from focusing on the non-sexy who run this country.

Artists are equal to business people, maybe not in money, but even more in power, but you must be true to yourself, you must speak the truth, you must explore the uncomfortable, you must show your warts, you must be unafraid of people and the world. If you’re worried about alienating potential fans, you’re doing it wrong. It’s about bonding those who care to you, and you can only do this by being honest and transparent. Artists can impact this world, if they stop kissing the butts of those with money and have some self-respect…and do what they do at an elite level without compromise, knowing that money is a benefit, but not the main goal in making art.

I’m glad Dr. Luke finally spoke up, because every other male in America is afraid to.

That’s the country we now live in. One wherein men are guilty until proven innocent and they’re all rapists under their skin, despite even the “New York Times” saying that most rapes are violent crimes perpetrated by the same individuals.

“Research suggests that more than 90 percent of campus rapes are committed by a relatively small percentage of college men – possibly as few as 4 percent – who rape repeatedly, averaging six victims each.” – Mishandling Rape

But this isn’t about rape, this is about contracts, this is about LAW! Leave the emotion out, focus on the system.

And the system is one wherein Sony Music spent millions to make Kesha a star. And now she wants to turn her back on the company.

No one put a gun to her head and made her sign, she wanted to be famous, she went in with representation and made a multi-album deal and now she wants out of it. Should this happen?

That’s today’s music business, that’s today’s life, no-nothings pontificating loudly upon that which they are clueless about. Of course no one condones rape, of course we hate to see Kesha cry, but the LADY judge said an injunction was unnecessary, that Kesha could record for Sony without Dr. Luke’s involvement and everybody would be unharmed.

But Kesha wants out completely.

So when you sign that cellphone contract for two years and a clerk uses an epithet on the phone should you be able to nullify that deal and take your iPhone with you? Certainly not, especially if you didn’t pay for that iPhone with cash. The company is upside down, you owe them. And did that uttered epithet speak to the quality of service? Is this remedy necessary?

Why should Sony be aced out of this deal? Why is everybody who puts up money the bad guy? You don’t have to take it, but you believe the faceless corporation will suffer no consequences. Sony does not support rape, that hashtag is heinous, Sony supports BUSINESS!

We are a nation of laws. And we have to abide by the decisions of the courts. Hell, the Supreme Court made George Bush President. Deal with it. During his term tens of thousands of people lost their lives. But now Kesha alleges rape and therefore the Supreme Court of New York should throw out the rulebook?

I have no idea what happened between these two. For all I know Kesha may be right, she may be telling the truth. Although she has not done a good job of proving her case, by testifying under oath that it did not happen and never reporting it to police. But that does not make it untrue, it just makes it very difficult to hold Dr. Luke accountable, assuming, that is, that he did it.

As for Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande… If they want real change that will have real benefits agitate against the contractual system ruling the record business. Insist on one album deals. Change recoupment rates. Make it so after recoupment you own your copyright in the recording.

But they don’t want to do this, because they want to take the money.

Sisterhood only goes so far.

But we reside in a sad nation when emotion sways business, when judicial decisions are decried not on the facts, but on the feelings.

But that’s the country we live in. Where everybody’s working the refs all the time. Utter liberal thoughts and you’ll hear from right wing nutjobs all day long, trying to get you to shut up. Stand up for anybody on the wrong end of a rape case and you’re a social pariah.

A court will decide if, in fact, Dr. Luke raped Kesha.

If he did, his career will be ruined. Our society does not believe in sexual redemption, people won’t allow convicted yet released child molesters to live anywhere near them.

As for Kesha…

Chances are her career is already ruined, over, toast, that’s how fast the game moves. If her rape allegations are true, she’ll get a huge check, as she should.

But for now…

She can make an album with the producer of her choice and sure, there’s a possibility Sony won’t work it, but based on all the support Kesha has gotten any new release will be a big story and will get major attention, Sony would be stupid not to promote a track, assuming it’s a hit, which is not easy to achieve, which is why Kesha worked with Dr. Luke to begin with.

It’s a messy situation.

But we have to let the courts decide and so far the court has decided that Kesha is not entitled to be freed from her contract.

And her supporters can do all the jawboning they want. It’ll certainly send a message to most men, then again, most men aren’t rapists…but having sexual assault taboos on top of their mind is not a bad thing.

However, if you think Sony is gonna capitulate, just walk away from its investment and forgo potential profits, you’re not living in America, that’s not the capitalist way, and even Bernie Sanders believes in this kind of capitalism.

Once again, a case is being tried in the press, on Twitter. And with a media that refuses to render an opinion, unless it’s in support of an agenda, and nobody supports rape as an agenda, the words of celebrities and those who yell loudest trump truth.

And that’s just a sad state of affairs.

1. Read Dr. Luke’s lawyer’s statement, it’s articulate and informative:

Dr. Luke’s Lawyers Release Statement: Kesha’s Team ‘Subjected Dr. Luke to Trial by Twitter’

2. Read Dr. Luke’s tweets re the case:

Dr. Luke Breaks Silence: ‘I Didn’t Rape Kesha’

Note: It’s irrelevant that Kesha’s lawyer represented Scott Peterson and Chris Brown, everybody’s entitled to an advocate. But it plays well in the press. And although the injunction was heard in a courtroom and denied, this case is being tried in the press. And that’s both sad and counter to the rule of law.

3. This case is primarily about money. Kesha could offer to repay Dr. Luke and Sony for their investment and give them an upside in any recordings she does with another company, but…to my knowledge, so far she hasn’t done this. If Kesha is allowed to skate, scot-free, who else should be able to do this and for what cause? This is akin to the Apple/iPhone case wherein many people want the San Bernardino perps’ iPhone cracked, but a huge number are fearful of then having their iPhones cracked and having their privacy sacrificed.

4. Kesha is right about one thing, pop careers are usually short. Pop careers are usually made via money, investment in creation and marketing. You may call it a deal with the devil, but Kesha made that deal and so many others have too. But you don’t have to. But without major investment your odds of success are long.

5. Institutions outlast both artists and the people populating them. Tommy Mottola is long gone, but Sony Music lives on. Mo Ostin built Warner Music, was handsomely compensated therefor, but it’s somebody else’s company now and it continues to exist. You can speak truth to power, but if you want to bring down power you’re asking for a revolution, something that almost never happens, although it is being debated in political circles right now. And the evisceration of contracts in the music business would be a revolution. But if that’s what artists want, they should not focus on the alleged rape, but the underlying business conditions. Last week’s decision was all about the issue of setting Kesha free from her contract, not the rape. Best to separate out the issues. But that’s tough in a country where critical thinking takes a back seat.

“Kanye West Is Fixing His Album in Public. You’ll Want to Read the Edits”

Kanye in the NYT? WTF???

I feel like opening with “What kind of crazy, fucked up world is it where this guy is considered to be culturally important!!???” But that’s your line.

Sure, he made some great music for himself and others. But in spite of what the aspirationally-cool media keeps saying about him, unlike other creators in his genre like Jay-Z, Tupac, Biggie or even M.C. Hammer for that matter, it’s unlikely that we’ll be quoting too many of Kanye’s songs 20 years from now. He didn’t open up new avenues of public discourse like NWA, or introduce the world to a new art form like Grandmaster Flash, or even meaningfully and memorably address social issues through his music like Marshall, Macklemore and Kendrick. In my opinion, his productions are his best work – and I admit I’m jealous of several of them – but I don’t think he’s on quite the same level as Timbaland and Rick Rubin among several others. His songwriting – meaning the stuff with melodies – is sophomoric at best. I was embarrassed for Sir Paul – one of the greatest Artists of our era – by their collaboration, though it was pointed out to me that this got him his highest chart position in decades. So I guess he didn’t mind. But I kind of did!

Instead Kanye’s greatest achievements have been in the form of excessive behavior, egomaniacal tantrums and tasteless grandstanding. What he is a true artist at is living his life out loud – and shoving it down the throats of the rest of us whether we give a shit or not. He’s like that flasher who interrupts a critical game by running naked across the field. Is that art??? Maybe it is. Maybe as Caramanica says, life as “an unending data stream” is a new art form. But should it be, honestly? Hell, Forbes named this guy one of the 100 most influential people IN THE WORLD in 2005 and 2015!! Seriously??? Influencing WHAT exactly?

In the review of the endless new album, Caramanica wonders if “being slightly finished is the new finished.” And that just makes my blood boil. The great musicians, writers, poets, rappers, performers, dancers, players, conductors, directors and producers work all their lives for that one moment of complete perfection – that one brilliant performance, that one perfect song, that one enduring and life-altering work. 10,000 hours is peanuts in comparison to the real amount of time spent by true artists in their lifelong pursuit of excellence. But no one else that I have seen is this happy to have the audience watching all along the way. They are working to the culmination of something; to the exquisite feeling of completion that comes from working and reworking until that moment when their creation, or their performance, is as good as it could possibly be. This guy is just feeding the media machine and I’m not even certain to what end. Maybe he JUST needs the attention, like that flasher, and isn’t happy unless he’s the center of it.

What galls me the most though is the thought that he and others – especially the media – might actually BELIEVE that he’s an artist. With a capital “A.” That what he’s doing is of any real consequence besides for the sheer train wreck gawker value of it.

I don’t even know why I’m so angry about this. Except maybe I lament for a world where being truly, world-shakingly excellent at anything – at least in the field of popular music if not elsewhere – is no longer absolutely necessary. You can be a star today just by creating a public life that people pay attention to. That’s it. All you have to do is be interesting or likable or shocking enough and you can have your 15 minutes of fame…even if that means that no one will remember you or what you’ve done in just a few years. Line ‘em up. How many “popular artists” have come and gone in just the last decades. In my mind (which is a pretty busy as often too judgmental place, I will admit) real artists make stuff that changes the world and LASTS.

I haven’t heard it yet. Is that what The Life of Pablo is? If so, then I take it all back.

I just needed to rant to someone.

Cheers,

B

“Stretching the Truth to Find Online Love”

Don’t ask me why I read the weddings. My mother used to, but I skipped that section until they started delivering the “New York Times” daily in SoCal back in the eighties.

Now I’m addicted.

Really, it’s the Style section entirely. I’m a soft news guy, at least I was until recently, when the Bernie and Trump stories fascinated me, the impossible becoming possible, and too much of the non-hard news stories became pure hype, maybe they always were, you grow older and you become more sophisticated, but you still maintain hope, that tingle inside that life is full of surprises and will work out.

Getting married is a ritual most experience, but not everyone. I wonder why not. Do they just not meet the person of their dreams or can they just not pull the trigger? I found my own wedding thrilling, yet scary, as if it was happening to someone else. Was my life taking a turn from which I could never recover, was this forever?

It was not.

And one thing you learn as you get older is no matter where the couple went to university, no matter who their parents are, that does not mean they’ll be happy, never mind wealthy or wise.

But the stories are still intriguing.

And the story of Scott Birnbaum was that he was a mid-thirties data nerd who just couldn’t find Ms. Right.

Because he was too short.

He didn’t know this at first, not that you’re unaware you’re 5’5″, but he realized through experimentation that almost all online daters say they’re undesirous of a man of this stature, they click the parameters for someone taller, so Mr. Birnbaum fell outside the net.

Huh.

It’s not that he’s unattractive, it’s not that he’s underemployed, it’s just that he has no chance, he’s not in the running.

So what did he do?

Like that old “Seinfeld” scam, he heightened. He found out that most women were willing to date someone 5’8″. Under that, forget it.

He lifted himself up and his fortunes turned.

He ultimately hooked up with a woman 4’11”, who’d been dating a man 6’5″. You’d think munchkins would want people they could look into the eyes of, but everyone’s afraid of breeding short people, being the brunt of that Randy Newman song. But my five foot tall sister and her husband who ain’t that much taller have a six foot kid, so you never know.

But we do know that people have no idea what they want. Ask them and they’ll tell you, but present them with something completely outside their supposed wheelhouse and they fall for it. Happens all the time, hell, hip-hop haters are eating up “Hamilton.”

Proving that market research is frequently trash. Especially when it comes to the arts. We want what we always have until we discover a new flavor and switch allegiance.

But getting a chance is nigh near impossible.

So do you have to lie?

People lie to me all the time. Tell me they’re unavailable, when I’m honest and piss people off… No, I don’t want to go to lunch with you and waste three hours, just tell me your proposal in e-mail, so I can immediately dismiss it, or not.

But people want their chance.

How do you get your chance, especially when others don’t want to give it to you?

We’ve got a guarded populace and a plethora of people trying to climb the wall.

Like Birnbaum in his ads, it pays to be unique. Tell me you love sunset walks on the beach and I’ll roll my eyes. Tell me you played tambourine with Dan Hicks and I’m intrigued. Once again, it’s our rough edges that hook people.

Assuming you want to be hooked. Tracy Podell was on OK Cupid too. Many people don’t play, and are not open to you. Rather than employ a can opener go where there is opportunity, it’s so much easier and fulfilling.

And Ms. Podell eventually busted Mr. Birnbaum on his heightening. We don’t like to be lied to. But she ultimately bought Mr. Birnbaum’s explanation, so often we overlook duplicity when we approve of the result.

And you’re never gonna approve of everything about everyone. That’s not how life works… It’s less about compromise than acceptance. Instead of waiting for Mr. or Ms. Right, throw in with another and have an adventure. That’s what life’s about, right?