How To Be A Creative Professional: A Controversial Article's Point Of View

A Creative Professional's Burden Of Self Promotion

February 2024

You probably heard about this on social media already, so here it is:

Everyone's A Sellout Now

Naturally, I have opinions...

I am old enough to remember when this crazy new cable channel called MTV dropped on the family home entertainment system. I did not see the first video - prophetically called "Video Killed The Radio Star" by The Buggles, featuring an almost teenaged future Oscar winning composer Hans Zimmer on keys -  drop on that fateful day, but like all teenagers of the time, MTV became a part of my life and development. And yes, it's true - they played music videos at the time.

What was so bad about it? I mean, apart from the shameless misogyny. Well, it posed a threat to a generation of boomer rockers and pop stars who, frankly, all had faces for radio and two left feet.

Do they look excited about dropping a new video to you?!

- who now had to make music videos, musical interpretations of their potential hits and concert favorites. Many bands adapted...and some didn't.

Tiktok and social media in general are posing a similar challenge to people who write books, paint, make indie movies, publish zines, and do any number of important creative works. Want people to read your novel? Time to put on a funny (virtual) hat and annoy your friends 20 times a day with pitches and sundry commentary about why they should read more books...starting with yours.

Not a great marketer? Don't trust Tiktok? Shy and awkward talking to a camera? Suck it up, buttercup. You're a marketer now. You're the underperforming realtors facing the "Always Be Closing" guy in Glengarry Glen Ross. And not even a shot at a new Cadillac.

One in that position could hardly be blamed for thinking, "Maybe I should have just majored in business in college instead of English if that was going to be my job anyway."

Of course, that would make you a sellout. And again, I'm from a time where that was the nastiest of insults. The masses love your music? You're getting (gasp) RICH?!?!? What a plastic, empty, shallow SELLOUT you are! We banish you from Hiptown!

But you know what? We had a pretty decent quality of life then, despite the best efforts of the Reagan/Bush era of reactionary political policy to destroy the middle class and working class along with it. So it was easy to have an attitude about anyone who did better than us.

We don't have a great quality of life anymore. So kids who want to live off their dreams are more aware that compromises happen. Unless they post on Mastodon, at least...

Steely Dan Photo credit: Creator: Chris Walter, Credit: WireImage Copyright: Chris Walter