Do Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga fall under the same spotlight as Klaus Nomi. New wave music is a hard thing to uphold alone, so does one create another personality in order to manage, and is this necessarily the best way to manage the fame?Do you even sell yourself then or is it just your character? Is this what celebrities tell themselves?
In the heat of the era, Klaus Nomi found himself in search for the spotlight, attention, that is positive attention. Sometimes such fragile characters cannot be celebrities, or else they end up putting up a wall, or in Klaus's case, a mask and a costume. Drama to the 'poppest' degree. Upholding this new wave music along with others can be detrimental to your health, because it becomes more than just exploring a new medium, but commericalizing that medium and in a way 'selling yourself' to that medium.
Musicians who try and change their sound sometimes, in fact most times, end up with negative and very critical reviews. A musician become strapped in that medium, and the public interest or opinion controls their creative growth and restricts these musicians from diverting from what the public likes. In the Nomi documentary his performances seems painfully repetitive, not just for the audience, but for him.
The public's restricitons on artistic creativity are painful but necessary to have the ability to do any art at all. Money becomes the root of noticable art.
Klaus Nomi's story dug deep into the profession of being a celebrity and the effect it has on human beings minds. His origins were more interesting and made his story even sadder when one discovers that his profession was founded on such a pure and classic medium; opera.
"You can completely reinvent yourself" (quote at the end of Nomi documentary)
Before one is a celebrity, one creates an identity for this celebrity, that they plan to become, that is recognizable, consistant, and hides all human aspects of the one who plays that celebrity.
Klaus began to 'detach himself'. I think Klaus became lost in his costume identity and all human aspects had almost been forgotten, except when he visited his aunt (or his past), and when he was acknowledging his disease.
Towards the middle of the documentary it was painful to watch Nomi repeat the same style in music in his performances. I see celebrities who do that now and gets them no where.
ReplyDeleteNotably from reality television stars their know for specific behaviors or comments that they make and repeat them once the show is over in an effort to maintain their fame.
It becomes boring and to some extent embarrassing from the performers and audience point of view.
Richard Hell made that remark about reinventing yourself. Does the public consume celebrities faster than they used to? Nomi had to repeat himself endlessly before people started to notice and then once they did, he was doomed to keep repeating himself. This seems to be how it goes.
ReplyDeleteThere is a great tradition of artists who choose to perform as an alter ego.
ReplyDeleteFor one brief shining moment, the artist Klaus Sperber lit up planet earth.
I will not judge him based on a narrative in a bio pic.
He lived, he loved and he sang beautifully.