Is every influencer or artist just an attention seeker after fame... or is there more to it than that?
Words by R. Fairfield, photographs by Linda Smith
Does everyone want to be famous?
This seemed to be the topic on most people's lips when I was studying my acting degree. You were meant to act above it all, brush the idea off with a quick, 'I only care about the work' comment, whilst wearing your serious artist expression. I used to wonder how many of those people meant that and how many were just trying to be cool.
I get a million and one emails proposing to turn me into a celebrity or make me insta-famous. It makes that 'serious artist' inside me want to gag for turning the hard work I spend creating content into some desperate looking plea to be 'popular'. On the other hand...
The price you pay
You're walking through the woods when you reach a stream. The only way across is a small bridge. You're half way over when a troll appears. You make a deal. You hand over a small chunk of your privacy for a small handful of fame that allows you to cross the bridge. In the acting biz, studios like to hire names, to help sell the films. In the style blogging biz, brands like to work with big names to sell there products. Fame is almost like a key that allows you to make a living out of the thing you love and it would be naive not to acknowledge that.
The pros and cons
I think most people who say they want to be famous have a rose-tinted idea of what it is, then they start to realise the reality: the lack of privacy, people treating them differently, the responsibly to fans, people constantly wanting something from them. Suddenly, they don't want it so badly. On the other hand, some people understand that and still want it anyway. Each to their own.
It changes people
I've known people that have become almost unrecognisable since getting even the smallest amount of fame. It's given them an arrogance and belief that their abilities are much better than anyone else's. A few people have told me that to become successful you have to believe you're god's gift. I prefer to believe instead that you have to work very hard.
If someone wanted to be famous, they'd just be on reality TV.
I've heard so many people say some variation of this sentence. I've even said it myself, that's before I was actually on a reality TV show. I tell people I was on a reality TV show. They tell me how cool that is. I nod and fake smile. It was a great experience. It's also strange, like living in a fabricated reality. You start to question what's real and what isn't and that messes with your head. Not to mention it's hard work.
So is every influencer or artist just an attention seeker after fame? I don't think fame is enough of a driving force on it's own to see a successful career through. People might want it as a by-product but it couldn't be the only thing they were after? What do you think?
