How many times have you listened to your favorite artist, day in and out, making a particular song or Album the only thing that mattered in your world?
I will go ahead and assume that pretty much everyone has had this experience at least once before.
Now, how many times has our mind created this perfect image of that particular artist only to get shattered into pieces by reports of drug abuse, alcoholism or other unworthy behavior?
How does the sudden realization, that our idol is not quite as perfect as we made him/her out to be, affect the love we once felt for their work? Do we suddenly stop loving their music; do we throw the CD in the trash or hide it on a shelf, only to collect dust from now until all eternity?
Does the typical artist even realize how much their work affects us? And do they care? It doesn't matter if they are Hard Rock, Jazz, Folk song or Gospel artists; they are all human. So why do we expect so much of them?
Artists and their music have been accused before, to influence minors to commit suicide or going off in rampages shooting everyone that comes their way. If that is truly the case, is the artist supposed to be held responsible for it? Is it right to put that kind of pressure and responsibility on them, to expect them to be such positive examples and influences in our lives? To a certain point I believe so.
Performing artists work for a living just like the rest of us. We are expected to behave and perform in a certain fashion, so they should, too. Unfortunately not everything is quite that black and white. There is one major difference, of course, between the ordinary population and a famous artist. We come home from work and get a break, they don’t. They are followed from their house to the grocery store and back home again. It must feel like being imprisoned in their homes most of the time. That is, when they are able to be home.
It seems though, that our expectations grow with their fame. The less successful they are, the less we expect of them and the less we watch them.
Those were really the kind of questions I was burning to get an answer for when I interviewed Clarence “Tex” Texada IIII.
I was able to get to hear the point of view of a starting artist. Mr. Texada is a self produced Jazz pianist, film composer and audio engineer from Houston, Texas. He now works as a piano instructor in the Dallas Independent School district. Mr. Texada believes that the artist holds a certain responsibility to the public. An artist should not only be expected to make great music, but to be a positive role model. He believes that the artist holds some responsibility for the way their music influences the audience and how they are to be seen in the public eye. That is one of the factors that are explained to many artists when they are first signed with a company.
"I am not well known to the public but I still know that I set an example to those around me and my students."
When I asked, if he felt a sense of being held to a higher standard now that he has produced two albums, "Curiosity" and "Gallery of Dreams", he responded that he didn’t notice a huge difference, which might be due to the fact that he has not quite made it to the for front of the industry yet. He also stated that he is aware that the people who do know of his works do expect a little more professionalism from him.
He says he is the same now as he was before his music.
The music industry is continuously changing and therefore it is a must to continuously educate your self about those changes. Aside from that, however, he plans on being himself through out his climb to success.
Even artists who are just at the start of their road to success should, and most do, know and understand this.
