Why do some artists fly and others flail?

Why are we attracted to the music we like? What makes the art we appreciate and consume interesting to us? What distinguishes it from the art and media we dislike? When art doesn’t speak to us, why is that? Is it ‘bad’ art? Can we blame the artist, or is it a fault of the viewer—a failure to ‘see’ ourselves in the work?

I have a theory that all art is valid, and can even be popular—it just needs to find the right audience. It needs to find its ideal group of people, and once it does, it can blossom in that community of like-minded folks. But finding those people takes work.

Let’s say there are two artists, Poppy and Margaret. They both make very similar brands of competent folk music, play the guitar beautifully, and even sing in a similar, attractive intonation.

Poppy has one million followers on her streaming platform of choice, Margaret has 70.

Putting aside the politics of streaming platforms, what’s the difference between these two artists? On the surface, the only difference is that Poppy is very popular, and Margaret is not. 

But why? Does it come down to marketing, PR, promotion? Perhaps. Or is it the way Poppy executes her music—the chord changes she uses, the tones she employs, the subject matter of her songs? Does Poppy’s art speak to people in a way that Margaret’s does not?

What can Margaret do to achieve a wider audience? Invest more heavily in promotion? Perform in more venues? Gain wider exposure by fostering more relationships, investing in playlists and radio? Does she just need more runway, and to keep on doing what she’s doing, or is there something inherent to the music that she makes that just doesn’t resonate with people?

In the abstract, it’s impossible to judge. But this is a real conundrum for many artists, and all humans, frankly. How do you get along in life without comparing what you do to others—and is that comparison even valid? Can we listen to it, should we listen to it—or would it be better for artists to just put their heads down and keep plugging away at creating beautiful work?

What is the balance between creativity and self-promotion—and at the end of the day,  which is more important?

I have a lot of questions today, and very few answers. These are things that have been bouncing around in my head for years. I still don’t have clear solutions. All I know is that when I make music, and it sounds good to me, it feels good to me. And that feeling is everything. Everything. It’s what all artists are chasing after. And honestly, that should be enough. But it rarely is.

We want more. Artists want recognition. And that requires work—work that many of us don’t enjoy or would rather not do. Self promotion for feelers like myself is tough.

I can happily promote others. Hell, I do it professionally. But ask me to write a bio or artist statement about my most recent work… yikes. I just bottle up. The words disappear. But none of us can deny that this is a really important part of this whole artist thing. You got to get out there. You have to represent yourself because no one else will. At least, not until you can find the right kind of person and pay them what they ask.

So today I’m working on finding that balance, and finding an audience, and making work that speaks to people. It’s all about amplifying the voice and finding the people who want to hear it. 

Acknowledging our shadow selves -- and tapping into their power

Photo: Martino Pietropoli

“Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it is.”

— C.G. Jung

We all know things about ourselves we rarely choose to acknowledge or exhibit publicly. Our inner selves are intimate parts of our consciousness that may or may not be expressed in our dealings with the world at large. And yet, they are important to who we are as people. Without them, we would only get part way to understanding our true nature. 

C.G. Jung makes a clear distinction between these different elements of our selves by calling the primary personality we show the world our “No. 1,” and our secondary, hidden personality our “No. 2.”  

“No. 1 was the bearer of light,” he remarks in his memoir, Memories, Dreams, Reflections, “No. 2 followed him like a shadow… Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the blacker and denser it is.”

With No. 1, we must go forward “into the world of study, moneymaking, responsibilities, entanglements, errors, submissions, and defeats.” 

No. 2 is a link to our more primitive animal instincts, which are suppressed in our early development and superseded by the conscious mind. But our shadowy side is nevertheless critical. Jung writes No. 2 is inextricably tied to the creation of dreams, both in terms of life aspirations, and our sleeping reveries. 

Many of us choose to disregard No. 2 as the refuse of the mind—but such a view is foolish. If, as Jung says, our unconscious is composed of, “everything of which I know, but of which I am not at the moment thinking; everything of which I was once conscious but have now forgotten,” then No. 2 arguably has a deeper knowledge of the greater world than our primary personality.

How can we tap into the power of our shadow selves? The quickest way, Jung contends, is by listening to it when it speaks to us through our dreams, and carefully analyzing their contents.

Our No. 2 uses the same timeless language as myth, religion, and legend—with imagery and symbols that our conscious minds may find confounding. It’s dense, richly-layered material, but worth our time if we wish to understand our deepest drives, desires, and neuroses. “Dreams are,” Jung writes, “after all, compensations for the conscious attitude.” 

I used to have trouble remembering my dreams. Then I started writing them down every morning as soon as I woke up. I’m genuinely surprised how much more I remember now. It’s as if I’ve given my No. 2 the microphone, and now he’s starting to speak. 

More over, I’ve found that if I pose a question to my unconscious mind before I fall asleep at night, the dreams I do remember bear some deeper wisdom or commentary on the topic. I suggest anyone wanting to tap into their unconscious give this a try. 

No. 1 and No. 2 are inextricably linked—two parts of a single mind. Why not try to use this connection to benefit your wellbeing and goals? I’ll leave you with this choice quote.

“Although we human beings have our own personal life, we are yet in large measure the representatives, the victims and promoters of a collective spirit whose years are counted in centuries. We can well think all our lives long that we are following our noses, and may never discover that we are, for the most part, supernumeries on the stage of the world theater.”

— C.G. Jung