Being critical of artist’s that you are a fan of doesn’t make you any less of a fan. This is what I scream at the top of my lungs every time the unquestionably great Aubrey “Drake” Graham is mentioned in cultural discourse. Now some may consider me to be hypercritical of the self proclaimed champagne connoisseur, especially of his most recent full length release Scorpion.  At the time I just thought that room could be made for more mature subject matter outside of his disdain for modern internet culture. But after revisiting the project earlier this week, I am beginning to realize the importance of addressing something like the effects that scrolling down the timeline can have on one’s mental health.

On “Emotionless”, Drake kicks off the second verse with both transparency and astute analysis on his personal struggles with social channels. The self-aware emcee emcee states, 

“Missin' out on my days 

Scrollin' through life and fishin' for praise

Opinions from total strangers take me out of my ways

I try and see who's there on the other end of the shade

Most times it's just somebody that's underaged

That's probably just alone and afraid

And lashin' out so that someone else can feel they pain.”

Now if arguably the biggest artist in all of music is guilty of utilizing IG likes and comments to crowdsource his self esteem, I’m sure that we all are experiencing this in some capacity, especially those of us who would consider ourselves to be creatives.

I mean Everybody Wants To Be Lit and I get that. Hip Hop is one of the leading creative industries currently driving the media and entertainment sector, which is now worth 1.8 trillion dollars. So everyone wants a piece of the pie and rightfully so. This particular type of demand within the marketplace results in increased competition and oversaturation. So how does an artist or creative separate themselves? I guess by mimicking the presentation and creating the perception that they’re “LIT” rather than actually being lit, right? Nah. That’s cap. This deceptive illusion of perceived perfection is absolutely destructive to the process. 

Artists, your work doesn’t need to be state of the art out the gate. Good should never be disposable, it is the prerequisite to greatness. All professionals start off as amateurs. To keep it a stack, outside of the mercurial viral sensation, most of the premiere acts in hip hop derive from humble beginnings.  Future was a third string member of the Dungeon family before he evolved into the revered Hndrxx persona that we’ve come to appreciate today . J. Cole attempted to pass along his demo to Hov and got curved before signing to him years later. Travis Scott was couch surfing in LA before “Love Sick” caught the attention of T.I; just to put this all into proper perspective. The creative path undoubtedly requires rigorous mental strength training. But it starts with going cold turkey on this pursuit of vanity and need for external validation. 

And yes social media is incredibly useful in terms of building one’s brand and developing a core fan base. But overconsumption can result in experiencing both feelings of inadequacy and anxiety. Remaining grounded in perspective, discerning what is perception and reality in this digital age is critical. With that being said, I know the phrase “don’t drake and drive” is a thing, but sometimes the man may have a point. There, I said it.