Music art =/= artist

[Cay]

when listening to music, do you separate the art from the artist? for example, say an artist creates a song that is god-tier but it turns out they are an awful person. do you continue to listen, or boycott?

 

[moon]

I'm guilty of disregarding my feelings on the creator in favor of the content. Likewise, I'm also not shy to acknowledge when artists I consider great, produce poop (:

 

[Her]

i tend to be of the opinion that art is inextricably linked to the artist - i think it foolish and a denial of the artist themselves to remove their life experiences, their influences, their decisions from their output. this is equal for the good and bad sides of things. why do people praise an artist when they use their life experience to make a good work but then totally deny the same idea if the life experience is something morally reprehensible? at the same time, however, i am fickle like everyone else when it comes to deciding what makes a person so heinous i can't enjoy their work in the slightest. for example - i loathe woody allen and roman polanski to high hell and back, but despite loathing mel gibson on the same level, i've found that i do not come after his output with the same level of reproach compared to allen/polanski. while it is not a moral lapse to many, i consider it one under my moral code and it makes me considerably uncomfortable to think about. not that i actually put proper thought into the mel gibson example until two minutes ago. everyone is fickle about this subject with at least one artist, it just depends on how you react to it, i guess.

that being said, i do think as long as you are not financially supporting someone whose morals you totally disagree with, it is understandable. it's a reasonable response and it allows one to observe their own morality while still taking part in what may be a very good piece of work.

 

[tokyodrift]

If I don't like them, I usually tend to shy away, even if it becomes mainstream.