My favourite music artist of all time will probably always be Michael Jackson.
For many of you that know me personally, it would not be much of a surprise. For some of you it may be, as you may think I can't sing or dance - because it looks med school has turned me into a serious machine. (Not true by the way).
If you had asked me 10 years ago who the best dancer worldwide was, I would have replied with his name. I was amazed with his moves. I loved his music. I loved how bigger than life he seemed. How deeply people loved him, even people who knew nothing but his songs and his name. He was the innovator of dance, and he changed music forever.
Sometime a few years ago I watched the music video for Chris Brown's 'Turn Up The Music', and I was so amazed that I turned to my brother and said, "Chris Brown wants to out-dance Michael Jackson". I was full of awe. I had been following Chris Brown for years, but that was the first time he reached 'MJ level' to me. Something I had thought was impossible for anyone to do. And as the years passed by, I noticed more and more amazing dancers. Even ones who were not famous at all. Then going back to think on Michael Jackson's dancing, I realized he hadn't really changed much from the last ten years before his retirement.
Younger people were doing cooler and riskier moves. Moving in ways that I honestly believed would be hard for MJ. It was... not easy to take in. Realizing that he was, well... seeming to become old-school. I had always wondered how come he never tried to keep inventing new ones. Of course after thinking it through, I realized that it's not that he hadn't, but rather that as he was getting older, it would be harder for his body to work in the same way as he had when he was younger. And the culture of dance he grew up with was different from what my generation saw and innovated. They had more to work with. More competition. More drive. More to prove. Michael was getting old. And in time, I had to admit sadly that maybe he wasn't the best anymore.
A few days ago I watched a video by the winner of 2013's 'America's Got Talent', Kenichi. He was a drama dancer, and was absolutely amazing to watch. In 2018 he was invited to perform as a guest for the show, and in the behind the scenes clips he revealed that even though he was popular and doing his best, it was getting harder and harder to compete with newer talents. He couldn't move as fluidly as he could before. Others were getting better and better, and he had to do far more thinking just to match up. The game was leaving him behind. (His performance was spectacular by the way, check it out below)
Honestly, I felt a bit sad for him though. It also made me wonder about every other profession out there in the world. Medicine, Architecture, Music, Fashion Design, Literature, Food and more. These days there is more information, better equipment, improvements in understanding, expansion of imagination and so much more that give the youth an edge. And with professions that have to do with physical skill and creativity, it would seem like age is creeping upon you. It isn't easy to adapt to new changes, new requirements, new technology, new expectations and trends and more.
And I wonder if that's the fate of all of us sometime in the future. Reaching a point where we have little more to offer in comparison to those who come after you, and feeling obsolete. Everyone of us - just becoming dancers.
Thanks for reading,
Love, Stars and Olden days.
-------------------------
Did you like this article? You'll definitely like others like...
1. Why We Can't Be Friends
2. How To Be A Great Visitor
No comments:
Post a Comment