ghost artist, naked humble pie?

take for instance the pressure to perform creatively for a client. you've got deadlines - quantity v quality - meets keeping on top of evolving trends - and not to mention the ever looming pressure that your personal 'dollar value' puts on your standard to produce.

most artists are quick to jump on and claim everything as there own, they want it branded, stamped, signed, sealed, credited and watermarked. they want first right, first ownership and first recognition to anything that their creative mind touches. and while for some, self included, they couldn't bare the thought of another taking credit for something they created. there are others who choose to 'ghost write' under the pretense that not only do they not receive recognition in any form, but someone else does.

i wanted to explore this non issue - in my non blog. here. where im only just discovering that this is a long existing practice mostly used by celebrities & politicians. but moreover, musicians & artists. in an age where technology has literally become our creative clutch, to refine, retouch, and redesign our ideas - is it just as ethical, or un, to have someone else, like a human computer - re invent yours.

after some light wiki-research i discovered that ghost artists are incredibly well paid. where if you cant make a name for yourself, why not help make a name for someone else. an artists last resort? or first? and is this fine-art humble, or just another dirty little secret that runs blip off our industry radar.

if this were a university article, here is where i would insert my findings. things like; "the ghostwriter for Hillary Clinton's memoirs will receive is probably about $500,000" , "pharmaceutical companies pay both professional writers to produce papers and then pay other scientists or physicians to attach their names to these papers before they are published in medical or scientific journals" , "the increasing use of ghostwriters by high-profile hip-hop stars has led to controversy. Critics view the increasing use of hip-hop ghostwriters as the "perversion of hip-hop by commerce." & "Tiesto does the same with Dennis Waakop-Reijers, who co-produces all Tiesto-credited work. He doesn't make his own work."

you do the math.

surely the term, "fake it till you make it", was not intended to be extended beyond "making it" or vice versa. and at the heart of it, wouldnt you as a public member, like to save your real applause for those actually responsible?

i sometimes feel creatively inadequate. its easy to look around at the amount of talent out there and be instantly overwhelmed, 'woah, ive no hope'. forgetting that it is a rare event that any reputable artist goes unassisted. who are we kidding, its practically propaganda with a dash of finesse.

im all for raw talent, solo artists who climb trees, break legs, and write 'five beats a day for three summers'. im for a VS angel without implants, a beautiful man with natural muscle & an improvised dance.

a world full of acoustic artists who play on their imperfections.



with a little original love, M