What if, as music artists, are not meant to fit within the model? What if our ultimate goal is to act as the opposite of the agents in the Matrix?
We’re all familiar with the concept of the Matrix. Brought to everyone’s attention with the first movie in 1999, the Matrix has become part of our daily lives, whether in the form of phrasing, mental restraints, social behavior and so on. What at first seems a sci-fi extremely well orchestrated movie, after more than 20 years we’re all feeling it, more or less. Today I want to talk about how I think artists and creativity can act as the opponents to the agent of the Matrix and all those measures of control which are actually designed to keep us all unaware, while feeding the system.
First of all, I wish to clarify one aspect: when I think about the system, I don’t necessarily think of just a bunch of hideous people who gather, scheme and act in shadow, deciding the fate of the rest of the world. Of course that happens but I just see it as a manifestation of something that’s not even caused by the human being, while it's rather a condition of the existence within this third dimension. The concept of a Matrix ain’t new; there are several references amongst different cultures in the world that span over centuries. One of the most famous ones is the Maya, conceived as a veil that’s been pulled over our eyes to prevent us from access and see the truth of reality. This concept is dated about five thousand years ago, whereas numerous scripts in Sanskrit would talk about it.
That means that the idea of an illusion upon which we’d waste our entire existences has been around for thousands of years. For this reason, I blame no current agent of the Matrix more than any different form of control that was wielded throughout history because I simply think this is a precondition of our human life. Feeling, recognizing, awakening and ultimately escaping the Matrix is a job that we, as humans, have to accept in the first place. Again, this is just my opinion, supported by personal experiences, readings, meetings and concepts I resonate the most and thus, feel mine.
If this is true then, where do we stand as artists? The more I think about it, the more it makes sense. For a large part of history, with no exception nowadays, artists tend to be mocked. Perhaps not always visibly nor even consciously but I guess we can all agree that at a certain level, we all felt what we do ain’t that important because, in the end, what’s the use of art? Now, every real artist and enlightened person knows the huge value that art and creativity provide to our present lives and for the legacy of the lives to come; yet, how is it possible that it’s generally so common to take it less seriously?
That is when I’ve come to realize that an artist worthy of his name shall ALWAYS act as a counter-agent of the system. Let me explain this further. The creative act, thought and life finds its spark in rebellion, side thinking, rejection of the spoon-fed so called “righteous way” and the need of grasping what’s impalpable, hidden. In other words, creativity tries to connect to the source and download directly from there. An artist's ego will definitely get stuck and struggle with recognition, finances and daily basic human problems; we’re humans after all and we won’t cease to be. Yet, the core that always got us in motion is this apparently illogical need of reaching out for something, a something that can be found nowhere in the normal daily life. So, when an artist is coherent with him/herself and lives accordingly, he/she will always act as a rebel and bring to the surface thoughts, feelings and perspectives that perhaps other people can’t see. It’s our gift and mission; it’s the bigger “why” for which we were given this tool in the first place. Well, if you agree with me, there’s no wonder why we shall always be mocked, within the so called civilized culture, isn’t it?
Again, it’s not really important to know who this season's agents of control are, whether they are a corporation, some secret freemasons, bankers etc. Let’s just accept they embody the shape that control has for this historical moment and such shapes have changed over the course of history. They always will.
So, when you look up to the shiniest pop star and celebrity, you should have gotten by now that they ARE the system. How can they possibly represent the other part? They’re one of the most powerful mass distraction tools of the veil of Maya, because they make us look at them while more important things (such as how we spend our attention and what we truly do with our own lives, to name a couple of them) go overlooked. During these days, apparently we got a boost of awareness raised by the #blockout2024 trend that started on TikTok. All of a sudden, we seemed to have realized that regardless of how most of the celebrities speak against famine, women and children abuse and trafficking, female empowerment etc their deeds don’t reflect their statements at all. It’s all meant to draw our attention so that they can personally benefit off of our most precious resource (time) while the Matrix keeps us silently busy and feeding the system.
So, yea, music and art can definitely be used as a weapon of mass distraction and system control. Let's not kid ourselves: there's absolutely nothing that’s inherently pure and positive all the time. Literally anything can be reversed and turned into something harmful. Especially the most powerful things such as art and music, whenever reversed, they shall cause at least an equal damage than their potential benefit, if not even bigger.
Where am I going with all this? Well, if you followed me till now and you somehow resonated with what I’m saying, perhaps you’re starting to get the same feeling I have. Why do we normally feel outsiders, not accepted, not understood? Because that’s what actually tells us we’re on the right path!! If you feel that your art, your language, your perspective isn’t shared by a lot of people or doesn’t represent a wider interest, that’s how it’s supposed to be. We were given this gift to scramble and turn things upside down but no one said it has to always be at a large scale. A personal example: being the member of my family who upset the established order of “how things should be done”, brought a lot of things in motion. Not all of them were initially positive, but I definitely have changed, at least a little, a piece of three people’s lives.
Of course I'm not saying that true art and artists can't inspire a big multitude. It is definitely possible. However, I think it's about time we started to make peace with the process instead of seeing only the (missing) result. Time will tell what the magnitude of our art will be; however, the amplitude of our reach shouldn't be one of our biggest concerns because, as the butterfly effect tells (or quantum entanglement explains in a more modern and updated version of it) big changes might be eventually caused by affecting one person only.
Thinking and acting as an artist is first of all understanding we shall NEVER feel totally integrated. Because the day we will, there might be a good chance we’ve actually landed on the other side. I’m not saying that standing against the Matrix and embracing your role as a counter-agent should sound thrilling to you. But at least know it. Awakening and awareness is a one way journey: once you see and know certain things, you can’t unsee or forget them.
But, just like Cypher in the Matrix movie, one can choose oblivion or look the other way. Reality and truth are what they are: no one says they’re pure rainbows, gold and happy faces everywhere. So, in the end, it all comes down to a choice, possibly an aware one: are you up to accept that being an outstanding REAL ARTIST will enlist you with the enemies of the Matrix or would you rather trade this with whatever acknowledgment and reward the system offers to its agents?
Red pill or blue pill: the choice is yours.
