Egos and Icons: Do you expect to be famous ?

This issue has been discussed before, but I enjoy the arguments it brings...so here it is once again.

Fame...it seems to be a big concern amongst many graffiti writers. Everyone is looking for that little piece of the pie, that little bit of extra attention that puts them one space forward in the cafeteria lunch line. Insecurities lead to overcompensations in hopes that some legion of anonymous kids will become a fan base.

I have a hard time grasping this concept. I have an even harder time understanding how someone doing something so simple and trivial as graffiti, can allow this to inflate their ego to the point of near-explosion. Why do some writers become pompous assholes while others of the same calibre remain grounded and humble ? Where the hell does this rockstar mentality come into play ? Is it after 50 people jock your shit on the internet after you shamelessly posted the flicks yourself...is it after 100 kids who have never met you tell 100 of their mindless sheep bandwagon jumping friends that you're such a cool guy and you rock the spot harder than a hooker on welfare wednesday ? Is it once you have been invited into so many different crews that you need more space to shout them all out than to do your burner ? Is it when you have the same flicks printed in 10 magazines or get an interview in some homemade video ? At what point does one cross over from the simple "writer doing it for the personal satisfaction and enjoyment" to "writer doing it to uphold some inflated status within a community of nerds and wanna-be thugs" ?

Everyone says that graffiti is all about fun, but how many of them actually believe that shit ? Half the time I see people just stamping shit out with the same routine and indiference as they do at their factory job assembling N'Sync lunchboxes....just going through the motions.

I'm saying all this because I've had shit printed in magazines...I've had kids jock me at the spot...I've had my work exploited on the internet...and in videos....and when I first started painting graffiti that's probably all I could have ever dreamed of....and then it did and I realized that it was all bullshit and really had nothing to do with why I continued to paint.

bring it on.

I was always under the idea that people write for there own reasons. In my experinece the wrting community is no difference then society. There are jerks, nice guys, pompous assholes, every writer has there own personality. If people wanna write for fame, let them, do what you want, and do not let what others do concern you. It would be great if we could all unite, under the one thing we have in common, our love for graff, but i'm not sure if this will ever happen so meh. If it happens great, if not then wut can ya do! These are just my thoughts on the idea, ad sorry if i didn't really get to wut u were saying, but yaa my 2 cents... (also, one last apology if it didn't make sense, its pasrt of being a 13 year old loser who usually has no idea of what they are talking about)

...it is all about stamp licking...being in with all the movers and shakers,

posting up flix of your work, and raving, bro!!!! Oh, and be sure to start some type of beef...

this is the fast track to join the elite gay mafia squadron!!!..booty pirates...

(hope I didn't offend anyone.)

hahaha..

no, really...just write...advance your letters, and enjoy the act of painting....nothing else really matters.

This is all very true! The people that I respect the most are the modest, logical thinking, plain joe type of guys! There is no rockstar realism to the whole situation! Graffiti is nothing to be proud of like some super hero! It's a "road to nowhere" hobby! Tons of fun...........but it doesn't pay the bills,but rarely ever! Some of these "iconic motherfuckers" are 30+ years old and live at home with there mom! Some sad ass shit right there, I tell ya! I used to jock some of these guys when I had no clue years ago and wasn't "in the know". Now I sit back and laugh 'cause I almost feel retarded thinking that these cats used to mean something to me! My value system is different than some of these guys so that makes us different from jump! I've learned that there are many different types of writers just like different people! You learn something new about people every day................the priest at the church you used to go to when you were younger turns out to be a pedophile!! You won't know people in depth for a long time so be cautious and don't get played out by some geek writer who has nothing to offer you other than some "new letter style"!!!:rolleyes:

what cleansheets said.

If I do end up famous (which I'm hoping against)

It should be for something worthwile.

They aren't naming a Sandwich after Dondi down at the deli.

If I was to become famous I would want to be know as someone who has changed society in a possitive way. I wouldnt think of myself as famous but maybe the changes/movement would be recoginised.

I would be self content by just having one person listen and gather the knowledge that I have gained through my yrs.

But with fame does come ego.

Thus inorder for me to become recognised I would try to rid the connception of fame. I most likely would live like a Hindu - search for inner piece and comence with God once accomplished I would live out the 4 stages of man.

well...

When i started writing i always wanted to be famous like seen and dare and them but now its different... i still wish and want to be famous but know deep down it will never happen so i try to enjoy the art and culture of the graff instead of the fame of it. also one reason i could ever be famous in the us is cuz most of the ppl today that are famous writers are oldskool heads for instance...Seen, Dondi RIP, zephyr ya know the ones that killed the lines with full cars and panel peices nonstop so i say if ur out for fame do krazy shit that no one does thats so cool and do it ALOT! unless u do u wont get much fame...sept in ur area plus alot of famous writers are alot more famous because of thier legal walls....for example FX crew and all them heads....well my 2 cents is it thanks for listening and sorry if everyone dont agree....opinion runs this world......peace

i could care less about fame honestly. i dont look at what i want to achieve as fame,but i do want people to see work that i am proud of. i want to be respected for coming up as fast as i have,yet i also want whoever sees my work to know that it is never going to be enough. there is always progression to be made. but although i would like a certain degree of respect for what i do and the work i have put in to progress,i still do it for the love of it. if you will paint walls that you know no one else will probably see,that says something.if the main factor of choosing a location to paint based on visibility,that is no longer art,it is advertisement. and we all know that ad execs go to hell.....

i dont care for that stuff

just as long as i rock good shit and have fun

^^^^^ diddo

i dont got much to say on the subject....but i like your writing style...two thumbs up.....

i dont care about fame inits entirety , but i do care that ppl know of my shit . as long as someone sees it , im happy .

i think it really comes down to dick size and how many chicks you score with.

Originally posted by ASER1NE

i dont care about fame inits entirety , but i do care that ppl know of my shit . as long as someone sees it , im happy .

I don't believe for a second that writers do it for themselves and no one else. "I don't care about Fame, but I do care that people know of my shit." Brother... that's Fame. That's all Fame is. People knowing who you are. Grasp it and fly with it. It's what your personality does with the Fame that makes you an ass or humble.

If you get Fame... keep in mind one thing concerning writing... there's a hundred more out there way better than you just waiting to come up. That should keep you humble and keep you working.

If Fame wasn't an issue we'd all be hitting up inside our garages...

Originally posted by Joker

If Fame wasn't an issue we'd all be hitting up inside our garages...

but the fumes would have killed off the first generation

and the knowledge wouldn't have been passed along.

"That a very artististic way to off yourself"

I am famous

Im Barry Bonds

Originally posted by TrustEvil

you're such a cool guy and you rock the spot harder than a hooker on welfare wednesday ?

Thanks. I didn't think anyone noticed.

CAPS..... I like fame.

hilarious^^^^:crazy: :crazy: :crazy:

nope i don't expect it nor do i want it

i just would like to get up safely and maintain my freedom i also believe in quality not quantity

that's why i have a hard time figuring out why ppl on msg. boards are always writing -- "well i've never seen u up in LI" it seems like it's all about how much u get up for other writers to recognize u as a real writer

anyway peace

I demand respect.

im a pompas ass hole when it comes to graff. i think that im the be-all end-all. but when it comes right down to it. i still make the distinction between my graffiti life and my real life. My life as a writer is totally different to my life as a student.

Just the same as telling some one their peice is wack. dosent mean that person is not a cool guy. get what im saying?

i dont want fame. but a little recognition every two years or so would be nice eh?

i dont care about fame inits entirety , but i do care that ppl know of my shit . as long as someone sees it , im happy .

i know how aserine feels. as long as some one sees it. maybe only one person. dosent have to even be recognized as good graffiti. dosent even have to be recognized as graffiti. i talk too much.

i would like fame, but at the same time i don't want it. fame causes such a headache because when you're famous people dislike you on principle alone. seeing as you can't be famous without having rumours, haters, and shit talked about you, i'd prefer to not be famous.

Originally posted by Fabo 2

I demand respect.

I demand a b.j. from your mom.... doesn't mean I get it.

CAPS....... whaya whaya?

Originally posted by Mr. ABC

seeing as you can't be famous without having rumours, haters, and shit talked about you, i'd prefer to not be famous.

Yeah being famous sux. The b.j.s, free beer , and free clothes just gets to be to much........... geez

CAPS..... hahahah

If I could have my way, my graf would be more famous and nobody would know me. Fame is allright... It gets you free shit if you know how to work it.

"I'm about emptyin' cans. Just throw them shits on the floor and be like 'next"

true sometimes cuz of fame you get sponsored cuz heads in nyc like t-kid get sponsored by belton for pieces in hall of fame but its not like he looks for it...

It's all good when u get love from other catz..but I think respect is more important than fame....u could be the nicest artist in ur town..no respect...u gettin dissed! yeah respect and unlimited pizza and beer is what I'm after!

I first realized I was "graffiti famous" when I was walking around in Warsaw - I'm from the US - and met two kids from the Ukraine who knew all about me. Graffiti fame and five bucks will buy me a sandwich.

Even after ten years of thinking about this I'm still not sure.

Are any of you guys gonna seriously look me right in the face and say you paint IN PUBLIC - ONLY for yourself? It's a little too idealistic for me to believe by now. It's also a little idealistic, I think, to say you're not in it for the fame. I think it's more that we all want our fame AND we want to also determine how exactly it is that we're famous - ie what people think of us. That's a combo that we don't really have control over, though. Fact is, everyone has a right to their opinion of everyone, and at any level of fame, from Sudz to Sento, kids are gonna talk their smack, and kids are gonna jock.

So what can you do, really? I think the best answer is to get to know yourself and your motives as well as possible. You wanna play the game locally, by the rules, and win a place in your city's rank of kings, go for yours. You wanna get your work out to the world and tour Europe doing tech murals with Daim and the gang? Awesome, go for it. You wanna do that weird arty shit, right on. Just know yourself. Your work will be authentic YOU, regardless of what the peanut gallery or your superfans will say.

I came to the personal decision that I believed in my work a long while ago. That's MY "faith of graffiti." It's amazing how quickly the peanut gallery's rules of graffiti realness faded into meaninglessness after that.