in both art and in content, the generative thing is *necessarily* cloaked

were you able to simply see the creator’s ‘real’ in its entirety, the mystery and the glamour - the qualities which ignite the imagination - would be lost entirely

so it is cloaked & revealed in glimpses

this is why the pseudonymical content creator has over the last decade entirely subsumed the cultural role which was previously allotted for rockstars, most of whom today completley lack mystique

digital anonymity creates conditions which allow for glamour’s preservation

when todays soundcloud rappers call themselves “rockstars”, it is because they, at their best, embody that archetypal role much more than people who actually make rock music

the original “real” rockstars abandoned glamour long ago - they tour, reminisece and are just, like, guys

the soundcloud rapper & pseudonymous poster understand what the “real” rockstar has forgotten: their role is not merely to make music but more importantly to make myth and to make meaning

this myth is rendered not only within the art-product but also in reality, it is lived

today, Reptilian Club Boyz are doing what Spaceghostpurrrp did a decade ago when he created much of the foundational framework of this millieu - they’re worldbuilding, they’re creating a mythical aesthetic universe. Odd Future did this too, as did Lil Ugly Mane, Lil Uzi Vert etc

this class of mythmakers is entirely seperate from their peers, with whom they may share a medium (trap music. tweeting etc) but they are essentially operating in an entirely different plane. But they don’t do it forever - the myth inevitably collapses, oftentimes after a tragedy

it’s essential to distinguish whether a myth is actually *lived in* by those making it (skin in the game.)

the majority of artists & posters don’t live in their myths - they create renderings of their dream world as art-products, then ‘present’ them like show-and-tell