After about 10 minutes of brainstorming, the only thing that was actually clear was our lack of clarity. Was there one thing that all true celebrities had in common that we could key in on?
Didn’t seem that way.
It was in that moment that I longed to Marty McFly my way back to a time when things were more black and white as it related to celebrities. Back when you either had talent or you didn’t, and there was no quibbling about it.
I mean, think about it; was James Brown making it through a performance at the Apollo if he didn’t have the chops? Or would Michael Jackson have ever been able to amass the coinage necessary to purchase Bubbles if he was merely a flash in the pan?
Absolutely not.
Back then, talent was the name of the game … not sex tapes … not leaked pictures … not baby daddy associations. Just talent.
So where did we go wrong? When did we start caring more about unmarried housewives than the gripping, nuanced performances of Chiwetel Ejiofor and Lupita N’yongo in 12 Years a Slave?
When did a million Instagram followers become more important than Grammy nominations?
When did showing a– become more fashionable than showing class?
And finally, when did public fighting and disorderly conduct become more of the norm than our public figures exhibiting dignity and restraint?
These are the questions that we must begin to ask ourselves before welcoming newcomers into the fold of those that we elevate and place on a pedestal of adulation — particularly within the African American community.
Let’s recalibrate our expectations for who deserves celebrity attention, and instead place it on the hardworking actors, singers, rappers, comedians, authors, chefs, politicians, community leaders, and entrepreneurs who truly work hard, possess a tangible talent, and shed a positive light on both themselves, their families and our community.
It’s time-out for gimmicks, one-hit wonders, “mistakenly” released sex tapes, Twitter beefs, video rants, and groupie stardom. It starts with us.
It starts today.
