Don’t Judge

While it has been a couple of months since it occurred, sometime around Sunday, August 30^th, 2009, rapper Jay-Z and pop singer Beyonce went to go see beloved indie rock band Grizzly Bear. Immediately, they were mobbed and photos were taken of this seemingly random occurrence. It was the type of weird cross pollination not seen in the decade, excluding maybe Kanye West’s random embrace of Daft Punk. But nonetheless, it was a cool moment to hear about, including the pair’s wacky bobbing to Grizzly Bear’s “Ready, Able.”Naturally, cool moments are made to be ruined.

When discussing the moment to others, they found it weird. That is understandable, African-American rappers never publicly show their love to soft-spoken indie acts on a regular basis or anything.

However, one in particular scoffed at Beyonce’s involvement.

I know nothing about Beyonce Knowles’ life. She could be a diva like depicted. She could be like the Queen of England in terms of her attitude towards people. I do not know and I probably never will. I also don’t care about her music taste or even if she really gave a crap to hear Grizzly Bear play. This is also insignificant to the point. I do know that credibility is easily the stupidest criteria in the history of anything. I do know that for certain, especially in music. This is because, as I’m sure you’re aware, music is subjective. We all experience and rationalize what we love in different sorts of ways.

Moreover, I don’t understand the silliness in disliking one genre of music. Am I gullible in liking music that speaks to me, no matter the genre? And even if I don’t like say country music, can I appreciate what it is without acting like it is the bane of my existence? I hope so, I’m probably not loyal to it – humans can break their own bonds and statements very easily – but I feel we should appreciate the diversity of our musical horticulture. Easy targets are far too easy to attack. Focus on the good instead of the bad. And just because Beyonce likes your favorite group, don’t judge.

-Trey Irby

~ by themissingink on October 28, 2009.