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Image: Public Domain, Pixabay
I was sitting in the living room having my lunch and we had Music Choice Party Favorites playing for background sound on the television. I looked up at the screen and saw Cathy Dennis. The song was “Touch Me”, which is one I always liked. When an image of Cathy appeared on the screen, my initial thought was “Ugh! They should not show what these celebrities look like now that they’re not young anymore.” Almost instantly I was upset with myself for having thought that, and with society for causing people to think that way.
You see, thinking that older = ugly or gross is what society is trying to teach us. We’re supposed to value youth and money over all else. Someone who’s got some age on them is no longer cool or attractive and we’re not supposed to like them. It’s a sick mentality that just encourages vanity, materialism and ignorance. We’re taught to think only about the surface, and pay little or no attention to what’s underneath.
The truth is, Cathy Dennis is still pretty. And even there, I had to stop myself from saying “she looks good for her age”. You see what the media does to people? Even I’m not immune to the brain hacking, I’m just able to catch on and correct myself, whereas most people just go along with it, not even realizing that what they’re thinking or saying is wrong. Yes, she’s still pretty, still talented, and she was talented back then.
The whole thing makes me think of something I saw on television a few years ago, where some artist whose name I’ve unfortunately forgotten, was going after a record label who refused to sign them because they weren’t “marektably attractive”. I remember hearing them sing and they were amazing, but they couldn’t get signed because they didn’t look like what the label wanted to sell. How messed up is that? Isn’t music supposed to be about, well, the music and the singing? Shouldn’t a person’s talent be more important than their looks?
People really need to use their brains and common sense more. When you listen to the music it should be about the sound of the music and the voices that are singing. What they look like should have no importance at all. The sad fact is that there are loads of “hot” people in the music industry who have about as much talent as a drunken monkey. (And I apologize to any drunken monkeys who may have been offended by that comment.)
On that note, I’m going to leave you with some songs by artists who are considered ugly, but have some serious talent.
Steven Tyler
Amy Winehouse
Brian Hugh Warner
John Popper
Janis Joplin
