Roots of an Artist

Throughout the course of working on this project, and really throughout my career, I have encountered people who are not only consummate professionals, but also fans. These are people who can speak with authority in their particular field, and have a deep and profound love of it. It got me thinking, do you have to be fan of a thing to be great at a thing?

The question occurred to me while watching the Foo Fighters: Sonic highways. The HBO sponsored program is both a Foo Fighters album and a documentary about the history of American rock and roll, blues, and country. In it Dave Grohl and Co. travel to a dozen of the important studios in cities like Chicago, Washington D.C., and Nashville. Each episode explores these studios’ place in its history and the music scene they inhabit. It is a fascinating crash course in these genres. 

The best part is watching Dave Grohl’s unbridled glee at working alongside his idols, and the joy that many of these people have in talking about their passions.  All of them get this thousand yard stare that looks into the middle distance of their past—a past that happens to be the important landmarks in the American cultural landscape. I am only half way through at this point but I am loving the hell out of indulging the inner sixteen year-old who had dreams of being a rock star. 

To be honest, I love media like this. On any given day you can find me sneaking episodes of Parts Unknown and Tabletop, reading author blogs or articles about fandom that made it on to my news feed, or engrossed in the Still Untitled podcast. It’s a way for me to see into my idols’ passions and how they express themselves. 

The good news is that I can get my fandom fix in a lot of different ways. If I want to watch someone’s process all I have to do is find a streaming site, go to the movie theatre, or turn on Pandora.  We are in the age of fandom and some of the hottest media products out there are helmed by creators like J.J. Abrams, Joss Whedon, Guillermo De Toro. All of whom are self-professed fans of the projects that are working on.

I can’t say that every person that Dave Grohl, Anthony Bourdain, or Wil Wheaton interact with on their programs are fans.  I can’t even say that about Hollywood or Broadway. For some  a job is is  just a job no matter how glamerous, but at some level you find enjoyment in what you do they would have to be to keep doing it every day. So I don’t know, maybe you don’t have to be a fan to be good, or even great, at something, but is sure as hell helps.