Creativity is Your Superpower
It's what the world needs
It feels harder to break through than ever before. Not only are there less jobs, but increasingly it seems like all the opportunities are being taken by entities that are not human.
Take a glance at TikTok and all you’ll see is AI videos from Veo 3. Go on X and instead of conversations between people, you’ll see users asking ‘Grok’ to fact check. Go on Instagram Reels and, depending on your personal algorithm, you’ll either see a Gym Bro upselling his course or a Mommy Vlogger telling you you’re parenting wrong. This would be fine if there weren’t thousands of these ‘creators’ saying THE EXACT SAME THINGS!
”You know what? That is not what inspires people. That is NOT what inspires people.”
-Jerry Maguire.
People are screaming for something real.
Something that will light them up.
It’s hard to believe this when everything feels stacked against creativity.
People aren’t scrolling social media because they love it.
Yes, they’re addicted.
But why?
BECAUSE THEY ARE LOOKING FOR SOMETHING.
They are looking for you. Your art, your story, your voice.
I was in a daze for months, scrolling TikTok aimlessly, feeling lost. But then I found the music of Stephen Wilson Jr.
Not to exaggerate, but my life changed in an instant. This was EXACTLY what I needed.
I’m not saying that if you listen to the same music as me your life will change. But you know what? It might. I posted a video above of him covering ‘Stand By Me.’ If it speaks to you at all, check out the rest of his music.
But if you don’t like Stephen Wilson Jr, don’t worry about it. Your own version of greatness is out there.
Remember when Oliver Anthony released ‘Rich Men North of Richmond’?
As far as I’m aware, there was no marketing company behind it. No big scheme. It was just a guy with a guitar.
It’s had over 200 million views on YouTube and now this guy is set.
I like YouTube. Nearly every night after my kid is asleep I log on hoping to be captivated. Mostly, it’s crap. An algorithm of things that are somewhat like something I used to like. It’s a bore.
But every now and then you stumble upon a Peter Santenello.
And again, his videos might not be your jam. But to me, he’s one of the best documentary filmmakers around. There’s no particular agenda, he just likes to meet people and find out what they’re really thinking. His videos are addictive - but you don’t feel like you’re wasting your time.
All of the guys mentioned above are successful, both in terms of audience and money. But not because of film studios or record companies but because they have a voice and are unapologetic about putting it out into the world.
It really is tough out there. You can be putting out great work, and have no audience. Or you can build a big audience, and still not be making any money.
I write this blog partly to inspire you to use your voice in the world but I also understand that, realistically, it still takes a long time to get to where you need to be going.
You’re probably worrying that AI is taking over everything. And in many ways, you’re right.
But what we’re craving is NOT funny AI videos. It’s not Hollywood movies made by a machine.
We want realness.
We want to follow people on TikTok who make us laugh. We want to read Substackers who reflect the world back at us. We want music that helps us understand life and we want movies that take us somewhere we need to get to.
Big movies are flopping. Famous singers are releasing generic records that mean nothing. Celeb bloggers are inspiring nobody.
It’s time for you and me.
We just need to keep believing in our own voices.
And remember that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. And we build an audience one person at a time.
Your art is needed. Now, more than ever.
This is so true, and such a needed reminder! Us creatives have the unique ability to bring something human and real to our world, and we need these encouragements to not get sucked into the lie that we will only make art that matters if it is acceptable to the algorithms and big corporations that make money off of keeping us all on the un-human hamster wheel.
Thank you, I needed to read that. I was in a bit of a slump earlier before I went to the gym about creativity This really spoke to me and gave me a few more artists to listen to too! Winner. Subscribed.