I just had a flash back to when Neil ranted about all of Adam's fans following him on his Negative Neil blog and how he wanted his own fans. Fans who were there to read his take on life ,not there to get a glimmer of their real love,ADAM.He actually stopped writing.The sad thing is that Neil is a wonderful tongue in cheek,excuse the pun, writer and I really miss his work.
The thing that both Neil and cheeks don't seem to appreciate ,is that fans are fans no matter how you get them!!!
I'm not sure I agree with your last statement, in a nice way, because it's kind of like being in high school and having lots of girlfriends because your brother's hot! In the beginning it's flattering, but when something occurs and you stop to think who your REAL friends are, it can be an eye opener.
Just read many of the comments to Cheeks.. most professing love ,in spite of finding him through Adam.I was taken back by some writers almost apologizing for being a fan of Adams.. Maybe Cheeks will be issuing a loyalty proclamation to sign.You are the one Cheeks,NOT Adam,,, signed______________.
I just had a flash back to when Neil ranted about all of Adam's fans following him on his Negative Neil blog and how he wanted his own fans. Fans who were there to read his take on life ,not there to get a glimmer of their real love,ADAM.He actually stopped writing.The sad thing is that Neil is a wonderful tongue in cheek,excuse the pun, writer and I really miss his work.
The thing that both Neil and cheeks don't seem to appreciate ,is that fans are fans no matter how you get them!!!
I'm not sure I agree with your last statement, in a nice way, because it's kind of like being in high school and having lots of girlfriends because your brother's hot! In the beginning it's flattering, but when something occurs and you stop to think who your REAL friends are, it can be an eye opener.
True but it's not your brother's fault that he is hot.
Its interesting that we all read such different things into Cheeks' words. I thought he said pretty clearly that he enjoys all his fans, no matter how they found him. His frustration was with people who only hang around on the off chance that he will let a personal detail about Adam slip.
I also didn't think he was angry at Adam. I think he was saying that it's weird to have his past, the one he has so carefully said nothing about, be so public without his permission or participation. People interested in Adam, whether because they love him or hate him, have thrown the photo album of his life into the public conversation. They've seen him in drag. They've seen him nearly naked. They've seen him with Adam's tongue down his throat. Bill O'Reilly used that picture on television. But in many quarters he's still pretty anonymous- which leads to his comment about having a waiting audience but not being famous. and it happened because someone he once loved went on television in hopes of getting better roles in theater.
And add to that he's got fans who think they have a better idea about what he should or should not be doing next. Or that he should be doing things the way they want him too, rather than the way HE wants to.
I don't know enough to guess whether or not he over-reacted, but I would say that he's earned the right to be irritated.
Raja WINS Rupaul’s Drag Race: Part 2 of The Faster Times’ Exclusive Interview APRIL 25, 2011
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The Path to Drag Race
“Jake and I lived here in New York together for 2 years, and then the recession his and then things just got really difficult, and oh God, I didn’t know what I was doing with my life. I was like, what am I doing in fucking New York? I need to make shit happen. I lost my job with Top Model. I was like, what am I doing? So I went back to LA. I had always kept my apartment there. I spent a few months just regrouping, and also just feeling sorry for myself. And then Adam [Lambert] came about. Actually, Adam happened here, really. It started in New York. And when I moved to LA, I just started working with him more and more. And then the tour came about. And just it seemed like…you know, you just need to go with it. I didn’t ever think in my life that I would come to New York and move here. I actually moved here for love. And everyone was like, “Don’t fucking do it. It’s the wrong thing to do.” But if you ever get the opportunity to move somewhere for love, you should do it”
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Thanks, wal, for posting this! I finally got to see the taped finale on Logo. I have such respect for Raja. When she said winning the title afforded her an opportunity to speak to those who feel like 'social misfits', to let them know it is OK to be different and express yourself creatively, I cried all over again. She will be an agent for change as Adam is. I applaud Manila and Alexis too. Breaking down boundaries, reaching for dreams, opening doors and hearts..what courage and style. BAM!!
I thank Adam every day for the people he has introduced into my life. I am that much richer a person, a kinder soul and more open to new thoughts and ideas.
Regarding Brad's blog: I was surprised he mentioned Adam. Anyone associated with Adam has to carry a certain level of notoriety now and I can imagine it isn't always pretty. We all have our flash points. It feels like Brad reached his and in the moment he wrote what he wrote. I hope it helped him clear perhaps some of the pressure he has been dealing with in this arena and that he carries on with his creative pursuits.
This seems like a time of setting personal boundaries and of creative growth for many now, not only celebrities. How many of us are not facing similar challenges? Supporting one another is what we have to face the ebbs and flows of life. We are fortunate to have this community at Atop! On that note, I'll say goodnite.
Its interesting that we all read such different things into Cheeks' words. I thought he said pretty clearly that he enjoys all his fans, no matter how they found him. His frustration was with people who only hang around on the off chance that he will let a personal detail about Adam slip.
I also didn't think he was angry at Adam. I think he was saying that it's weird to have his past, the one he has so carefully said nothing about, be so public without his permission or participation. People interested in Adam, whether because they love him or hate him, have thrown the photo album of his life into the public conversation. They've seen him in drag. They've seen him nearly naked. They've seen him with Adam's tongue down his throat. Bill O'Reilly used that picture on television. But in many quarters he's still pretty anonymous- which leads to his comment about having a waiting audience but not being famous. and it happened because someone he once loved went on television in hopes of getting better roles in theater.
And add to that he's got fans who think they have a better idea about what he should or should not be doing next. Or that he should be doing things the way they want him too, rather than the way HE wants to.
I don't know enough to guess whether or not he over-reacted, but I would say that he's earned the right to be irritated.
That's exactly the way I read his rant, too. He's not attacking fans for having found him through Adam. He's well aware that that's the case. But when one particular fan complained to him that he was no longer tweeting in the way she wanted him to tweet, and that she didn't want to take the time to visit the links he posted, he got ticked off. I don't blame him.
Nobody is forced to follow anyone. I stopped following several people in Adam's circle because I realized I wasn't finding their tweets that interesting. I didn't tweet them and tell them to stop being boring to me. I just clicked the little tag that allowed me to stop getting their tweets.
Neither Adam nor Cheeks has betrayed anyone by not living up to their expectations. It's that sense of entitlement that Adam has talked about, and it's intrusive and rude. I'm glad Cheeks told her that if she's unhappy with what he's tweeting, she should simply unfollow him.
Post by durberville on Apr 26, 2011 23:33:29 GMT -5
I still haven't quite decided how I feel about Cheeks "rant".... I've followed him for AGES, but I'll be honest, I'm a little taken aback.
(I didn't like the tone of the Adam reference :-/)
Still following for now.....he's very, very talented. I guess I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and ignore what bugged me....Oh, and I feel like he was saying if we didn't "participate" on his site, or if he couldn't recognize our avi, we're somehow lesser fans. Meh.
Last Edit: Apr 26, 2011 23:40:17 GMT -5 by durberville
Second-hand fame can get to a person. My husband's grandfather (who passed away shortly before husband went to college) was extremely well known in academia. When husby went to college, professors would recognize the last name and immediately, sometimes in a class, mention that his grandfather was on his PhD committee, how amazing he had been, oh, and was my husband (then boyfriend) going to go into the same field - and on and on. There were times when it was rather overwhelming and made him feel that he, himself, wasn't of interest to the professor, just the fame connection was of interest. He routinely dropped any class where the professor did this, because it made him uncomfortable. Also dropped classes where books written by grandfather were required reading. Dropping classes and changing schedules did create a few class requirement/credit/scheduling challenges!
Even now, and college was a long time ago, we meet people who get all fanboy/girl about the grandfather and want to talk about nothing else. A little is OK, but, really sometimes it is way over the top. If that is all they are interested in perhaps I can suggest they read a biography~ And sometimes we would get phone calls from strangers wanting information or some question answered! That could be a bit creepy.
I can't imagine having social media magnify this 100 times! or 1000 times!! Poor Brad must have gotten many "why did you break his heart?" and "I 'd love to see you back together, I'm picturing the two of you $%!&$#@ing now!" messages. Ugh! My husband having to deal with bright, educated people being crazy fans made one want to crab and complain sometimes, and could cause sort of an overall down feeling at times. But to have people kind of (or actually) invade one's privacy, write fanfic, send photos, send altered photos, demand, pry, etc!! OMG, even if one tuned out most of it, Yikes! Not fun, not funny, not self-affirming, not uplifting. Brad's actually handled it all very well, as far as we know. Apparently it does get to him sometimes, though... Oh, and imagine how any current sweetheart might feel knowing about, or seeing, what crazy-serious shippers have to say about Cheeks and Adam getting back together!
OK, enough rant. Cheeks' essay brought back some ~feelings~ about second hand fame, I guess. Apologies for going on about it
peace&love
The singer has everything within him. The notes come out from his very life. They are not materials gathered from outside. - Rabindranath Tagore