I was definitely not the kid that just wanted to be famous for no reason whatsoever and then happened to find comedy. Fame and all that stuff have always been slightly terrifying to me, and it makes me very anxious.
Interpretation
Burnham expresses his ambivalence towards fame, indicating that he values authenticity over popularity.
In this quote, Bo Burnham articulates a common fear among artists and performers: the anxiety that comes with fame and the pressure to conform to public expectations. He suggests that true creativity should stem from genuine passion rather than the pursuit of recognition, highlighting the internal conflict many face when caught between the desire for acceptance and the fear of losing their true selves in the spotlight.
In practice
This quote can be used in a panel discussion about the pressures of celebrity culture.
I think it would collapse my heart if I was super famous. I don't have the nerve for it, I'm too anxious. I don't know how you're not obsessed with how people perceive you, because they're real people, you know? You can convince yourself that they don't really know you, and that's true, but how can it not hurt your feelings?
I've found nothing but support and generosity from older comics. I think comedians are a lot nicer than the stigma is, at least from my experience.
There's only one rule in stand-up, which is that you have to be funny. Yet 99 per cent of comics look and talk exactly the same.
My career was exploding at the same time that social media itself was expanding. But when my online videos were taking off, I didn't think, 'Oh, great! I'm going to be able to parlay this into a career!' I just wanted to be a comedian. I just wanted to perform live.
I'd much rather wait till my material is up to par, in my opinion, than rush it just so I can stay in the limelight a little longer.
Life, to me, doesn't feel like a straightforward story; it doesn't make sense for me to get up there and just tell a story. Life feels like what my show feels like: chaotic and strange and disconnected.
The essential thing is to WANT to sing. This then is a song. I am singing.
The public history of modern art is the story of conventional people not knowing what they are dealing with.
Architecture to me is whole. I cannot say I only care about this 25% and the other 75% I let go... it's just I want to work the way I want to work. In my shop, you can order certain things and other things you cannot. They are not available.
With any part you play, there is a certain amount of yourself in it. There has to be, otherwise it's just not acting. It's lying.
The modern artist is working with space and time, and expressing his feelings rather than illustrating.
Look, Salvador Dali did not paint because he needed the money. No conversation about materialism and music makes sense. You make music and that's that, it doesn't matter why.
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