Something I was thinking about in the car today, shuffling through songs that glorify The Hustle, talk about how money is all that matters…It got me wondering if there’s too much media that tells us that working ourselves to death is the only way to live.
Yes, I am of course aware that there’s plenty of media about living a life of leisure, rebelling against the grind, and so on. I’m am of course also aware that a solid work ethic is a generally positive trait.
So the question I guess comes down to balance. What do you see as the prevailing message in the media you see/hear/read? Is it, “Work as hard and amass as much money as you possibly can and nothing else matters?” Or do you see something different/better?
Isn’t this typically said by gangster rappers, anyway? Lots of them have fake personas, and if it’s real their hustle is often crime - not exactly something to aspire to, and there’s already tons of discussion about the questionable messages of gangsters rap.
But also, I’d definitely be more motivated to work my ass off if I was living my dream, like most music artists are doing - not necessarily for money, but for being able to continue to live my dream, and make the most of however much time I have as a professional artist.
Prevailing message in media … well … most of the music I listen to doesn’t have vocals … I do consume a lot of fantasy content (books, games, TV shows/movies), where “get rich or die trying” is definitely a thing, though a lot of it also has more lofty motivations such as saving the world (which at least in games usually needs material wealth to accomplish), or the protagonist is just fighting for their life.