There’s a lot of pressure in our culture to be original. And the self-actualization subculture isn’t any better. It’s probably worse.
Do you have to be an original? What if being original is overrated?
In the music world artists regularly cover other people’s work. Musicians like Jamie Cullum prove that a good cover is a valuable art form, in and of itself.
What many other great artists and individuals know is that filtering another person’s ideas through your own lens can be a profound experience unto itself; can create its own magic.
You don’t cover an original because you lack originality. Rather you play with someone else’s creation as a means of creating yourself.
Join me in this first episode of season two as I talk about my own experience as a musician playing musical covers, share my joy in Jamie Cullum’s The Song Society project, and propose that the pathway of any artist, leader, or parent is to imitate until you originate.
Media & Resources mentioned in this episode:
Jamie Cullum “The Song Society” Rules:
- Find a song you love or are fascinated by.
- Learn and record within the hour.
- No previous preparation allowed.
- Love and live with the mistakes.
Music by: Bright Sea.