John Lennon was right.

A few weeks ago I visited the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in downtown Cleveland. It’s a great place and if you appreciate music, you’ll love it. On one exhibit there was a quote from John Lennon that I felt was pretty profound. The quote says “My role in society, or any artist’s or poet’s role, is to try and express what we all feel. Not to tell people how to feel. Not as a preacher, not as a leader, but as a reflection of us all”.

I love that quote. It means to me is that as an artist your job is to give people the opportunity to feel. What and how they feel is up to them.

For instance, nearly everyone has seen Van Gogh’s painting Starry Night. Almost everyone has a reaction to it. Some people may find it peaceful and calm, others may be captivated by its swirls and fluidity, and yet others will find it crude and unrefined. That’s the marvelous thing about art, it makes you feel. How you feel is personal and it’s not the artist’s job to push you.

It seems that lately, too many artists, especially those with celebrity status are intent on telling how we should feel and are doing so to promote personal or political interests. They are no longer content to make people feel, they want to control how and what they feel.

I think everyone would be better served by considering John Lennon’s words.

John Lennon’s quote at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland, OH.

Thanks for reading and be sure to check out the rest of my website.

– Ken.