CHARACTER
In A Battle of Who Can Go The Lowest? … Go Right.
I woke up with this on my mind today. Straight out of sleep, THATS when I KNOW it's something my soul is calling in.
we live in a certain type of world.
Competition over Sharing
Loud over Quiet
Skinny over Fat
Men over Women
White over Black
Light over dark
Long over short
More over moderation
AND ON.
and ON.
AND ON.
These are the GROUP agreements of most societies, Certainly American society.
CERTAINLY in the music industry, every word in that left column is true.
Which is why awards shows are such a big thing.
Competition over sharing.
Winning an award IS a wonderful barometer of success. A way to garner respect (read more money for your time) with Just a word, "Grammy Award Winning India Arie" especially for artists of color who are 99% of the time paid less. It’s a battle out here to be seen and heard, and paid. So yes… Grammy or prestigious moments, like Super Bowl half time shows … are important keys that open the biggest doors.
It’s smart BUSINESS.
But character, is a soul level, personal choice. I am not blind, I know that humanity deals in binary thinking. As we see any attempt at meeting in the middle is met with all manner of fear: legislation, violence, jest, cruelty.
What I am is idealistic, my heart really sees that there is a time and space for each expression to shine. A time for dark and light, and time for together and apart, a time for hot and cold.
But what I wish I wasn’t, is naive. I STILL BELIEVE that we can find a way to live and respect and enjoy! A flow between and spectrum of simultaneous expressions.
It hurts me all the time, that, thats not the world we live in. It’s certainly not a peaceful way to live, so when I must choose a side, for the sake of my mental health, Those words in that left column don’t feed MY spirit.
So for me, 25 years into a career, in the big game, for a time there, I was a trend setter, because I just chose a whole new word. When offered win or loose, I chose sincere.
And it worked! until the trend moved. But in that I found major success. I’m Not the biggest name, but a unique one, with a reputation that aligns with my character, and that means a whole lot to me.
“IN THE BATTLE OF WHO CAN GO THE LOWEST, GO RIGHT”
I wish that for MORE big artists. I wish that for all of us.
From my Windowsill
India Arie
Talk about alignment. We,(Soulbirds), get it. The core of who we are is enriched because of it. Our essence. Our foundation. The central force that shapes how we show up in this world is strengthened simply by leaning into truth. Those who don’t get it may never understand, though they’re often captivated by the intangible magic we experience and manifest. They want to reap the benefits, believing it can somehow be bought, unaware that the very act of trying to buy it or us reveals everything we need to know to disengage. So while naivety can seem like a weakness, there are levels and I believe its absolutely necessary to maintain balance in a world where people are becoming more disconnected from reality 💜🙏🏽✨
"I’m Not the biggest name, but a unique one"...bars!!!!! I want my sweatshirt with this!!Please!!♾️🫶🏾