Fame is a charismatic phenomenon. It is enhanced when the expression/display/use of one’s gift upon others has a transformational effect; triggering an instant affinity bond due to the “magic” of the performer. The person who was silent now speaks. The person who was sad now laughs. The person who frigid get turned on. The person who thought themselves stupid starts asking smart questions. Conversely, the person who was blissful becomes aware. The person who was passive becomes rebellious and the person who smiling is now sad. The capacity to convert a person’s experience from one frame to another through the experience of your expression/labor requires talent. For most, the intrinsic utility of a talent gets taken for granted even though we experience it everyday. But when people get attached to your expression, that is how you start to generate charisma which eventually leads to fame.

There is the Hollywood publicist induced version of fame which has an exponential role. However, the people who stay famous for more than a decade have to have something more going on that scheduled appearances pop culture refers to as “paparazzi sightings”.

Truly famous people are charismatic because their expression or their work transforms people’s emotional states upon the experience of their talent. This, however, is a two-way street. As the audience is transformed by the expression, the gifted person/artist is transformed by the audience’s appreciation. This more than praise or compliments. Praise, compliments and awards are to used to soothe the ego, but the soul of artist is moved by something deeper. Effect.

Nothing makes an artist more confident in their work than watching an organic, visceral response to their work. One which a compliment cannot elaborate and a bad review cannot override. Some artists are indifferent to the response as long it is organic or does not put theirs or someone’s life at risk. But others are sensitive. They view themselves as agents of light and prefer to see their work received as a positive influence rather than a negative one.

Insert Ye, or the artist formerly known as Kanye West – the Twitter Rant specialist and Will Smith – whose career took a dark turn on the greatest night of his career. These artists made it a point earlier in their fame to highlight their role in being an inspiration to others. They emphasized possibility over despair, optimism over cynicism, faith over delusion, celebration over deliberation. Ye released the song “Jesus Walks” in an industry that did not want him to make Christian faith so prominent. Will Smith refused to proliferate profanity in his lyrics in an era where most top rated hip hop albums came with warning labels. For more than two decades both men have been at the height of Hollywood and global celebrity.

However, such heights of fame and status can come with blinders due to their economic relevance. When truly gifted people become that famous it gets harder for them to see their charismatic effect in real time. They are constantly peppered with compliments and “yes-men” that they never get a clear report. Their fame and wealth upholds economic institutions and they cannot be allowed to change course if a certain expression trajectory is getting new production companies, agencies, factories and homes erected. Thus the one thing that is truly responsible for their charisma is thwarted.

Given their lines of work this also an occupational default. The recording artists goes through a period of writing, recording, mixing and mastery before his music gets released as tracks on a streaming app and a movie star does their amazing work on set and goes home for their work to be received a whole school semester to a calendar year away from when the director last yelled “cut”. By the time both artists are watching people experience their work, they may no longer be aligned with whatever moment of the song or theme of the film inspires. Worse off, they are not around enough people at the time of release to truly see what the visceral reactions are. Box office numbers and reviews no matter how good only do so much because the artist themselves does not get to witness people in the moment.

Thus it may be no surprise that celebrities no matter how famous or adored may do something so outrageous that it makes one wonder where they got the idea. With Ye, we have seen the social media rants and anti-semitic outbursts. With Will Smith, we saw the slap heard around the world. Hardly have we seen this as an effect of the starvation of the charismatic effect or what I choose to call charismatic deficit. An artist’s true charisma comes from the artists observation and reception of the organic and visceral effect of their work in real time. It is no wonder we have some people settle for being shock jocks or tease queens. Those are much easier pathways but to lead very short term engagement.

I believe talented, well-meaning artists ought to spend time watching people experience their work – their gifts. For those with whom the reactions align, this exponentially increases their charisma. For those for whom it does not, as long as the reactions are organic and visceral it is great information. You hear of the TV series actor who has a memorable villain arc on a soap opera or TV drama that gets lectured while in line at the DMV or while walking their dog. It appears negative but such actors are blessed in a way that fan favorites can only dream of. It is no wonder we rarely see such outbursts from career theatre actors and traveling comedians or even opera singers. It should be noted they may not be that neurologically different but they enjoy much more reciprocal charismatic experience than superstars.

Sometimes, it is not about how much we are praised or validated but how much we see that what we have curated with care matters to others in how in changes them – hopefully for the better.

by Julian Michael Yong.