Words of wisdom from Billy Ray Cyrus...

[MonkeyFunk]

watching Dancing with the Stars for the first time ever, and he said "I've always tried to make up for what I lack in talent with effort and dedication."

And it's true! He's very limited, talent-wise, but got famous. A lot of big stars are like that - Madonna has no real discernible talent (outside modeling) but she WORKS it. Liza Minnelli is a marginal singer, an OK dancer, but became a diva.

I've seen great artists in concert that sucked because they just didn't care, and I've seen mediocre artists give it their all and really impress me.

Good for Billy Ray for recognizing that.

[Fenris]

1. I like him.

He reminds me of a lot of my relatives.

[graywarrior]

2. Meanwhile, there are some amazing artists who get zero recognition

while we all suck up Britney and Paris. Go figure.

[MonkeyFunk]

3. That's always been true

and always will be.

Talent and popularity are not synonymous, and I don't know why people still mourn over that.

Any given day on Broadway, you'll find supporting actors who are far more talented than most people you're likely to see on TV or in the movies. You've never heard of them, and likely never will. That's just the way it is.

[graywarrior]

4. It's probably better that way.

Even the ones we like, if they get over exposed, we end up hating them.

[MonkeyFunk]

5. Very true...

and then there are people who are very very talented, but either chose not to pursue the business, or never had the right opportunities to do so.

I think it was Stephen Jay Gould (or maybe it was Sagan) who wrote about the great loss to humanity because so many geniuses were never educated. If Einstein had been born in a small African village, we'd never have known who he was. If Mozart was born in South America, he may never have even been exposed to a musical insrument. Interesting to think about.

[graywarrior]

6. So f'n true.