Blog Assignment #2

FINDING YOUR HOWL

By Jonathon Flaum:

http://changethis.com/manifesto/51.01.YourHowl/pdf/51.01.YourHowl.pdf

Jonathan Flaum starts with the story of a red wolf named Mumon who, after being raised in captivity and later released, is unable to find his “howl”. A howl is important because it distinguishes a leader, and ultimately is necessary for the success of a wolf pack. To find this howl, Mumon has to dig deep, deep through the dark, through the shame, and through the fear that separates him from his goal. Before he is completely broken down and scared the howl eludes him, it is only after he goes through a transient death-like state that he is able to finally howl.

What point is Flaum trying to make? In Part II of the manifesto he makes it quite clear:

As Mumon did, we may have to sacrifice everything, spend a significant amount of time alone, do things that we believe we can’t do, and walk away from a life that no longer fits our expanding need for freedom. This process may feel like a death. At
its most intense, it may terrify us, and at its least intense, unsettle us. This is the price of finding our howl, our own one-of-a-kind authentic voice, and there is no way around it (page 8).

Flaum is imploring us to embrace the philosophy that to find freedom, our creative voice, we need to get out of our “self-erected prisons”.

He’s absolutely right. To free yourself artistically you have to let go of what is holding you back, that’s what freedom is. At your most basic level you have to decimate yourself to an extent and start over, this time with your newfound freedom.

It won’t be easy either. How could it? To go to the core of your being an address the things that hold you back, cage you, you may have to address aspects of yourself that are scary and mind-blowing, in a negative sense. This hardship though is not without it’s payoff, which makes it all worth it for those willing to take on the challenge. After all, in the case of Mumon “The red wolf had become its howl. The trauma of near extinction and captivity had given way to freedom— an ever expanding freedom” (page 7)

Here are some lyrics that speak to me; I apologize in advance for the inappropriate nature of the lyrics:

Alright, Gambino is a mastermind,

Fuck a bitch to pass the time,

Mass appeal, Orange rind,

Smoke your green, I’m spending mine,

The beat is witch’s brew,

But beware this shit is potent,

E.E. Cumming on her face,

Now it’s poetry in motion,

Yeah Gambino make it work,

I’m the boss, move somethin’,

Yeah, this cool fucking suits me,

The swag, two button,

These girls be actin’ crazy when they dancin’, Black Swan,

I ain’t fuckin’ at the club,

Put your clothes back on…

~Childish Gambino (a.k.a. Donald Glover)

“Freaks and Geeks”

I remember the first time I heard Run-DMC’s Walk this Way more vividly than I remember any of the other first exposures I had to other songs. I was five years old, sitting in the lounge waiting for another ballet practice, when a door to another studio opened, giving way to a completely different style of music than Disney-pop or Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker Suite. I don’t think I’ve ever had a greater urge to dance, including the numerous ballet classes, than when I heard that beat. The beat isn’t ever that spectacular, but it was new, different, and it spoke to me. Since then, I have continued my somewhat odd attachment to the Hip-hop/Rap/R&B genre of music. It drives my parents crazy, makes me feel like a poser, and is sometimes surprising to those who don’t know me. But oh how I love it. Which is why when something in a genre of music that already holds my heart goes a step further, it’s like pure bliss. Childish Gambino did this for me through his own creativity, attitude, and through just being there at the right time for me personally.

I appreciate a nice female body enough, it is after all my own gender, but there are times when I would rather be decked with a baseball bat than listen to some guy whine over the party, the booze, and the female from last night. Not to say that doesn’t have its place in my playlist—because I won’t lie, it totally does—but I like to see some change every now and then. This is where Gambino comes in, as he’s incredibly witty. Ask my mother and you’ll get an earful of disagreement, but I like what he says. He takes the modern, smart perspective of clubbing and weed, and let’s be honest, were you not slightly impressed (or offended, either is a response at least) to the poetry in motion line? I like the twists and turns he takes, not just in this song, but in all his music.

His attitude is offensive. Which isn’t unusual for any sort of artist in his genre to have. What sets him apart is who he’s offending. Now, besides the usual listeners offended by the use of profanity, he’s also poking at the listeners who he appeals to. To the weed smokers, he doesn’t relate, he says he doesn’t do it. To the girls, he reprimands them for the way they dress. He’s commenting both negatively and creatively on the culture that his music should flourish in. Maybe that’s what holds him back from mass popularity; you never do hear Gambino in your clubs and your bars. But I’ll admit, that just makes me like him more.

I first heard Childish Gambino in my sister’s car on the way back from the grocery store. I tuned in for a second to register what song was on the radio, and I couldn’t identify it. I couldn’t even identify the artist! So I tuned in more and listened to some of the lyrics and was blown away. I had just heard the Wiz Khalifa song “No Sleep”, which is a recollection of the crazy night he had before, when I heard another one of Gambino’s songs admonishing that behavior (cleverly to boot). I think having just listened to a song that epitomized the most crude behavior that my generation is capable of, then listening to Gambino, I was instantly set up to love the song.

Gambino, to me, is mastermind, through his creativity, attitude, and just happening to be heard at an opportune time. I’ll always love Hip-hop/Rap/R&B, but Gambino will be around in my mind for a long time. So yeah, “Gambino make it work”, for me.