Separating the art from the artist?

Separating the art from the artist is a generic term used mostly in music when an artist is problematic or simply breaking the law and fans still believe their work shouldn’t be sidelined or abandoned because of their actions or in some rarer cases inactions.

In the light of recent revelations about how R Kelly treated the women he dated and slept with, it led to a major surge in his music numbers notably on Spotify. This is not the first time this trend has been noticed as other artists with problematic views or actions have also seen a spike in their music sales. Artists like Tekashi69, Kanye West, Nicki Minaj and Azealia Banks are notably notorious but these actions haven’t caused any tragic dips or fall offs in the careers just yet.

Truly there is no such thing as separating the art from the artist because by simply streaming/buying their music continually, attending their shows or buying their merch, you’re equipping them with more $$$ To encourage and support their problematic behaviors and habits.

Just maybe by dropping their numbers and paying less for their music and products we’d force them to change for the better. Or better still leave them ill equipped to finding ways to continue their less desirable actions