Oddly enough, I know… well knew… okay, I met Doja before all of her worldly fame. She worked on music with an associate of mine so I’d catch her at the studio on occasion.
What type of person was she? A bit reserved at times. Good mannered. Homely. Good-natured. Hilarious. Talented.
As far as Sam Hyde goes, I think of him as a true performance artist. Could his art lead to some detrimental ends for some people? Sure. That’s a possibility. But also eating flaming hot Cheetos or drinking multiple Red Bulls can kill you over time.
I’m not sure I’d consider Sam a genius. Smart? Yes. Talented? Sure. A genius? I honestly don’t know.
I’m not one to fling that title around loosely, though. I’d have to sit with the man and gauge the inner workings of his brain to come to that conclusion. But what I will say is there’s obviously a method to his madness and I feel that he has made it his duty to hold a mirror to society and point out its hypocrisy, and to make fun of the value systems that he finds stupid through works littered with outrage and irony.
For me, I find it easier to surmise whether or not a writer is a genius than most other types of artists. I see good work in many different disciplines every day but I’m not sure it’s genius.
Both Sam and Doja do good work. Actually, they do great work. And there is something to be said for individuals who clearly do not give a fuck what other people think about them and their artistic expressions.
The funniest part of it all to me is that they play with the symbolism that most people take seriously.