They're so VERBAL!

That's one thing Americans don't understand about Canadians. Their gift of gab. I've never met a silent Canadian.

But you wouldn't know that unless you came here.

It's a cultural thing, maybe as a result of the long, cold winters. But everybody is talkative in a way all Americans are not. But I didn't expect Tegan and Sara to be so, because they're rock stars. You know, different from you and me. Up on a pedestal. Deigning us with their attention.

But not these women.

Not that I can say I was excited about the theme, which was "Beyond the Music: Tegan and Sara on Advocacy, Identity & Impact."

You see Departure is the new CMW (i.e. "Canadian Music Week"), albeit with some comedy and cooking mixed in. And they have some Canadian stars speaking. And I got here last night and the app said these women were appearing and...

What else was I going to do? Stay in my hotel room? Watch more of "The Pitt" on my iPad? Finish my book?

I remember Neal Preston, Led Zeppelin's tour photographer, telling me he'd been around the world and seen nothing, I try to make sure that's not the case with me. However, the hotel where I'm staying/where the conference is is down by the lake, near the soccer stadium, so it's not ambling adjacent, but...I like to feel I'm in the city I'm in, I like to participate.

But I didn't expect to be intrigued, to be paying attention to Tegan and Sara.

You see you drop in late, sit in the back, scroll your phone...

That's what most bigwigs do at these events, assuming they attend at all.

And what do I know about Tegan and Sara? NOT MUCH! I mean I'm aware they're gay and were with Warner Brothers and have a career and...

They're talking about their foundation. Sara says how everybody told them to focus on one issue, but that's not how they saw it, they want to address needs in the LGBTQ community. And that could be as varied as bus passes for workers doing outreach in communities to sponsoring kids at gay summer camps.

I did not know it was a thing. I mean I assumed some existed, but now I know it's more of a network. And one of the sisters remarked that she didn't love summer camp, and one broke her arm there, but the biggest reward of going to gay summer camp was to be around gay adults, who you could model.

Not that all the talk was about gay issues...

Sara talked about the difference between conversations with men and women. The men always want to rank things, like the best Beatle albums. The women want to talk about more social issues.

And then, Tegan said...

You may not like our last record. You may not like everything we stand for. But what I'm hoping for most is you like ME!

Wow, this is the essence of being not only a public figure, but influencer culture today. It really comes down to the identity. And if you don't have one, it's harder to ensnare fans.

But the truth is all performers are insecure. They need to be accepted and liked. It fills an inner need. Oftentimes this is why they do it.

Not that many will admit it.

But the best story was about appearing on the Oscars, singing their song from "The LEGO Movie," and right thereafter meeting with agents and being shown a graph of their career, which saw pointing down, down, down...

You think you're at the top, you're having your best moment, you're pinching yourself, and just after that you find out you're struggling. It's a wake up call and a reality check.

Now in the U.S. everything is groovy. The stars are media-trained. They say nothing controversial and shine their wares such that you're starstruck.

But not these two.

How successful are they?

I'm not sure. They've been in the game twenty five years, which is an accomplishment unto itself, and on Spotify they've got a cut with a hundred million streams, but...

We live in a new world. Traditional media keeps telling us how big the stars are when they've never been smaller in the recording era. Just like you can avoid news you don't like, only consuming curated media that fits your world view, the same is true for music. You've got the acts you're a fan of and the rest...might as well not exist. It's not a homogeneous world anymore. It's every act for themselves. So Tegan and Sara aren't in the music business, they're in the TEGAN AND SARA BUSINESS!

You've got to forget the klieg lights, all the trappings of yore are gone. There is no MTV making your hit universally known. Sure, there are people surviving on streaming royalties alone, but the fact that you can't has nothing to do with Spotify but the niche-ification of the scene. Hell, look at it this way. Your newspaper, assuming you get one, doesn't even print all the sports scores. And if you go to "The Athletic," you've got to click through to find the standings. They used to be up front and center, now they're for fans only. I used to peruse the standings in the major sports in the newspaper, I wanted to get a snapshot of how things were going, now it takes an effort, and I have other priorities.

Now Tegan and Sara are twins, but they're not identical in personality. Sara is a bit more edgy, Tegan is a bit softer. These are nuances, and not definitive, but...

That's what we're looking for, PEOPLE, not STARS!

And that requires an adjustment across the board. From the acts to the media.

But the public already knows. To be a true fan of someone there must be more than the hit.

As for Canada... Jake was telling me last night that Karen sent him a picture of her ankle, she was icing it and he said to go get x-rays, ultimately she did, and it was broken. And this triggered a thought in my brain. If medical was free, covered by my taxes, I would have gone to the emergency room back in 1991 instead of toughing it out and ultimately losing a body part.

Trying to think of a downside...

Canada has one tenth the population of the United States. And as a result, everybody knows everybody, it's a giant high school, if you get too big for your britches, they tear you down, cut you down to size.

But maybe that's good. Because it results in more well-rounded people who focus on the work, on their lives as opposed to pure stardom.

And ultimately that's what turns people into stars anyway. The work, the identity, not the airs.

Which is why Canadian acts outpunch their weight in the music business. Along with government support, that is.

But we don't need no stinking support for the arts in America. That's SOCIALIST!

Well, people live for screwing, eating and the arts. Period. The arts make life worth living. They reflect our lives back upon us.

It's key to get your priorities straight.

And they do an excellent job of that in Canada.

Eh?


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