It has been one and a half years in the making and the ruling is no surprise. Clifford Harris, better known as rapper T.I., was sentenced to one year in prison for possession of illegal firearms, including silencers and machine guns. The recent media coverage of Harris’ sentencing is evidence that the old saying “any press is good press” is, unfortunately, once again proving itself to be true.
In one respect, Harris’ case is very uncommon. The issues that surround him are extremely serious because guns have the potential to seriously hurt or kill someone whereas the drama surrounding the Britney Spearses and Lindsay Lohans are mostly self-inflicted and isolated.
On the other hand, Harris’ case is very representative of what bad press covers. We have made these ordinary people into celebrities by embracing their personalities — by applauding their outlandish lifestyles and taking pleasure in their epic crashes — and ignoring their work. The more popular these celebrities become, the more we are drawn to their every move thus making them more popular, and simultaneously creating a feedback cycle that spins out of control.
The paparazzi are not the only source of blame. We have become so infatuated with their personal lives that we no longer look at them as musicians or actors but as celebrities that fill up the gossip pages. Tabloids keep selling because we keep buying. When celebrities make a misstep as big as the one that Harris made, we should be shunning them instead of embracing their flaws and boosting their record sales.
Granted, there have been many instances where celebrities made an error and society made them outcasts. For example, former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was ostracized when news came out that his property was being used for dog fighting. Like Harris, Vick was sentenced to prison and was subsequently suspended from the NFL. The difference between these two situations is that there was an organization that left Vick unemployed because of fear for the league’s image. In Harris’ circumstance, his record label Atlantic Records will probably exploit his legal troubles to increase their sales. When celebrities are allowed to make mistake after mistake without any consequences on their careers, it is up to us to act as the policing body.
With all that said, it seems as if T.I. might actually be a changed man. Harris launched an MTV reality show aptly titled “T.I.’s Road to Redemption” before his sentencing. The series showed Harris sharing his learning experiences with teenagers in hopes of showing them that there is another way than what they have grown accustomed to. Also, in his latest single “Dead and Gone” featuring Justin Timberlake, T.I. declares that “No regrets, I’m blessed to say the old me dead and gone away”. I want to believe that Harris’ intentions for the reality show were genuine and that he has changed, but if the “thug” image of the nineties reemerges in our culture, will we still see the new and reformed Harris or will he revert to his old ways?
There is no shortage of role models or celebrities with good intentions to choose from. Disney is producing family-friendly celebrities, but that does not mean that the scope is limited to the Jonas Brothers or the High School Musical cast. Sticking with hip-hop, a couple of names immediately jump to mind. Socially conscious rapper Nas has been raising awareness of life in impoverished neighborhoods since 1994. Lupe Fiasco, the Nas of this generation, is more focused on his rap lyrics than his rap sheet.
If we increase support for artists for their talent and music, like Nas and Lupe Fiasco — or the Jonas Brothers and Vanessa Hudgens if you prefer — then that would break the system of constant media attention to celebrities who have made a living based off of their drunken escapades, crack sales, and armament. In Harris’ case, we would be sending the message that the demand for artistry outweighs the demand for a criminal persona.
We have already chosen who we do and do not want to be and are not as impressionable as we were 10, 5, or even 2 years ago. For those that are younger (maybe your little brother, sister or cousin) watching these celebrities on TV every day has a great impact. We pick what we listen to on our iPods and what we watch on TV and our siblings are observing every move. If we keep giving celebrities a pass for their actions, what is that telling those who look up to you?
Hung Vu’s column appears Fridays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at h.vu@cavalierdaily.com.
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