Did you know that the expressions of any artist, is a direct reflection of what is first in his or her life? Did you really know that? (Keep reading)

     The thing that is first in one’s life will dominate everything pertaining to that person’s life. It’s more than just the types of music that we write or the songs that we sing, but rather what we value as individuals because an artist cannot truly express what they do not value.

     The thing that is first in your life whether it be a certain way you think, a personal preference that you have or other desires you have connected yourself to, it will dictate the place or the presence of whatever else is in your life.

     So if what other people think about you is first in your life, then it is what will drive your expression. If fame or glamour is first in your life, then it is that that will drive your expression. If drama is first in your life, then it will drive your expression. If getting out of poverty is first in your life, then it will drive your expression. For the sake of time and bandwidth, just fill in the blank however you wish.

“If ____________________ is first in my life, then ___________________ will drive my expression.”

     Many artists, when they picked up that instrument or that microphone, whether it was a branch with a string on it, or mother’s pots and pans, they seemed to have met their day with destiny. They discovered a creative ability that made them feel complete and endowed with purpose. However, many of them never considered that the essence of those abilities would be shaped by the primary focus in their lives, which they thought would be shaped by those abilities.

     So I ask the question. What is first in your life? What is driving the ability you have to do what is you say you were born to do? (Don’t answer just yet,… keep reading)

     Because it is easy for us to give that politically correct response. You know that response “This is something I’ve always loved as a child” or “It’s a gift that I believe God wanted me to share with the world.”  -Because what is first in your life is your identity and is invulnerable to a good “PR” statement.

     Life responds to whatever is first in your life. Life does not mistake you for your “stage name.” Life is not deceived by fictitious alter-egos that many have used to shield themselves from the “haters.” Whatever is first in your life will always place itself center stage and everything else will be subjected to play the “supporting role.”

     What is first in your life is what you will bring people to. You cannot protect your friends and loved ones from what is first in your life because what is first in your life is where you live. It is possible for you to visit other ideas or creative trends, but you will always end up back home to what is first.

     So now that you’ve gotten to this point, have you begun to think about what is first in your life? Have you realized the driving force behind your artistic expression? If you have, has it caused you to change or refocus your life to ensure that the original intention of your expression is first? Has it caused you to  reprioritize what you will allow to take that dominant place? And believe it or not, it has nothing to do with whether or not one changes the beat or the lyrics to make them look like what should be first. Neither does it mean creating a new “image.” However, it will have to do with your choice to endure the process of changes that will connect you to your “originally intended” expression. 

Remember that before you can be true to yourself, you have to first know who you are.