YouTube POWER.

It seems that when all else fails (in getting a spot of attention in the limelight of the mass media that is,) it's time to try the internet. With the increasing accessibility of the computer these days, almost anyone can extend his or her reach into the possibilities that lie in "infinity and beyond!" - in the words of Buzz Lightyear, and radically change their whole life. Well if you haven't guessed it by now - despite the title of this post - the topic of interest this time is the rise of the YouTube stars.

Take Esmee Denters for example. A lovely girl with an incredible voice, it didn't take long for her to get attention amongst the YouTube  community. She posted videos of herself singing covers of popular hits like "What Goes Around Comes Around" by Justin Timberlake, "Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield and "Because of You" by Ne-yo, just to name a few. And poof! She got spotted by an artist manager by the name of Jonathan Berhane, introduced to Billy Mann and signed by none other than Justin Timberlake himself by early June, 2007 - as the first artist on his Tennman Records label. Then, she even got on Oprah to tell her tale of YouTube success. For those interested, her album's out in March this year. 

Here's a video of her singing if you're interested (this was prior to her getting signed).



Now, everyone wants to be the next Esmee Denters, having seen the power and reach of that tiny little box in their room.

So there's Justin Bie, a small boy with a big voice. In the words of one of the commentors in one of his videos, “For crying out loud, someone give the kid a record label already.” You’ll see, or rather hear, the justification for that statement here:



And it looks like he went the same way Esmee Denters did, if this video is anything to go by - Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel paid a visit.



There's also Alyssa Bernal, a girl with a striking resemblance to Vanessa Anne Hudgens; or you could look up Cathy Nguyen. I'm probably missing out some of the more known YouTube stars here (because I don't spend all my time on YouTube, contrary to popular belief, haha.)

Seeing this, no wonder the Powerful Effects Theory regarding the media, where the audience is considered to be a passive listener is mostly defunct. It seems more to me like the audience is leading the media in the way they would like to go now, wouldn't you agree? :)

Group Think.

Group think: according to Irving Jarvis, "a mode of thinking that people engage in when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when members' strivings for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action."

Symptoms of this apparently include an illusion of invulnerability (where you feel like together, anything is possible), you have shared stereotypes (possibly those types of people you categorize together and collectively make fun of), illusion of unanimity... The list goes on.

In search of a relevant article, I came across this article by accident: click here :)
Written by a tattoo expert, Ashley M Ford. It's not a long read, do check it out before continuing on this post.

Personally, I've never heard of tattoo parties. Drinking parties, yes. This though, was really beyond my imagination at least. I've heard of a group of people going for a tattoo together, but hosting a tattoo party in your own home? Highly problematic I believe. For one, who’s to guarantee the safety of those getting tattoos?

I don’t have a problem with people with tattoos. In fact, I do have friends that have them. Rather, it’s the specific concept of tattoo parties that I question. What a person does with his or her body is a result of their individual decision, I believe, and it often says something about how they think and what they feel. With tattoo parties, however, I can just imagine the atmosphere and peer pressure that would probably be going on. Individual decision? Probably not so much. Especially not for those individuals who simply care more about other people’s opinions of them.

Though some may argue that peer pressure to get a tattoo can work outside of such an environment – a point which I would concede – I think the actual participation or simply, attendance of such an event would definitely be far more concentrated in terms of the whole vibe and for example, having a crowd egg someone on. Sure, some of us would have no problem saying “no” to getting a tattoo; but to be honest, haven’t you ever had a crazy moment where you had done something that you would not have usually done simply because your friends dared or pushed you to do? And for a moment, you might have felt on top of the world when you had “accomplished” it.

I think everyone probably has a certain level you would or would not cross when it comes to the whole idea of “group think”. From individual to individual though, it differs in flexibility. And it would probably depend on what you’re all set out to do as well. Then again, what’s acceptable to one person would possibly be the opposite to another.

Fashioning That First Impression

Above is a video of the backstage processes that take place just before the final catwalk that exhibits the designer's pride and joy for that season - after the clothes are ready of course. Basically, the work done on the models, the touch-ups, hair styles, how the clothes are all put together, et cetera. Just for that moment of reckoning, where the audience will view the clothing - and the decision of the fashion editors, movie stars and fashion icons will be made based on the what they see: inspiring or boring?

It just goes to show how vital society prizes first impressions to be. Often, much of what we notice about a person when we meet them for the first time tends to have a hold on our perception of them for a while, especially if our contact with them is infrequent. Fashion, perhaps, can be said to be the result of human being's desire to be physically striking/ remembered, especially in a more complimentary light. Why else do women search for the "perfect outfit" and a "good cut" that "compliments and enhances" them? They desire to be remembered in a good light.

To fashion something is to make something into a required form. In the context of society and physical appearance, this would usually refer to the adherence to popular clothing trends. Some would consider this to be part of a process where the individual in society is increasingly defined by the standards of society and what it demands, rather than by the choice of the individual himself/ herself, leading to the loss of personal identity. Yet, perhaps it can be argued as well that while admittedly, there may be some who pay no mind to their external appearance who stand as exceptions, many who so-called fashion themselves in a certain manner do so to identify themselves with a certain group with similar interests. For example, the cute “kawaii” Japanese girls with lots of ribbons and prints with cartoons, or the “emo” (emotional) youths that characteristically adopt styles such as skinny jeans and lots of eyeliner (though even within this particular group, there are many other ways of associating oneself with them by dressing). Simply by how one dresses, some aspects of their character and interests can be deduced. At times though, these first impressions are hardly justified and highly probable to change over time.

In my own experiences, I’ve met people who are so vastly different from how they appear at first glance that it’s almost amusing. Over time, their physical appearance – though from time to time still throwing me off balance, especially when they opt for a drastic change and I have not seen them for awhile – is discounted more and more, in place of who they actually are and the type of people they become to me.

What about you? Does the first impression of someone (especially by appearance) hold true for you throughout the entire course of interaction with them? Or how do you think the first impression one has of a person affect their behavior afterward?

Non-verbal Communication

When travelling from one place to another, or simply waiting around alone where I am meeting friends, I tend to unconsciously lapse into people-watching. Free and highly entertaining.

Awkward teenage couples holding hands (in their secondary school uniform, no less), the look in a mother's eyes as her toddler son runs on ahead of her - mixed with love, gentleness and sometimes, a tinge of worry...

Even when in a group, people-watching comes right in; where we study people together - for instance, conversations such as "Take a guess, are they a couple or siblings?" - or even, "Sugar Daddy or real daddy?" All in the name of good fun.

Yet, haven't you ever experienced those moments, where your guess of a certain relationship between two people comes out horribly off the mark? Embarassing, and even more so if you'd made your thoughts known to the friends around you. Personally, I find non-verbal communication highly subjective.

Everyone's character and upbringing is different. For example, what may be personal space to one may be casual distance to another. Some greet each other with a hug, some with just a slight nod and smile. To each his own, yes?

Then there are some individuals people label with the words- " NO EQ". The one who rubs everyone the wrong way without even knowing it. Perhaps because of how he/she was brought up, or not enough interaction with people in general, or perhaps, simply too dense to sense anything wrong with the whole atmosphere between people - and most often, caused by the inability to correctly interpret the non-verbal language of those around them. Most of them take everything literally, and can't see into the actions and behavior of others. The non-verbal is nonexistent.

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like in that person's shoes. By no means am I a saint, for I get irritated with some just as much as the next person, nor am I saying we "should treat them better, they can't help it" - because I would probably find that difficult myself. Furthermore, with such individuals, the people around find them annoying to varying degrees. Is that a cause of personal idiosyncrasies (eg. "I can't stand people who jump into the conversation without knowing what it's all about.") or a perspective developed over experience of what defines socially acceptable behavior in interaction between people?

At times though, I do question myself. Would I be as dense to the social "air" if I'd been the one to cause the tension? Or, why I might find someone more tiresome to be around than others.

What are your thoughts and perhaps, experiences with such individuals? Or do you find the red and green lights of non-verbal communication sometimes all fall under the category of amber as well? Do tell. :)