(L) Donald Trump (R) Kanye West Photo Courtesy of AOL.com
Rather than a departure from what’s normal, Trump’s presidency could well mark the beginning of a new trend. His approach suits an internet age obsessed with celebrities and their lives.
The modern celebrity has existed as two personalities: one being the undeniable talents such as Michael Jackson, and the other being those famous for being famous –such as Kanye West and Kim Kardashian, who are all over the internet for music and fashion.
It was clear from the very beginnings of celebrity that being around the famous did strange things to the minds of their followers.
Fans assumed a false sense of familiarity and often wanted a piece of their idols: literally in the case of Michael Jackson, with American devotees trying to take his shoes or jackets for keepsakes. Today’s equivalent is the selfie with the hero as bestie.
Gazing back from the internet celebrity explosion of the 21st century, celebrity in the 20th century seems quaintly explicable and talent-based.
The establishment of the film and TV industries and the emergence of rock and roll from the 1950s onwards created a huge stable of celebrities whose names were widely known. The most famous tended to be those who sold the most albums, whose films were the most popular, or who were arrestingly beautiful or flirtatious.
The ubiquity of Trump, former California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Paris Hilton – people whose families were wealthy – reflected a change. Celebrity became more about attention and gossip than unique talent.
Trump is famous for living by the dictum that bad publicity is better than no publicity, which is an apparent motto to sum up the internet age of the early 21st century.
As people stopped watching and reading a narrow range of establishment media, via TV networks and well-known newspapers, and turned to the internet for information, finding out about the world became often accidental and gained via the Instagram’s and Twitters. This is part of where many blogs have became successful such as The Shaderoom, Baller Alert and bloggers like Karen Civil and Freddy O.
Even as of recently, Celebrity Music artist and Producer Kanye West have even hinted at running for President in 2020. With this win for someone like Trump who doesn’t have a day of political experience the campaign of a Kanye West doesn’t seem so funny anymore.
The fact that Kanye West could be running for President in 2020 has built up a lot of steam. Many of his fans have been urging him to run via social media ever since the early part of this year, so let’s sit back and see what will take place.
