The entertainment industry is one of the most seductive and most frightening things to get into. The better you do, the more you grow into this demigod – worshipped, revered and sometimes, they will love to hate you. People are magnetized by your skill or your looks. They all want a piece of you, to bask a little in the glow of your godlike status.  You begin to revel in the attention.  It is all ego driven. And you love it. You develop an insatiable appetite for affirmation.
This shallow industry of ours is that seductress you sometimes wish you hadn’t met. This seductress comes with terms and conditions. Social media has become this drug she is addicted to. In spite of yourself, you keep feeding her addiction for it, placing yourself in the line of fire. You put the work in, she can be the best thing that ever happened to you. In a nutshell, as much as social media has become THE way to get yourself out there, places like Twitter have also become like toilet graffiti: anonymous unwarranted ugliness aimed at you for no reason at all.

Someone once told me, “know thyself”, and the deeper in bed I fall with this seductress the more I realize the importance of knowing thine self. Cyber bullying knows no bounds, and feeding the beast this social media drug opens you up to welcome and unwelcome access to you. You become strange bedfellows with cowards who hide behind their devices and vent their own self hate and insecurities by attacking anyone who seems to have too much positivity surrounding them. And of course, your die hard fans.  

 When I think back to pre- social media days, I remember how people lost their minds at simply seeing a celebrity live or sending out snail mail with the hopes that somewhere out there this person is touching the very same paper they touched, reading their thoughts. Now, celebs, famous people, influential people are just a click away. EVERYONE has access, and everyone gets to feel important by getting a reaction out of those people. the higher you rise, the more they try to tug at your hem.

I remember the first time I read a mean tweet directed at me. I had scrolled through so much love and there was this one attack. It felt personal. It stung. I responded. Until I realized nobody seemed to care much about that tweet. And I didn’t know this person from Adam. So how could I take it personally? Over time I have come to check out these people’s timelines to try and get their vibe. 9 out of 10 times they spew bile at people with a high following. or they are people with a high following based on their decidedly controversial tweets.  Some, honestly, are cyber bullies dressed as thought leaders. More interesting, had been how celebrities respond to these people. When I see public figures retweeting the hate on their timelines, I feel like they are saying “so what?”.  Skin doesn’t come thicker than that. Some people seem to get quite upset. Why not let the block button become your best friend? I have watched people go to twar with these sad individuals and I don’t understand where they get the energy from, but I guess sometimes you want to show that you can stand up for yourself. A powerful weapon, I find though, is to emphasize their insignificance by ignoring them. They are not part of your reality not do they change the price of bread. When you hang out in Black Twitter you know you are with a volatile group of peers. The switch from good times to pure ungovernance is insane.  And sadly, that place for a lot of us has become this industry’s BFF who you struggle to get along with. I am deeply in love with this seductress though, I take her abuse and I get lost in her love. But I know myself. I know my worth. And I know the magic of the block button. Focus on the positive vibes from the people who enjoy your work and be mature enough to reflect on genuine criticism about your work if you care about your craft. It isn’t hate, it is feedback.

So if you are sitting there, aspirant performer, looking longingly at this temptress that is the entertainment industry, take note. Keep working towards your craft and don’t be blinded by the spotlight. And be willing to stand by who you are and have set out to be. As for me, well, I shall continue to police my social media streets with a strict ban on littering: Not On My Timeline Bitches. This is a put up zone!