What I Learned From Seeing Gorillaz
Or How Damon Albarn Made His Side Hustle His Most Successful Project
This week, I’m finding myself in a pickle. But it’s the best pickle to have.
I have too many things I want to write about (sorry, pickle fans, they’re kinda gross.)
So I went to LinkedIn and crowd-sourced, and a whopping 15 people answered the poll between two choices:
Write about the Gorillaz show I saw
Write about my first full-band show back in SLC
Most of y’all voted for Gorillaz, so that’s what I’ll be doing. A big no thank you to the person that said “none.” Real helpful, you.
I’m not a huge Gorillaz fan, but I love Damon Albarn. Who is Damon Albarn, you may ask?
He’s the auteur of Gorillaz, but before that, he was the frontman of the UK Britpop band Blur (y’know, the WOO HOO band.)
I’ve been a fan of Blur ever since I saw the “Boys and Girls” video when I moved back from Europe. I’m shocked I had never seen any of their videos before that when I lived in Europe because I would watch the Italy equivalent of MTV now and again, but I digress.
For the sake of time, here’s a quick summary of the Blur/Gorillaz timeline:
Blur recorded six albums until Albarn turned his attention to Gorillaz
Blur guitarist (and arguably the CCO of the band) Graham Coxon left Blur
Albarn released the first Gorillaz album and had larger success worldwide than he ever did with Blur
Albarn releases Blur’s last album without Coxon before their breakup
While I preferred Blur over Gorillaz because of *throws up horns* ROCK reasons, my first impression of Gorillaz was I had never really seen anything like it. I wasn’t even aware Albarn led the band. But I became more interested once I realized it was a collaboration with animator Jamie Hewlett.
Essentially, Albarn and Hewlett wanted to create a multi-media project where Albarn wasn’t the face of the band – it was an animated band.
This allowed for much more interactive and creative ways to market the music, something Blur could never do.
While I’m definitely a casual fan of the band, when I got the opportunity to see Gorillaz, I jumped at the chance.
I took my son with me for his first arena show experience (I took him to a couple of mewithoutYou shows when he was super little), and it RULED. Top five show experience, and this is coming from someone who’s easily been to couple-hundred shows in his life.
What struck me throughout the show, which was Albarn and a full band with awesome animation in the background, was that Blur probably has never played arenas in the US. If they have, they definitely wouldn’t be able to in places not Los Angeles or New York.
On the 45-minute drive home with my son passed out in the back, it got me thinking about my own career compared to Damon’s. It got me thinking about how being in a band with four full-time members is a lot like being in a company, and Gorillaz is the personal side hustle.
Speaking from experience, you sacrifice a lot when you’re in a band. At times you sacrifice your creativity, your time (especially when trying to coordinate times with 3-5 other people), and your preferences… all for the greater good. While some bands have a benevolent dictatorship (see Smashing Pumpkins, The Cure), others are a full democracy. Both ways are fine ways to run a band as long as it works for others in the band. But for some, it might not be for them.
I have no proof, but I have to imagine that after Blur’s self-titled and 13 albums, Albarn felt creatively stifled. Coxon had turned their British-flavored sound into a more American-friendly indie/grunge sound, making me wonder if Albarn needed something more. More creative control. More of his vision.
Not everyone’s a visionary. Some are content with following someone else’s lead. I thought that was me for a long time in my career. “I’m a good soldier,” I would say. And for the most part, I think that’s right. But after a few experiences with being laid off, fired, and having companies tell me they “don’t know what to do with me,” I got tired of giving control of a substantial portion of my life to companies that are either inept or clueless. Over 10 years of being a writer, I’ve had more than enough experience to know what I’m great at and how I believe things should work.
Since going out on my own in January, I’ve more or less survived. I’m not 100% “no” to returning to full-time work. But I am more aware of what I need from a company if I return to the traditional workforce. Since starting Chapters Creative, I’ve been more confident in my work with far less anxiety. While money isn’t guaranteed month-to-month, I’m far more driven because I need no one’s permission to execute my ideas. It’s been insanely liberating.
I wonder what Damon Albarn would say about his own experience starting Gorillaz. Since starting Gorillaz, Blur has come back for a tour or two and one more album, but Blur was more or less Graham Coxon’s baby at that point. I wonder if Albarn would say the same thing about being liberated by being his own boss. Of course, he has partnerships and collaborations, but he doesn’t have to pursue those relationships if he doesn’t have to. With Blur, there are three other people to make happy.
As a fan, I think I’m Team Coxon if I pick between the two. He’s a great songwriter and guitar player. But after seeing Albarn control a whole, almost-sold-out arena for almost two hours, executing his vision, I wondered if I should be Team Albarn.
I can relate to a lot about what he’s done in his career. While he’s a lot more successful than me (let’s be real), I’m inspired by his career decisions. He’s a true visionary who hasn’t settled, leaned into his strengths and collaborations, and he’s been rewarded.
And while I’m at a fork in the road of whether or not I come back to full-time work, at least my foray into my own business has taught me more about myself than being at any company ever has. If I do, I’ll consider it my “going back to Blur” for a season because there’s no shame in returning to your “old band” when it fits your life. But knowing there will always be my own personal Gorillaz is liberating.
And if you, Dear Reader, are a visionary or think you have more value beyond your 9 to 5, I hope you have your own Gorillaz too.
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Thank you for reading, and see you next time!