To the music world

No, I didn’t have a stroke. No, I don’t have any diagnosed muscle diseases. No, I don’t want your pity, and I don’t want to be rebuilt by the same people who made me feel like a piece of shit for writing musicals. I don’t want the help, I don’t need the help, and all you’ve done is annoy me. - It’s all about affordances: nobody can be a master of everything all at once. Getting really good at improvising meant sacrificing perfect tone. Not that I ever really cared about that: that’s Jane’s thing, not mine. Plus composing takes me away from performing - I always alternate, so eventually I’ll switch modes, but it won’t be until after I finish the Shipwrecked On Islands script. That’s my 2023 goal, alongside Election mischief. - I’m not your friend, and that’s your loss, not mine. It’s not like there weren’t opportunities to befriend me: I was actively inviting people to come to the club, and only a handful of my friends ever bothered. So seriously respect my independence. It’s not a joke: I have taken the opportunity to hear your pitches out, and I have said NO.

- I can’t tell if you’re fucking with me or not anymore, but I’ll defend the Waltz video: 1. I got the skin tones right for everyone but Tamatha.

2. It was supposed to be a challenge (of sorts) to the pollies.

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The Weed Tapes running commentary:

The Big Smoke one is way too long, I’m cutting it. It’s really Dakta and Gary’s story, not my story.

I promoted myself with some of these videos, but The Weed Tapes is all about the gang. 👍

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As for the Ad that I’m currently running: this is me milking the black screen effect. 🔊

Of all my various moves, I think that’s the one which really flipped some scripts about those issues. People can interpret it how they wish, but it's not like you're seeing a white guy sing, and it seems like it took a while for people to realise I was Pākehā/Palagi.

It’s become something of a feature of mine: deliberately inverting tropes for effect. I’d say comic effect, but honestly my motivations are serious.

I guess it is somewhat like the Front Lawn: we tried to make these very serious songs/films, but the effect on the audience is more comic than ‘serious’. - I'm really serious that I'm not keen on performing right now. I care significantly more about my compositions, and that means being very protective of my music. So respect my stance. It's valid not to want to make money off performing, particularly when I have a very long track record of anxiety re: live performance. It's not a problem to overcome: it's the entire reason I became a composer.