Can art be separated from the artist?
There was time, in an age long before drive thru dry cleaners and stuffed crust pizzas, that I was something of a performer.
Not a very good one, I hasten to add, but one that was often seen, microphone in hand, in some of the less salubrious pubs across the land.
If there was a karaoke on, I would be there, usually fuelled by a pint or six along with a year’s worth of pork scratchings or scampi fries. Singing would be to overstate it but old favourites would be belted out including hits from Rod Stewart, Tom Jones, The Rolling Stones and very occasionally I would do my best not to massacre the peerless works of Elvis.
But there was one tune above any other that would always be at the heart of my repertoire – ‘The Leader of the Gang’ by Gary Glitter, a tune guaranteed to have people on their feet and stamping their feet to the famous beat.
That was then, because, as we know, the music stopped abruptly for Glitter when he was first arrested for possession of horrific images and ever since he has rightly become one of the most reviled figures in the land and is serving a 16-year jail term for sexually abusing young girls. I’ve not heard one of his hits for over 20 years because a) I don’t really feel comfortable tapping my feet to the music of a convicted paedophile and b) not a radio station in the land will play his tunes.
In the era of #MeToo, when light is being shone on crimes of yesteryear, we hear the question whether the art can be separated from the artist. Popular opinion seems to be of the belief that you can’t separate the two and that to appreciate the work is to appreciate the performer.
RnB superstar R Kelly, who is facing multiple sexual assault charges, has been dropped by his record label and is being muted by music fans, following a recent explosive documentary.
Now, arguably the biggest star of the past 40 years, Michael Jackson, has been reportedly dropped from the BBC Radio 2 playlist following fresh revelations in another documentary, which focuses on allegations from two men who say they were abused by the late star when they were children. Allegations against Jackson are nothing new and, even though the claims are contested by his family, it does appear that the world is listening to his accusers. Throughout history there have been a number of public figures who have had question marks over their character, yet people don’t always shun their work.
It seems to be the trend currently that famous sexual offenders are systematically removed from public view but will it ever be acceptable to listen to, or even sing, their songs again?
The choice really is that of the individual.