210-350-7111

Online, I’m primarily a reader and listener. I write, and have made videos and podcasts, but prefer to use the internet to consume music and news. Although you’ll occasionally spot me on Bluesky and Reddit, I ditched the more mainstream platforms about a year ago.

I’d been planning to leave for a while. When you see a bad road ahead, you find a better road. When you know enough about history, psychology, and communication to see simple truths that others ignore — i.e., fascism is evil — you pave your own road.

The internet, like all media, has always had its bubbles. You know about those. They float, glisten, and mesmerize. Even your pets love them, especially the catnip variety. And why not? The world is loaded with distractions. Focus is rarer than crude oil these days. Ask anyone who checks their analytics.

Analytics are why the internet has turned into talk radio. In only a decade, we’ve gone from Marc Maron and Kevin Smith interviewing other smart, talented people, to Joe Rogan interviewing his hack friends for hours, to idiot gamers turning high school kids into goosestepping debate bros. Spotify, Amazon and YouTube customers are so hooked on blabbermouth background noise, they barely question the notion of AI podcasts. (As if AI music wasn’t stomach-churning enough.) It’s Rush Limbaugh all over again, who was really Father Coughlin all over again.

Blame the data hawks. If your goal is to create, you’ll create. If your goal is to maximize attention, you’ll look at your most successful creation and bang out thousands more.

If you’re me, though, there’s nothing more boring than repetition. Doing five sets of deadlifts is one thing. At least you’ll get strong that way. Alternatively, you could do a weekly parody of Glenn Danzig, review movies until you never want to sit through one again, or produce yet another ranting old man podcast about how things were only good when you were young. I’ve done them all, and the metrics always held a smidgen of promise, but with the same caveat: give us more and we’ll bump your numbers. Views, subs, reach, all within your grasp if you churn out slop for free.

I’m a producer and consumer of media, primarily in the music bubble. If you’ve read any of my posts, you know I’m from a family of musicians. We practice, we play, we party. We’re also great listeners. Musicians are not superheroes, though. Our listening skills make us every bit as, and perhaps more, susceptible to slop addiction as any other human. The analytics have told the most successful creators that talking about the industry is more important than being a part of it. No one will watch your beatmaking videos, but they’ll listen to you squawk about producer drama. If you want those clicks, you’ll turn into Jerry Springer with an MPC real quick. Perhaps some day you’ll get a chance to make music again.

Who’s left on social? What’s left? Even before the bots and propaganda, the endless nonversations, the pivot from writing to video, it was basically a way to waste time. MySpace was lame, but at least it didn’t algorithmically infuse you with the urge to like, heart, upvote, update, upload, lest we fail to be good netizens in the town square of Muskerzos, USA. Blogs could get unwieldy, but they weren’t generating CSAM, making teens kill themselves, or encouraging domestic terrorists to stop an election.

The writer Grant Morrison once said, “Find the others.” A lot of us did. Before social media, you stayed in touch in person or via mail, telephone, or email. Some folks sent mixtapes on audio and video. Maybe you’d attend your high school reunion. We weren’t supposed to find out which of our high school friends turned out to be assholes, unless they were guests on the actual Jerry Springer show or got thrown in jail. If you were born before all of this, finding the others meant talking up the new MacFarlane cover at the comic shop, or taking a karate class, or partying in the parking lot before a Judas Priest show.

Everyone’s found the others by now. It wasn’t just the smart people. If the last decade has taught us anything, it’s that enough trolls, bots, and genuinely insane people, all occupying their creepy little internet space, will eventually find each other. After a while, they leave the house, and they don’t even have to scream about Pickle Rick to ruin your day.

I was too old for MySpace even when it was new, but I welcome lame at this point. I can’t speak for younger folks, but I know from past trends that cool factor fades quicker than the ink in a Hypercolor shirt. MySpace was washed the moment the Fox News guy bought it. If you’re still on fascist-friendly platforms like Facebook, TikTok and Twitter, you know they’re nowhere near as exciting as they once were.

That lonely dopamine hit is losing is luster. The question is, will you chase the next hit, or get back to your craft?

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Yes, I’m always this charming. Need a DJ for your party, wedding, or school dance? A beat for your pop, rock or hip-hop masterpiece? Narration for your audiobook or ad? Let’s go. Call or text 210-350-7111.

— Forrest