On a Cloud

There has been a lot of talk recently about how people perceive celebrities and put them on a pedestal. Online celebrity horror stories are making fans rethink how they see them. People always have great expectations of celebrities. That makes these horror stories hard to accept. 

People tend to look up to celebrities and have all these expectations about them. Expectations that are often difficult to manage. Especially when we realize that these people are not always who we assume they are. They are not always the kind of people we perceive them to be. Sometimes some expectations that are not met can be a good thing. An example is when a celebrity is assumed to have a bad reputation but in reality is a nice person. 

In the same way that there are good and not-so-good regular people, it’s the same with celebrities. Not everyone may be good, but they’re not all bad people either. They’re only people after all. People who deal with the pressure of having fans and critics who judge them or demand/expect things from them daily. 

The song Snooze by Agust D (SUGA/Yoongi of BTS)  is an example of a celebrity sharing the pressures of his career. As a fan of this celebrity/artist, I love and appreciate his work. But I also acknowledge that he is like any other person with his own set of flaws. While I love him the way he is, I don't expect him to be perfect. And I acknowledge that there will always be more to him than what he allows the public to see. 

My online footprint is not a 100% definition of who I am. In the same way, I also assume that is the same with Yoongi. What he shows is only a sliver of who he is. There is more to him than the celebrity persona that he projects. 

Some celebrities can be disappointing to meet in real life. It’s not only because they’re different from the kind of people we assumed they were. Sometimes it's also because some of them are not very nice people. I don’t think we can avoid that. Celebrity or not, they are still people. There will always be good ones and not-so-good ones. 

I have had the opportunity to meet and get to know several celebrities since I was a kid. I have met them in celebrity and non-celebrity settings. And yes, not all are as they seem on TV/screen, on social media, or in public events. But some have surprised me in a good way.  

It's unfair to assume all celebrities and their public images are fake. At the same time, it’s only right to keep an open mind about them. Let’s not assume things or take things at face value. These celebrities are people like you and me and deserve the benefit of the doubt. After all, they have to deal with having their lives exposed to the public. they have pressures that ordinary people like you and I may never understand.  

I’ve met celebrities with crazy temper tantrums. I’ve encountered those with diva behavior. But I’ve also met those who chat with you like regular people. It has been my experience that they let their guard down and are relieved when you treat them as everyday people. I’ve seen different (but good and surprising sides) of celebrities that way.

Some realizations about celebrities can be so bad you wish you never met them. You’d feel that it would have been better if you could live in ignorant bliss about the kind of people they are. Being disappointed by the real person behind the celebrity can be devastating. More often than not this is when they involve those who hold a special place in our hearts. That’s why they say that you should never meet your heroes. I’m grateful I have not had bad experiences with the celebrities I’ve admired. Sad to say that I know of friends who have had disappointing experiences. It can be heartbreaking to see.  

There are good stories and bad ones about celebrities. We can’t let them influence how we see these famous people. It would only be fair to consider that they are like any other person or human. We all have different masks/personas that we wear. We are not always the same person every single day or minute.  

Like us, they are people who evolve and grow. Like us, they have their good days and their bad days. They make mistakes and they do things that can disappoint other people. They can also have different faces depending on a given situation or environment.  

What do I mean by different faces? I don’t mean being fake around other people. It’s about how we can have different sides to our personalities. We’re not one-dimensional beings. We can have a plethora of personalities depending on who we’re around. It could even depend on how we are feeling during that moment. It doesn’t mean that one side is fake and the other is genuine. It’s all different parts of the same whole.  

I know I’m a different person around family compared to when I’m around my friends. It’s the same with who I am at work and in a professional setting. Of course, I would also be different around strangers. It’s not about being fake but more about adjusting to your environment. And that’s the same thing that celebrities deal with, albeit on a grander scale.  

Sometimes fans get disappointed when celebrities do not conform to their expectations. Fans forget that what they show the world is often an idealized image. Celebrities, in many ways, represent idealized versions of what people look up to and aspire to be. This is part of their job as actors, musicians, athletes, and public figures. It’s important to remember that celebrities are also human, like you and me. They have their good days and bad days, and they make mistakes. None of us are perfect, and it’s unfair to expect them to be. 

As fans, it's OK to appreciate celebrities for their talents. But we should also recognize that they are also human. We need to understand that like us, there is so much more to them than that one image that we see. We need to have a healthier and more realistic perspective about them. Celebrities, like us, deserve the benefit of the doubt and understanding. There's nothing wrong with appreciating and celebrating their achievements. But we should also allow them the space to be human and treat them like one.