t's not even December yet, and we're already being bombarded by those stupid "best of the decade," or even millenium lists. I reckon these published lists are supposed to tell us that some people's views are more important and profound than others (and therefore seserve publication), and that we shouldn't think for ourselves since they've done it for us already. Anyway, I not going to gripe about something as trvial a matter as what editors do to sell their magazines and papers. My gripe is with something more insidious.

s you may have already noticed, Kurt Cobain's name shows up quite a bit on those lists. Needless to say, he has been the subject of numerous books and articles ever since his death, and praise has been heaped upon him ad nausem. The fact of the matter is that he has got to be the most overrated figure in the entire history of music. I'm not trying to knock the guy when he's already dead, but Courtney Love's a million times more talented than he ever was. He died after making only one decent record, but Courtney already has made two, with perhaps more to come. Yet who's being elevated to deity, and who's getting all the notoriety?! I don't have anything against Kurt. I think his music was no better or worse than that of Britney Spears or Backstreet Boys. However, I do have problems with his fans and the cultural elites of America. (How many cultural elites out there are willing to defend Britney?) Kurt's worshippers are powerful people in powerful places. They happen to have the right skin colour. Their voices are well represented in the media. While they may not easily admit to it (editors and contributors always think they're oh so edgy and all), but they control a large part of American corporate media. The most troubling aspect about Kurt is that his canonisation in mainstream American society reflects who wields power in America, and we all know who controls America. In the end, what it all comes down to is the inherent inequity in our society and racism. In America, white males control the media, and for the most part, its contributors and editors are white males. I don't have a particular gripe against the hegemony of white male power over America. I accept it as a fact of life, just like I acknowledge the existence of racism, or the force of gravity. We can all agree that we all should do whatever we can to mitigate the negative effects of the aforementioned establishment, and that we should all continue the struggle for justice and equality. However, to be realistic, you also have to concede that these are permanent aspects of life in America that's not going to go away anytime soon (certainly in my lifetime) no matter what we do.

n the meantime, I vehemently resent the fact that white males have the power to determine what is of importance in certain aspects of American culture, especially when what or whom they choose to prioritise, or even canonise, is of suspect artistic merit. It's stating the obvious, but they determine what's important for the rest of society. It's not about democracy. They control print, airwaves, and bandwidth. I do resent the fact that mainstream America, particularly MTV and magazines like Spin and Rolling Stone, is essentially programmed and marketed for white heterosexual males. Critics like Greil Marcus have gone on and on about how important Kurt was. Over the year we’ve been getting a relentless barrage of testimonials about how he changed the face of music. He may have affected the lives of many white rock musicians and fans, but the reality is that the rest of America couldn’t care less. He didn’t change my life, nor the lives of anybody I know. He didn't change that lives of millions of young girls around the entire fucking world screaming for Britney, 'NSync, Destiny's Child, or Westlife. He certainly didn’t change the lives of Nixon’s so-called “silent majority.” Over seven years of living in an academic architectural studio, I don't ver recall anybody playing Nirvana (except perhaps me, but only one). I don’t remember anybody playing Nirvana even during my stint as a college radio DJ. Our lives were perfectly oblivious to Kurt’s existence until we were told by the American media that he deserved being worshipped. However, you never hear that kind of pathetic bullshit about how Kurt has affected their lives from black people, or from other minorities. You don’t hear this crap coming from the projects and barrios, because in America, these people’s opinions don’t matter. I can name countless artists who have much more talent and whose works affected me more profoundly than Kurt could’ve ever imagined, but unlike the cultural elite of America, I have never felt compelled to be proselytize about the importance of the music I enjoy (except perhaps to list them on my site here). Unfortunately, this crap gets shoved down our throats over and over again because in America, only the opinions of white heterosexual males really matter. I n American, only these people get heard.

he arbitrary canonisation of a certain musical figure by the corporate and cultural elite's media hegemony has been old news for quite some time. For instance, Bob Dylan was indeed important, but not that important. The media has turned him into a mythic, god-like figure whose significance in our society has been greatly exaggerated, since his music had sentimental value for many white, often male, middle, and upper class baby boomers who currently control our nation's corporate media. On the other hand, he's essentially meaningless and irrelevant to most people in my generation. Where would Dylan be in the musical pantheon if pop musical writers were dominated by young Latinas and African American women? Hell, where would Dylan be if poor white hicks who didn't go to college has access to media? It's the same old bullshit. It's obvious that the victors will always write the history.

20 November 1999