My nephew is a bit of a problem child. He had a rough upbringing (being the result of his dad cheating while married, brought into the dad's house, being treated like the red-headed stepchild by his siblings, etc). As a result he's spent his entire life trying to stand out and be noticed...mostly trying to prove that he's better than everyone.
Because of this, I've cut him some slack. I've mentored him, looked the other way when he did bad things (to which there is a lot), praised him when he did good things, and even taught him how to play guitar. He's one of those people that has natural rhythm and can pick up a lot of instruments easily.
The problem is, he doesn't like structure and he just dives into things. You can't play along with him on guitar because he can't keep time. Same with drums. He can play keyboards but has no idea which notes are where. He just does his own thing because it's easier.
Recently he hooked up with some hiphop punks on a bad side of town, and they started recording what they call "music". My nephew got a hold of a pad, made some beats, and now he thinks he's ready to go pro. He's on Facebook everyday now saying how he's looking for a record deal, how he's quitting his job so he can focus on recording, and how music is his future. To top it off, he's got two babies due in a couple of weeks by two different mothers (as I said, he's a piece of work).
I listened to some of his stuff, and all I could think about was this clip on Friends: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuBJLTdr_pQ
It was that bad. I don't want to crush the kid's dreams, but wow...he needs a wakeup call. I'm not the one to do it, but it's difficult just watching his family standing there while he self destructs.
Because of this, I've cut him some slack. I've mentored him, looked the other way when he did bad things (to which there is a lot), praised him when he did good things, and even taught him how to play guitar. He's one of those people that has natural rhythm and can pick up a lot of instruments easily.
The problem is, he doesn't like structure and he just dives into things. You can't play along with him on guitar because he can't keep time. Same with drums. He can play keyboards but has no idea which notes are where. He just does his own thing because it's easier.
Recently he hooked up with some hiphop punks on a bad side of town, and they started recording what they call "music". My nephew got a hold of a pad, made some beats, and now he thinks he's ready to go pro. He's on Facebook everyday now saying how he's looking for a record deal, how he's quitting his job so he can focus on recording, and how music is his future. To top it off, he's got two babies due in a couple of weeks by two different mothers (as I said, he's a piece of work).
I listened to some of his stuff, and all I could think about was this clip on Friends: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuBJLTdr_pQ
It was that bad. I don't want to crush the kid's dreams, but wow...he needs a wakeup call. I'm not the one to do it, but it's difficult just watching his family standing there while he self destructs.