Hey, it's Alan, and I just wanted to let you know that you can now listen to the ongoing

history of new music early and ad-free on Amazon music, included with Prime.

One thing before we start the show.

I want to let you know about a special interview you'll hear at the end of this episode.

It's with a host of a brand-new podcast called ArtCatex, the Architects of Art.

The cool thing is this show is hosted by Director X and Taj Critchlow, two of the biggest music video directors on the planet. These guys are

responsible for game-changing videos from artists like Drake and Coldplay and Kendrick Lamar and so many

more. Hope you enjoyed the discussion. I sure did. That's coming up at the end of this episode.

All right, let's get on with things. The history of music is filled with tales of heroes and villains.

The famous and the infamous, the celebrated, and the tragic, the smart, and the dumb. Some are forgotten

now. Others are just a vague memory or some kind of historical curiosity.

Others still have their own cult of nostalgia built around them.

Then there were those who will be remembered forever, either because they left behind a legacy of brilliant music,

or perhaps they came to symbolize something extraordinary.

They become our heroes.

But every once in a while, we run across a person who

becomes iconic for being, well, let's be honest, for being nothing more than a monumental

f*** up. This odd brand of celebrity has no redeeming or heroic attributes or characteristics

whatsoever. There is nothing about them that we should idolize or admire.

Yet because they're so good at being a f*** up, they're so madly, completely, deeply

fucked up that we gaze in astonishment, we gaze in awe and with something resembling

admiration.

...