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i've been thinking about this a lot since i watched xz's latest interview from earlier this week (): i feel like there's a strong desire from people sometimes to see the ~*~authentic~*~ side of a public figure, and i even understand the impulse
like the whole appeal of most celebrities these days is that they're relatable, that they could be your friend, that you're listening to their inner thoughts when they're talking to you through the screen
and honestly my thoughts on this are twofold - firstly, there seems to be this odd idea that to be "real" you have to be blunt and air out all your dirty laundry in public, as if being purposefully nasty is the only way to be "authentic"
when in reality (for the most part) people's baselines are generally "pleasantly polite while interacting with each other" - which is, in and of itself, not a bad thing lmao
even celebrities that are known for being blunt usually aren't going around being assholes to people for no reason - usually it's just funny when they call out a dumb interview question or appear visibly disinterested in things they don't care about
and even that can often feed into a public persona that they've cultivated for the cameras - one that i also love! but not everyone is like that, and they shouldn't have to be to be considered ~authentic
like, enthusiasm can be authentic! kindness can be authentic! positive emotions can be authentic! why is it that when someone is polite/courteous that the persona they present must be fake? which brings me to my 2nd point, which is that celebs are entitled to their private lives
they're humans too and they deserve to be able to keep some part of their lives for themselves that isn't just another thing to be monetized for a hungry public. sure, pettiness and anger can be authentic, we all experience those emotions from time to time
but who is anyone to judge someone for wanting to process those feelings in private? is it because we've gotten into this habit of spilling all our messy emotions out onto social media these days without a second thought?
i don't begrudge people who would rather keep that shit to themselves and maybe a close circle of personal friends, it shouldn't have to be a process that absolutely must be commercialized for the clicks
also, honestly, what does authenticity even mean? if it's relatability, the fact that xz's ideal day off work would involve staying in and watching a movie - which is what half of us are doing on any given night anyway - isn't that extremely relatable 
"what do you do when you're depressed?" "SLEEP" EXTREMELY AUTHENTIC IMO
more seriously, having a strong sense of responsibility is obviously important to him, and isn't that authentic too
more seriously, having a strong sense of responsibility is obviously important to him, and isn't that authentic too
it's just always a little suspect to me when people are like oh hey look at that super polite person, they must just be hiding all their bitchiness under a facade, what a fake - honestly it says more about you than it does about the celebrity!! let ppl be sanguine!!!
anyway. i just really like xz and he's clearly given his public persona a lot of thought. basic human politeness doesn't make you fake. ppl shouldn't have to be "on" all the time, but that doesn't mean you get to be privy to what they're like when they're "off". that's all
