Just a week ago the Guardian published an article “quoting” some things that Danish footballer Nicklas Bendtner who plays for Arsenal had said in an exclusive interview with the Danish new
Just a week ago the Guardian published an article “quoting” some things that Danish footballer Nicklas Bendtner who plays for Arsenal had said in an exclusive interview with the Danish newspaper Berlingske. The article quoted him in saying that he was “disappointed I (Bendtner) was told I was staying at Arsenal,” that he was “improving fitness to be perfect to sell,” and that the criticism of him does not affect him one bit.” These quotes were placed in the title of the article without any context of why he said those things and without much acknowledgement of what Bendtner, himself, had to say in the rest of the interview.Of course, this sort of article to the British public and more specifically Arsenal fans only emphasizes the opinion they have of Nicklas Bendtner. Only seconds after the official interview was published tweets like this, which are a common thing on Bendtner’s twitter, appeared: “You’re so s***”, “Get the f*** out of our club,” also journalist and Arsenal fan Piers Morgan had something to say on the matter, “As for Bendtner…his ‘disappointment’ at having
With midterms coming up soon, Sharada has some tips on how to study and not get distracted. Read here to see the tips that might just help you in the coming exams.
Even though they might seem far away, the Mid-term exams are coming up quite fast; approximately 3 weeks from now! This means it’s time to get all your notes and textbooks together, sit at your desk and study! The tension might start to rise in the classrooms already. However, there remains one large question: how do you make sure you don’t get distracted from studying? Or even throughout the year in the classroom? This question might have been answered frequently, yet teens like us keep checking their News Feeds on Facebook or get distracted easily. Let’s focus a bit on this in-class and home issue.
Especially when your goal is to get things (like an important assignment) done, distraction is the key factor to failure. Try to imagine this common scenario: you have to work together for a project with a partner or a group and one of them is one of your closest friends. The project is due very soon, so you try to finish it as soon as possible. However, your friend keeps talking and making you laugh. What do you do? How do you get back to your concentration? Here are a few (for some) easy steps:
Make sure you say to yourself in the morning that “Today will be a good day, I must concentrate.” Keep this in your head the entire day. The moment that you start to get unfocused, go back to work without being rude.
Even though this might seem rude, and if this is a friend they should be able to understand, but you might have to ignore them a little bit. During class, try not to talk to them and don’t look at them. Only talk to them during that time if they ask you a question about school or the project.
Remember, this is your future and you are the one controlling it. The distracting person is the one that is hindering you from reaching your goal. Don’t let this happen to you. Being busy can help you a lot. If you are more preoccupied with yourself, then you will worry about yourself more than your friend. If that person who makes you unfocused is in your project-group, you should try to find a new partner by simply telling the teacher about the inconvenience.
Do remember that when you apply these “steps” to someone, but especially to your close friend, try to do it in a polite way. If you don’t (or if you ignore them to a certain extent), your friend might pick it up in a different sense and you can cause some tensions in your friendship. Try talking to them about it in the nicest way possible. They should generally respect your word. Explain that you (both) need to concentrate in class, but also remind them that you are still their friend and there is a time and place for everything. The weekends are the timeslots in agendas where many possibilities for meeting up and hanging out lie.
Another tip is to get an organizer/agenda. Planning your homework is the main way to success (can’t do any harm to repeat it for the millionth time).
But what if you forget to put yourself on auto-focus? How do you sharpen up? Here are a few tips:
Know what you need to get done (e.g. finishing your homework, doing your chores, studying, etc.). This is why it is handy to have an organizer.
Find ways to enjoy your task. If you get distracted finishing your homework, then make a game out of the process. Give yourself a treat (like a piece of candy) after completing difficult assignments. If you get distracted while studying and benefit from working with others, try studying with other people.
Figure out what is distracting you (e.g., friends, food, a wandering mind, worries, etc.) Identifying the problem will allow you to address the issue directly. If you are distracted online by social media like Facebook and Twitter, ask your parents/siblings to keep your phone (or any electronics) while you do your homework (make sure you have locked your phone for your siblings!).
Once you have figured out what is distracting you, try to deal with or even solve it.Especially if you are dealing with a wandering mind and/or worries, do some Mindfulness (10th grade and up probably know what this is). Talk to Ms. Lina and she will prescribe you some .b sessions.
Find a place, room, or other location that eliminates these distractions. Even classrooms can often be distractive. This can be caused by an annoying sound, or by someone who is very attractive / wears unique clothing. Try to sit somewhere in the room where you can only focus on the white- or smart- board and teacher.
Take breaks. Studies have shown that you learn better when you study with intervals. Have a snack or drink and relax for 10 minutes after studying for 20 to 30 minutes.
Get into a routine. Maintaining this routine will make focusing easier.
Avoid stress. Stress often causes a decline in concentration.
Sometimes, the smallest and simplest things such as earplugs can do miracles. If you concentrate better with music or benefit from studying your Spanish vocabulary while standing upside-down: go ahead! Everyone has to find their own ways to achieve his or her goals…
These tips are probably pretty solid and should help any unfocused student. However, when your distractions are more serious, there will always be people who are here to talk to you.
If you have anything (maybe a tip) to add, please comment!
Episode 2 of Bear and Isis Make a Show is here. This time they talk about tortillas, Thor and cross country. There is also a sneak preview into what’s coming up next in the show.
Just a week ago the Guardian published an article “quoting” some things that Danish footballer Nicklas Bendtner who plays for Arsenal had said in an exclusive interview with the Danish newspaper Berlingske. The article quoted him in saying that he was “disappointed I (Bendtner) was told I was staying at Arsenal,” that he was “improving fitness to be perfect to sell,” and that the criticism of him does not affect him one bit.” These quotes were placed in the title of the article without any context of why he said those things and without much acknowledgement of what Bendtner, himself, had to say in the rest of the interview.Of course, this sort of article to the British public and more specifically Arsenal fans only emphasizes the opinion they have of Nicklas Bendtner. Only seconds after the official interview was published tweets like this, which are a common thing on Bendtner’s twitter, appeared: “You’re so s***”, “Get the f*** out of our club,” also journalist and Arsenal fan Piers Morgan had something to say on the matter, “As for Bendtner…his ‘disappointment’ at having to continue playing for #Afc is comfortably exceeded by my sickening revulsion.”
Two days later, a blog post in the Guardian called, “In defence of Nicklas Bendtner” written by Marcus Christenson was published. In this blog Marcus Christenson explains how his opinion of Bendtner changed after having read the full interview. Like him, my opinion of Bendtner as a person also changed quite dramatically in light of the interview. Being Danish myself, I took great interest in finally hearing Bendtner’s side of the story after he had not responded to any of the many stories about him in the press over the last six months. It may be my nationalistic bias but I have always rated Bendtner as a good player that just had to find the right club to fold out in. I have seen Bendtner play for Arsenal this season and for Juventus last season. I will be the first to admit his performances have been far from good but he has also become an easy target for many fans to hate on because of little faith they have in him. Even though he has not been performing at club level he has always preformed for the national side when it mattered. To me this is what has kept my faith in him, the fact that he can return to the national team and almost single handedly give Denmark an unexpected chance at qualifying for the Euros with two goals against Italy. That deserves respect and it is far from the first time he has been Denmark’s savior.
I was one of many in Denmark that took him for being more about the money than the football but as Bendtner explains in his interview he had agreed contracts with three clubs in the summer and was basically packed ready to leave before Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger called him on August 31st (transfer deadline day) telling him to stay. This surprised me because the only thing we heard in the summer through the Danish press was that Bendtner was turning down clubs because they were not willing to pay him enough.
The interview gave me a picture of the honest Bendtner someone looking to move on with his career and a player ready to turn to a new chapter in his career. I would highly recommend any football fan to read the interview with Bendtner in order to hear his side of the story before they make judgments about him and the type of person he is. This is not intended to be a piece defending Bendtner but more to open the eyes of football fans about the person behind the player. Before criticizing players on things we hear in the press it is important to hear their side of the story as well and that is what Bendtner’s interview can teach us.
It is 1905, the turn of the century, in Tsarist Russia. The Jewish persecution has already begun spreading throughout the country, and in the little village of Anatevka is a small Jewish community, oblivious to the happenings in the outside world. It is in this tiny, insignificant place that the story ofFiddler on the Roof unfolds. This story circles around Tevye, a poor milkman and father to five daughters. His purpose in life is to practice his faith, work hard, and marry off these daughters to rich, scholarly men. His ancestors have practiced these goals for thousands of years, so why should that change now? This is how they live, what they live for, and what they will die for—Tradition!
As I’m sure you’ve already seen the many posters, previews and various other forms of advertising, I think that it’s safe to say that you already know that this year’s High School musical is Fiddler on the Roof. What a story will be told!
To pick up with Tevye (played by Alex in 12th grade): he is a simple, hard working, devoutly religious man who just wants the best for his family. Of course, he also expresses an interest in alcohol and money, but what man doesn’t? His many years of milk delivery have made him strong and tough, but he also has a deeper understanding that there may be more to life than their little community, and that there are more important things than just marrying off his (five!) daughters into respectable families. Alex says of his character:
“I love that Tevye is just bursting with emotion and love, and that he is a family man through and through… My least favorite part about him is that he just cares a little too much about what other people think of him.”
Fiddler also features Tevye’s wife of 25 years, Golde (played by Eleni, 12th). She is dedicated to her traditions, but also fiercely protective of her family. Golde is a strong-willed woman who wants her daughters married off to rich men, no matter the age difference. She runs a fairly strict household, and more often than not is the one ordering everyone else around (including Tevye), instead of vice versa.
Surrounding these two are their five lovely daughters: Tzeitel, Hodel, Chava, Shprintze, and Bielke. Their fates are to be decided by their Papa, who decides on which man they are to marry.
Speaking of, marriage is one of the most prominent issues of the show. Yente (Alina in 11thgrade), the matchmaker, is in charge of finding a match for every young girl and boy (or… man) in the village. It is then the papas’ job to agree on the match and make it official. Largely, a parent would be looking at aspects such as wealth and family background in their children’s future partner. Petty details such as age, personality, and mutual affection matter little to none in the decision making process. This is the way it’s been for thousands of years. However, in Fiddleryou will see these ideas challenged by Tevye’s very own daughters.
Fiddler on the Roof is definitely a show to get excited for. It features some of the most well known and loved musical numbers of all time, such as “If I Were a Rich Man”, “Sunrise, Sunset”, and, of course, we can’t forget “Tradition”! With its witty Yiddish humor and some wicked spitting moments (Hugo, 10th grade, commented, “The Innkeeper has taught me many incalculably valuable life lessons, just one of them as a sample: “You can drink your sorrows away, if you have enough vodka.”), the show comes alive on stage. This year’s high school cast is spectacular, and we’ve also got some middle schoolers as well as teachers to join us on the stage. Everybody is so supportive. Jessica (12th grade), who plays the role of Tzeitel, commented on working with such a group. “I enjoy working with motivated, eager and energetic people. From day one, the cast had each other’s backs, allowing me to now fully enjoy singing a song such as ‘Matchmaker.’”
But it’s not just the cast that makes this production work. Oh no, there are many people working just as hard backstage, unseen by the audience. We have, first of all, the wonderful band, led by Mr. Jimenez, who back us up with their musical talents and make the songs even more enjoyable. There is also the stage crew, including the props people that help us during the transitions and make sure that the show runs smoothly. There are the techies who control the lighting, which sets the mood, and make sure that our microphones are turned on (or off!) when they need to be. There are the moms who provide us with food during the long rehearsals so that we do not starve, the costume and makeup crew that help us to look… well, however our character is supposed to look, be that beautiful or hideous. Michal, our student choreographer, has worked hard creating and teaching us all of the dances, from traditional Yiddish to ballet. Peem, the stage manager, keeps everyone in line behind the curtains and basically holds the whole show together. Finally, we can’t forget our wonderful director, Mr. Cramer, who had the vision of this great show from the start and who has helped us make it the amazing show it is today.
So come see Fiddler on the Roof, showing November 15, 16, and 17 at the ASH Theater. “Go in with an open mind, and get ready to be humming the tunes as you leave!” says Brian (11thgrade) who is playing Motel, the tailor. I guarantee that it will be an unforgettable experience. Mazeltov!
- Helen Polzer, writer and the daughter Chava in Fiddler
My summer was spent traveling around the United States, visiting some universities, and trying to reconnect with the country I was born in (spoiler alert: I failed). My October break, on the other hand, was spent doing internal assessments, relaxing, and most importantly, visiting a few Dutch universities. And what difference. In fact, the contrast was shocking.
Let’s just ignore the obvious differences—campus and class size, language spoken—and focus on the major differences: the approach and style of thinking in regards to acceptance and admissions. These are two differences that exist not only in the mentioned universities, but also in many “elite” institutions and selective locations.
Let’s start with these universities’ sales pitches. Do you know what the sales pitch is in The Netherlands and Belgium? Your courses, your objectives, what you will learn. When you visit a university campus, you’re given information about you major and minor options, elective courses, and possible career paths. That’s it. You’re told what you will learn, what you will do, how you will do it, and additional information that relates to life post-graduation. I mean, isn’t that the primary objective of a university? To educate you and assist you in finding a job that either interests you or pays your dues? It’s a somewhat simplified view of the matter, but like it or not, that’s the objective of a university.
Now let’s compare this model to that of the American universities. At the five universities I visited, the introduction focused on a “general overview of academics,” which consisted of their varsity sports programs, their extra-curriculars, their “diversity percentages,” their “leadership camps” (I still do not know what a leadership camp is, all I know is that some of the greatest dictators were a part of one, so I guess they serve their purpose), and similar information. It was followed by a never-ending three-hour campus tour to show off the classrooms, libraries and sports atriums. When prompted for specifics on course information, the student who was leading the tour quickly answered, “You can talk to our representatives for that information. Moving on!” Not once were academics or specific information for a major or master’s degree mentioned. However, they made sure we knew the price of attendance, ranging from 15,000 to 65,000 dollars per term.
Why did I not receive any information about the academics? What do they think I am at the university for, if not for this information? Delft University’s tour focused on student life for one minute, and then kindly requested that we do further research ourselves on the website, where they have a specific section for student services, student life, sports, and music clubs. The American universities made this information their focus—their only focus.
The differences continue. Let us consider the application requirements for the American universities:
Maintain a GPA of 4.2 on a 4-point scale
Have at least 4 extra-curriculars per grade year
Receive and include five teacher recommendations
Take the SAT, ACT, or other worthless standardized tests
Present your kindergarten entrance exam
It’s insane. Why are universities placing so much importance on useless, meter-based statistics, and not as much on capability and interest? Motivated students generally make it through difficult programs due to their willingness to work and achieve their so very desired degrees. This enthusiasm is far more important than all these tests or “official records.”
But hey, let’s compare this acceptance model to the Dutch or Belgian ones. They only require a personal statement of a few words to express your interest, perhaps proof of a diploma or passing one or two required classes, and, in the most extreme cases, one teacher recommendation. It’s so little, and so much emphasis is placed on personal interest, that they can afford to make the entrance requirements low for all students to try and see whether or not these students can succeed. This model allows the best to rise to the top and those interested to chase their dreams.
The absurdity of the American model doesn’t end at these first academic hurdles. Behind these American and “elite” universities’ acceptance programs is a culture of discrimination and racism, cleverly dubbed “social engineering.” Whites and males who have perfect credentials are discriminated against based on their gender and race; these students are actively and purposely removed from the selection processes so that these universities can sell themselves to the next group with statistics such as “a 50/50 gender ratio,” and “45% minority students.” All status, all name, no academics, no credibility. And this doesn’t just apply to schools in the United States. Many of the so-called “elite” institutes are all gilded walls and no substance.
In this final aspect, many European universities, especially Dutch ones, are the polar opposite. In the Netherlands, there is a system of admissions selection called loting. This is a system in which every person has an equal chance of being chosen for a position in an academic program. Sadly, this is an oversimplification of the process, and no proof of credentials required. In this way, students who are qualified and enthusiastic have no way of showing their worth over those who are ill-equipped to join the program. In fact, just the other day I visited TU Delft with a friend of mine. My friend was told that he had to go through loting in order to get accepted to the program of his choice, despite the fact that he was a perfect match, given his enthusiasm, interest, and intellectual capability.
Herein lies the dilemma, in my opinion. When I work with terms of application and admission to universities, I can’t help but find fault in them. And although the golden standard for me is closer to the Dutch system, this model is not perfect. How can we create a third-level system of study in which anyone can follow their desired course, no matter what past mistakes they might have made? How can we create a system that, at the same time, eliminates the obscene requirements that overtake a student’s life (as in America), yet filters out those who are unqualified? How can we create a system that grants access to people such as my friend—people who are capable, motivated, and interested, people who I know could succeed if they were only given the chance? Why are we not simplifying the college process, instead of complicating it to such a degree?
For me, both systems are lacking, but there’s no instant solution. My advice to you: focus onyour education, your desires, your ability to receive the information you seek, and be there to motivate those around you. This is the best temporary solution to what is, in my opinion, a never-ending problem.
During the first race of the 2013 World Championships, in the Schladming slopes in Austria back in February, Lindsey Vonn was prepared and confident to take victory over her competitors. Little did she know that her first race would take a turn for the worse.
Olympic ski champion Lindsey Vonn is an iconic figure and an inspiration to skiers and athletes everywhere. In her early skiing career, Vonn quickly climbed the ladder of success and made her World Cup debut at the age of just 16. Today, Vonn is one of only six women to have wonWorld Cup races in all five disciplines of alpine skiing: downhill, super G, giant slalom, slalom, and super combined. She has won 59 World Cup races in her career so far. With all of her promising potential and devotion to the sport, she has become the most successful American skier in history.
At the 2013 World Chapionships, Vonn had a flawless start and began tearing down the mountain. At first glance, Vonn’s first jump appeared flawless, but the landing showed otherwise as her right knee buckled into a right angle, and she tumbled down the mountainside. Spectators’ faces turned to shock as Vonn’s expression showed her clearly agonizing pain. She clutched her knee and awaited the rescue helicopter to take her to the hospital.
Her right knee was wrecked to the point of needing surgical reconstruction. According to the United States ski team’s medical director, Kyle Wilkens, Vonn tore her anterior cruciate ligament and medical collateral in her right knee, and fractured her tibia. Dr. Tom Hackett, an orthopedic surgeon at the Steadman Clinic in Vail, Colorado, has treated many top ski racers, and seemed optimistic about Vonn’s recovery. “There is a very good chance she could return at full force,” he stated.
Vonn’s trainers, friends, and supports held their breaths as they hoped for a successful and speedy recovery. This is the first time that Vonn has suffered from a career threatening injury, but she didn’t let the setback stand in her way. Last month, Vonn got back on the slopes in Portillo, Chile, for the first time since the injury. It went better than expected, and she “can’t tell which knee is injured.” Vonn has a positive outlook on her future in skiing, despite the traumatic event.
Vonn plans to return to competitive skiing at the World Cup meeting in Beaver Creek, Colorado, which runs from November 29th to December 1st. She plans to compete in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, just one year after the injury.
Lindsey Vonn is a true inspiration towards athletes everywhere. With ambition and motivation, she has overcome her injury and is back on the slopes where she belongs. Personally, instead of viewing her injury as debilitating, I see it as leveling out the playing field. She still has the ability to out-ski any of her competitors, and we will surely see great things from her in the 2014 Winter Olympics.
Deadmau5, a heavily popular DJ and producer of Electronic Dance Music (EDM) has not only been highly critical of other musicians as of late, but his own genre itself. Read on for our Arts editor’s comments and the possible decline of EDM.
Electronic Dance Music, or EDM, has existed for many years, first emerging in American clubs in the late 70’s. However, only over the course of the past fifteen or so years has it really taken off and become a defining title of dance music in the world. One significant event that kicked it off was the release of Daft Punk’s debut album, Homework, in 1997. Since then, and especially in the past five years (due to producers such as Skrillex, Kaskade and Tiësto) EDM and many of its sub-genres have introduced some of the most popular songs of the twenty-first century.
Of course, no “mainstream” genre can come into being without criticism and hate. Many have spoken out against EDM and slandered it as “bass-filled, repetitive trash”, among other things. The –step genres in particular have been attacked again and again, most particularly “brostep”, as popularized by Skrillex (no, he doesn’t produce dubstep). But when deadmau5, a producer himself, began speaking out against various artists and even EDM itself, it stirred the community up and has been causing a lot of controversy as of late.
The second of three children, Joel Thomas Zimmerman (better known now as deadmau5), was born on January 5, 1981, in Niagara Falls, Ontario. His producing and DJ career (though he abhors being called a “DJ”) began in 2005 when he released his debut album, Get Scraped. It was in 2008 that deadmau5, alongside producers such as Kaskade and Wolfgang Gartner, began rising to fame in the EDM scene, in particular due to the release of his song Ghosts ‘n’ Stuff. This collaboration of his with Rob Swire (one of the two producers making up Knife Party) was an instant hit and greatly helped promote deadmau5 as both a producer and a DJ.
However, since his rise to fame deadmau5 has called out quite a few music personalities, particularly in 2013. In February the fuse was lit when he was asked which rappers he’d enjoy performing with, to which the producer replied ‘Anyone other than f***ing Kanye. I f***ing hate him. He just tries too hard.’ Even more recently, this August to be precise, he spoke out against Justin Beiber, calling him “a little prick” for lowering his chances of appearing on Top Gear. Lady Gaga faced a similar attack not one week later when deadmau5 responded to her video The Abramovic Method by saying “im inspired… gunna go bark at the moon for a bit, get back in the studio, bark at my computer screen and make duck noises. im an ARTIST!” And despite the backlash and attacks that he has received through Twitter and other forms of social media, he continues to slander other artists.
It’s deadmau5’s comments on EDM, the genre he produces himself, which strike as the most controversial. In a March interview with the Wall Street Journal he was quoted as saying “the songs sound the same… it’s cookie-cutter stuff…. I’m surprised the record companies that sign these people aren’t just going home and making this music themselves. Cut out the middle man.” He’s even been known to suggest relabeling EDM as “Event-Driven Marketing” and other such ridiculous terms. Yet despite this apparent disdain for the genre that he himself produces (and with great profits, no less) he remains calm when discussing its popularity.
Not that he believes it will stay popular – in fact, deadmau5 has often remarked that he believes that EDM will not last as a frontline, mainstream genre for longer than a few more years at themost. He has stated that he believes EDM is not exempt from the tendency of mainstream music “…having this, like, eternal staying power when it simply just doesn’t. The nature of it is that music will be here and be gone and we’ll have all moved on to that weird new thing.” The Canadian producer, however, is adamant about the variation and individuality of songs and producers playing a highly important role in EDM. He has remarked, “I think a big problem with EDM right now is that there’s a lot of safe-betters and they all want to do this safe bet thing… the responsibility is the risk-taking to start pushing it.”
Deadmau5 is not entirely lacking praise, however. He has names Skrillex and Avicii as two fellow producers that, though his history with them is not without stain, he still respects greatly. He highlighted in particular how the both of them brought something new to the table, Skrillex with his debut EP My Name is Skrillex and Avicii with his recently-released debut album True. “Look at Skrillex. He took a bit of a f***ing risk on the brostep thing and that had this thing that had momentum and now it’s–I’m not saying that that’s going to be around forever, either, because that got tired pretty quick, too. But at least it was a Plan B in the same vein. And everyone’s got their own Plan B. Avicii’s taking risks. That’s actually admirable. I’m not going to f***ing shut the kid down for making something completely f***ing different because that’s actually what you need to do with music right now.”
Some may suggest that deadmau5 is simply in over his head and that his own popularity will not last should he continue his rants and insults against other artists. However, he does raise an interesting point. Is EDM really going to follow the path of its predecessors as a mainstream genre? It would seem so – indeed, the subgenres of popular EDM have changed drastically over the past few years, drifting away from hardstyle and brostep towards progressive house and electro, not to mention up-and-coming genres like nu disco and trance. While this may not stand out as a sign of the decline of the overarching genre that is EDM, it does signify that what is mainstream and what is not is always changing – and it may not be too long before the popularity of EDM itself fades away. Who knows what sort of music will replace it in the future….
Purple Day is coming up on October 30th. Watch this promo to spread the word and get as many people as possible to wear purple. Show your support for people of all sexualities this Wednesday.
The Evolution of Miley Cyrus and Why So Many Child Stars Go Crazy
Miley Cyrus has been creating quite the controversy in the news lately. Read as our opinion editor comments on how Miley and other child celebrities have changed from innocent to the adults they are today.
Miley Cyrus has been creating quite the controversy in the news lately. Read as our opinion editor comments on how Miley and other child celebrities have changed from innocent to the adults they are today.
The date is Friday, March 24, 2006. After a long week of hopscotch, multiplication tables, and whatever else you do in third grade, you’re ready to unwind with some good old-fashioned television. You turn on the TV and start watching. You don’t recognize the show that is playing. It has a catchy theme song and is about a sweet 13-year-old girl with blond pigtails who lives a double life as a superstar. Although you didn’t know it at the time, you just watched the first ever episode of Hannah Montana.
Fast forward seven years. The scene is no longer a beach house in California, but a smoke-filled concert hall in Amsterdam. The air is thick with the smell of marijuana, lit up by the incessant camera flashes. Your ears are filled with a mix of heavy bass and profanity. As for that sweet girl with the pigtails? She’s up on the stage. Visibly intoxicated and dressed in a cheetah print leotard, the now 20-year old Miley Cyrus is in front of five thousand cheering people vigorously shaking her lower extremities.
Now, you’re probably asking yourself the same question that the rest of the world is: What on earth happened to Miley Cyrus? Well, to find a satisfying answer to this question, we need to go back to when it all started.
The fourth of six children, Destiny Hope Cyrus was born on November 23, 1992. As a child, she was bright and cheerful, which earned her the nickname “Smiley”. This was later shortened to the name we know her as today: Miley. As her father was famous country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley’s gift for singing was noticed at a very young age. She began writing and performing songs as early as elementary school. She enjoyed mild success on the local level, mainly because singing came naturally to her. To this day, she has not taken a single formal voice lesson.
Miley’s big break came at age 11, when she was cast as Miley Stewart in what would become one of the most successful children’s TV shows ever: Hannah Montana. Over the next 4 years, as she continued to act in this wildly popular program, Miley also began to record solo albums. This work was met with success, and Miley Cyrus became one of the youngest artists ever to record a Billboard Top 10 hit.
Miley’s first blunder in the public eye happened in April of 2008. The media stirred when provocative images of the fifteen year old were leaked from her private email account. She publicly apologized. However, later that month, it was revealed that Miley had posed suggestively for a photo shoot for the fashion magazine Vanity Fair. These two incidents landed her in some hot water with the Disney Corporation, and undoubtedly contributed to Disney’s eventual decision to discontinue Hannah Montana after only its fourth season.
After leaving Disney Channel, Miley turned her whole focus to music and transitioning into an “adult image”. She acted in various small roles for a few years, started (and ended) an engagement with actor Liam Hemsworth, and continued to record music. After singing backup vocals for several artists, Miley began to slip out of the public eye. Towards the end of 2012, however, Miley made the decision that thrust her back into the limelight. It was a seemingly insignificant event, one that we undergo several times a year with almost no consequence: a haircut.
When Miley Cyrus cut her long brown hair in favor of a bleached short cut, it was as if she had proverbially shed whatever vestige of Disney magic she had left in her. After the haircut, Miley released a few music videos that were “questionable”, to say the least. Throughout 2013, the music became louder, the clothes became tighter, and before we knew it, Miley was swinging a sledgehammer and singing about industrial demolition.
As bizarre as Miley Cyrus’ career path may seem to you and me, the sad truth is that this sort of thing is not at all uncommon. When children become famous at a young age, their adult lives more often than not follow an unfortunate downward slope. In short, child stars seem to have a knack for getting everything wrong.
Many of us could name multiple stars famous as children who seemed to lose it later in life. Lindsay Lohan’s acting is now overshadowed by her drug and alcohol problems. Legal issues have followed Amanda Bynes for the better part of her adult life. Remember MaCaulay Culkin, the innocent boy from Home Alone? He’s now a fully blown heroin addict.
To be fair, there are of course child stars who don’t go off the deep end. Neil Patrick Harris, star of Doogie Houser, MD as a child, now lives a happy life with his family while acting on the hit TV series How I Met Your Mother. All three main cast members of the extraordinarily popular movie series Harry Potter all enjoy a post-acting life free of crime, drugs, and any other major problems. Although you may remember him as a small child on The Mickey Mouse Club, Ryan Gosling is still in his prime 15 years later.
As one who survived fame at a young age, Donny Osmond, shed some light on the subject of child stars. His comments came, coincidentally, when asked about Miley Cyrus in 2008. He said, “As an idol to tweens the world over, singer-actress Miley Cyrus, 15, is riding a huge tidal wave at the pinnacle of her career; this is as it should be. I hope she enjoys it … Within three to five years, [however], Miley will have to face adulthood.”
At first glance, this seems like almost prophetic foresight out of the mouth of Donny Osmond. But in essence, Donny isn’t only speaking about Miley Cyrus. He’s speaking about all child stars. In fact, he’s speaking about all children. A child star, like any child, eventually has to grow up. They have to decide what they will stand for and what they will believe in. They have to create their own character, and ultimately must decide who they will be. You don’t have to be Hannah Montana to understand that finding yourself is difficult. When you realize that child stars must do all this with the whole world watching, it’s no wonder so many of them go off the deep end.
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