Lacezilla presents: THE LABYRINTH: Is It So Wrong To Crave Recognition?

I ignored them for a while, but Black Kids have won me over. Their song "Love Me Already" is in heavy rotation inside my skull... and over the weekend, I may have momentarily lost my composure and danced around to it in my living room.

If you listen to the song's lyrics, you know he's concerned that his girlfriend is cheating on him with his best friend, Teddy. In the end, it turns out that Teddy and wifey were just planning a surprise birthday party for him, and he looks foolish for not trusting her.

Ironically, the new Estelle video for "Pretty Please" explores an extremely similar scenario, but Estelle isn't paranoid that her friend is trying to steal her man, she's weary of his party planning accomplice instead:

Shout out to the director, Zipper On Fly Butta Leather. I don't think she takes me seriously when I tell her she's one of the most inspiring people I know, but it's true! And I'm not the only person who feels that way: My friend and fellow nerd/creative genius CANiBA had Zipper as a mentor for a semester, and since he does video work of his own, I asked him to create a mash-up using the Estelle video and the Black Kids song:

Because we're already discussing similarities in music, I have to mention that Bloc Party's "The Prayer" is one of my favorite tracks off A Weekend In The City. Throughout the song, lead singer Kele Okereke asks us how we feel about craving recognition, and his lyrics question whether or not selflishness is morally acceptable...

"Lord give me grace and dancing feet

And the power to impress

Lord give me grace and dancing feet

Let me outshine the moon"

"Is it so wrong to crave recognition?

Second best, runner-up

Is it so wrong to want rewarding?

To want more than is given to you?

Than is given to you"

"Tonight make me unstoppable

And I will charm, I will slice

I will dazzle them with my wit

Tonight make me unstoppable

And I will charm, I will slice

I will dazzle, I will outshine them all."

Coincidentally, Kid Cudi also has a song called "The Prayer" from his Man on The Moon mixtape. Taking similar topics and humbly pushing them to the next level, Cudi nods not only at success and notoriety, but at achieving artistic immortality as well:

Both versions of "The Prayer" clearly demonstrate the artists' desire to invoke acceptance and admiration. Taking the form of a romantic plea, Black Kids' "Love Me Already" and Estelle's "Pretty Please" reveal the same desires as well- asking not just for recognition, but to also be loved. Is anyone else seeing a pattern here?!?! Is having a "gimme-gimme" mentality okay?

Speaking of a Man on The Moon, CANiBA is finally letting me post what he calls his "visual milestone on the road to maturity," or better yet: "the twenty-something angst of a man told to sit in a cubicle all day and not create." Like many of us, CANiBA is running in the recognition rat race, but something tells me he's doing just fine...