Amidst another month of inspiring reading and discovery, I've been asking myself: how do you create your own space in a crowded landscape? The modern internet is akin to a jungle, where 98% of the light (i.e., attention and exposure) is filtered before it reaches the jungle floor. With that 2% of remaining light, surrounded by larger and more established players, how can you find ways to grow?
The jungle is a rich, diverse ecosystem, with countless forms of life and immeasurable growth all the way up the canopy. The internet is the same. But it's still a fun question to play with, especially if you're actively creating and sharing work. My intention is akin to that of a bristlecone pine: to find a space so beautiful that I don't mind how long it takes to grow while I'm there.
Now on to the recommendations!
I love reading about writers whose work I have spent a lot of time with, and outside of book authors, I've probably read more words from Matt Levine than from nearly anyone else. His series, Money Stuff, is a dense, hyper-niched financial discourse, with topics like corporate liability, SEC litigation, and crypto regulation (and that was just from Thursday's email). Many of the topics quickly go over my head, but after years of reading, you slowly build a familiarity, aided by Levine's dry humor and encyclopedic knowledge. In Why So Few Matt Levines?, Gwern Branwen writes about what makes Matt Levine so effective, as well as what makes him so rare.
Another master of his field, Lewis Hamilton, recently sat down for an interview with Esquire.
"Ultimately, it always comes back to persistence and dedication. Hard work. It always does eventually pay off. I think I learned that life is really about how much pain you can experience and keep going, and how much you can suffer and keep moving forward, you know?"For those unfamiliar, Hamilton is considered the greatest Formula 1 driver of all time, with 7 World Championships and 105 race wins over his 18-year career. This interview is an important reminder that achieving greatness is always difficult, and even those at the top of their game have to constantly fight to maintain it.
In Sticky humans in a post-AGI world, Erik Hoel argues for the irreplaceability of humans regardless of the rapid advancement of AI. He uses tutoring as an example, which is compelling for how thoroughly he strays from the assumed narrative around personalized AI tutors. I find "stickiness" to be a great label that will hold up across disciplines (think live music, high-touch service sectors, professional sports). People want to experience greatness, and there's something innate in our measure of greatness that requires another person to be doing the thing.
For some music to break up all the reading, I'd recommend this live performance with Brazilian jazz pianist Amaro Freitas. His music is a chaotic blend of Brazilian folk rhythms, bluesy gospel riffs, and swinging melodies—part dance club, part jazz lounge.
Ted Gioia had another wonderful piece on his The Honest Broker Substack, Nine Predictions for the Future of the Music Business. A lot of how I think about cultural trends and social cycles comes from Gioia's writing, and this piece focusing on the disruption of the music industry, is interesting as a subject, as well as a larger concept. Where does disruption come from? What is the rising counterculture in response to established norms? Who is too slow and out-of-touch to adapt? The questions Gioia asks about music and entertainment can be applied across many fields.
I believe that non-human intelligence is active in the world around us, and our lack of appreciation is due to our current inability to interact with it. When plants can learn and remember and slime molds can navigate mazes, you know there is a lot more going on behind-the-scenes than we are aware of. A recent piece in the New Yorker explores some new research showing that birds exhibit a wide range of language and learning behaviors throughout their lives. I can't wait to see more work and study in this direction.
Wrapping up with a few other pieces for consideration. Jack Raines writes about the intentional life in a modern age in The Cost of Apathy. Mandy Brown with Coming Home considers how to create and share work in a fragmented and distracting social world. And a behind-the-scenes film immersing you in the process of writing and recording an album with musician normal the kid.
For more to explore, check out the Monthly Medley Archives:
September 2024
August 2024
July 2024
June 2024