"There is no truth about me": How Marilyn Manson managed not to go out of fashion
"Interview with the most famous satanist in the world" - With such click-through media headers, they usually try to draw attention to Marilyn Manson's new albums, which he releases once every 2-3 years. But neither the best friend of Johnny Depp as part of his new supergroup, nor the scandal with Justin Bieber, nor a fashion shot with his recently departed father (both with the same distinctive makeup) in Paper magazine are of fundamental importance. Modern musician makes an image that appeared fifteen years ago and remains unchanged. Already by the very fact of existence, he seems to denounce the Trump routine with her domestic sexism and racism, ask questions, speak very honestly. It now seems that his shocking image and overall contribution to fashion and art are undervalued. Tell us why.
Honesty
The history of the artist and musician under the name of Marilyn Manson is a projection of the time in which he declared himself. The United States in the early 90s is the heyday of pop culture and aggressive advertising, on the one hand, and religious rise with TV sermons and new Christian schools, on the other. And the end of the 90s and the beginning of the zero is the boom of r'n'b, ostentatious luxury and kitsch. The emergence of Manson and its popularity among adolescents have become a logical response to what is happening.
From the first public appearances of Brian Hugh Warner - the real name of the musician who took a pseudonym in honor of the famous killer Charles Manson and actress Marilyn Monroe - his image has grown with many myths, some of which he never denied. "There is no truth about me, everyone chooses a lie in which to believe," said Manson. However, there were also important things, the position on which he always pronounced clearly.
At one time he turned inside out what was hidden behind the facade of a prosperous American life. For example, he spoke very honestly about his own childhood - about the nightmares that were happening in the Christian school that made him an atheist, about his sexist father (whom he, however, does not blame for this: “Time was like that”) and about how other children scoffed above him, thinking he is gay. It is not surprising that his music served as a support for those who did not fit into the overall system. "Anyone who is a little different from the crowd will always be someone who despises," said Manson. Outsiders, minorities, those who were teased and bullied at school, found an ally in it. After all, his loud statements boiled down to one postulate (afterwards almost all pop stars, from Lady Gaga to Katy Perry) built a career: "I do not want you to be like me, I want you to be yourself."
The singer himself, in his youth engaged in music journalism, is still incredibly frank for a star of his magnitude. He willingly gives interviews and comments. In 2001, he will be asked to take part in the Bowling for Columbine documentary film about the tragedy in the American school, when two teenagers killed fifteen schoolchildren, and he will agree, although his comprehensive statement has already been published in the public domain.
And this is despite the fact that public opinion almost blamed Manson for inspiring adolescents for violence. A quote from that interview: “I wouldn’t say anything to them, I’d just listen to them - this is what no one did,” the bomb went off.
There was never a taboo for him - about the very tragedy, by the way, he still speaks calmly - the same applies to casual relationships and drugs ("They should be taken only in a good mood"). In the world of "correct" stars, Marilyn Manson was a godsend for journalists. In 2017, his openness also turns out to be valuable.
Not only stage image
"Marilyn Manson appeared when music was not even there yet. I created an artificial world because I didn’t like the real one. It also pushed me to create music. I had to squeeze into frames that I invented myself," Manson He spoke exhaustively about the nature of his artistry and admitted that he was not going to leave the image even after the concerts.
As a young man of twenty, he was passionate about everything about music, and skillfully used his knowledge from the very beginning of his career. The image of Manson has always been a collective one: he took a bit of everything from pop culture and glam rock, industrial and cyberpunk, punk in general.
The first line-up of his group, which was called Marilyn Manson & The Spooky Kids, gained little fame due to performances at the intersection of theater and performance; they can be compared to less replicated experiments like Fad Gadget. If fate had not brought him to Trent Reznor (the founder of Nine Inch Nails), who then only launched his label, Manson would probably have had local alternative music festivals, and his Wikipedia page would take no more than three lines.
Bright make-up, corsets, leopard jackets, narrow leather pants, massive boots - for him there were no restrictions with regard to appearance, as well as the division into male and female; there were periods when he looked a little more or a little less androgynous. At the same time, his image can hardly be called innovative: paradoxically, he was reworking other people's old ideas, but he was always ahead of his time.
The most interesting in the visual terms of his period - after the release of the album "Mechanical Animals", with characteristic hairstyles and very different images, from the naked body on the cover of the album to office suits in fashionable filming. That image is more relevant today than ever. In it, and most of all parallels with how David Bowie presented himself after the release of "The Rise and Fall of the Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars". Manson had a few fictional entities at the time, but the main one was the androgyne, whose name was Omēga. That it could be seen in the videos "The Dope Show" and "I Don't Like the Drugs".
And then, and now, one of Manson's favorite ways to state his position is to ask video questions. They were addressed to television, the church and the Bible, military conflicts and, of course, to himself. Manson never had problems with self-irony. Even today, when his image is as traditional as possible, you would hardly be surprised to see him in a dress: what is audacious in a dress for a man who once posed for an American flag?
Return
The new generation of Marilyn Manson is interesting as a character who opposes herself to luxury and consumerism of the beginning of zero. Now, when the genre called "emo rap" is in fashion, Manson is again quite relevant. After all, the problems of young people have not changed much since 1998.
Manson managed to make friends with the main modern British rapper Skepta, and their joint photos on instagram caused a real stir on both sides of the Atlantic.
Another rapper - Lil Uzi Vert - showed his fans a pendant and a chain of precious stones with the image of Manson, after which he announced his collaboration with the musician. Russian rapper Pharaoh in his live broadcasts, too, sings "Coma White" - hit Manson, who is just over twenty years old. And all this with the friendly support of young fans.
Manson himself is a man with a vast background, able to find a common language with people from various spheres. Whenever he mentioned that he was an admirer of the Walking Dead, he was offered a joint interview with the actor from this series Norman Reedus. At the same time, the musician carefully forms his surroundings: having reunited with classmate Twiggi Ramirez (fans have been waiting for this for many years), Manson after a while says goodbye to him after Twiggy was accused of rape.
The scandal around Justin Bieber's merchandise (the singer c permission from Manson took his image from the album "Mechanical Animals") resulted in a bad reality show with symmetrical accusations. But what is worth the phrase, carelessly thrown by Bieber: "I made it relevant again." The t-shirt with the same print is now sold with great success on eBay and AliExpress. And in terms of the number of fakes, it can compete only with hoods and Vetements T-shirts, which took the old Rammstein merch as a basis. Is this the main confirmation of the status of a star in 2017?
Manson can be long accused of samopiare, catchy exits and loud statements, but at least rightly appreciate the choice of a man who turned his life into an endless performance and did not lie about the important.
Photo:Wikimedia Commons, Marilyn Manson, Cooking Vinyl