What Makes Us Vibe?
Music, movies, fiction, art. We all like them for various reasons, the chiefest of them is how they resonate with something deep within ourselves, something we cannot articulate well enough and yet that which remains an undeniably primitive part of our individual selves. A sense of catharsis grows out of having been identified, from having been pulled out of the shadows of the external personality we build all our lives, to now communicate with the outside world.
I’ve been listening to ‘Lo-Fi hip hop music to relax/study to’ on youtube for more than 5 years now. It calms me down and paints an altered reality around me that strangely enough, feels more recognizable and bearable than the actual reality of my world. It then prompted me to think about various forms of entertainment and what draws me to them. Everything I like can be measured by how far away it takes me from reality and into a familiar altered reality where things are cozier and more magical, whether it is music (lo-fi) or movies like Lord of the rings, star trek, Harry Potter, anime like Naruto or FMA. I like it when they hit a certain other-worldly spot, a certain vibe. This particular feeling defines the gap between things I like and things I love and regularly come back to.
Take Naruto for example. Apart from the amazing characterizations and deep lore, I also fell in love with the feeling of just diving into that world. I wanted nothing more than to roam the streets of Konoha and interact with these whacky, overpowered, yet thoroughly human characters. There are countless other movies and anime that I consider to be ‘high art’ but as much as I appreciate them for their intellectual complexity, I wouldn’t yearn to return to their world, and it has nothing to do with genre either. Some people call this “heart”, “that story has a heart”, “this music has a soul'' but I would like to use the word “vibe” to identify this peculiar feeling, to identify that which propels you from like to love. If a particular media doesn’t capture your vibe, then it probably isn’t your type of world, but there are countless other worlds out there, countless moments, places, people, moods being created every second.
Vibe has no cultural restrictions, you can vibe with anyone from any country based on mutual adoration for a piece of art, it is worth noting that one rarely connects, on a deeper level, with another, based on something they ‘appreciate’ or ‘like’. It is that which you love and are possessed by, that connects you with others on a deeper level. What is this magical ingredient that becomes so important to elevate a form of entertainment or media? How essential is it for a piece of art? While we ponder these questions It becomes increasingly clear that any creative endeavor should at least have a base level of inclination towards wanting to create this vibe, but can It even be willfully created? Maybe, but I strongly believe that this secret ingredient is too elusive to be captured by will. As stated earlier, the immense connectivity fostered by this feeling reaches directly to the core of someone's personality, Therefore, it can only be surmised that to create art that carries such ‘vibe’ the creator has to search within themselves, and with the immeasurably painful sharpness of honesty, slash away at their core to find this secret ingredient that resonates with countless others.
