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Étiquette : party
Daddy did an Art Show (2025)
In february 2025, in Montréal, I did my first art show. I have drawned all my life but never let the kid outside. As the subject was « Daddies » , it felt like going naked in public … the show was a party and made me grow more than I thought.
Daddy is a Pop Star
My first show was an expercience. Not only did it showed my drawings but it showed a part of me I rarely show : my intrinsect love for daddies.
Pop Art is the Art of Parties. It is colorful, big and easy. Big happy smiles to clash with the darkness of bars and clubs. My technique was, also, very Warholian, I outlined the « contour », photocopied them and went to « Le Stud », on the day of the expo, to color the outlines with pencils and carton. Did I mention its first showcase was at Le Stud. I went on the day of the first expo!
As the Stud is quite a dark place, it feels weird in retrospective that it inspired so much color.
I wanted the places to inspire the art. I, finally, went to the printer and photocopied them again to get that « mat » finish. As a magician in front of his public, the staff and owner of Le Stud were AROUND me, staring while I was being an artist. It is safe to say the energy was high and the pressure was on! I don’t think I would do that again, nevertheless it gave a really interesting and colourful touch to the « oeuvres ». It is not only a piece of art but also a moment!
What the Art means
The subject of the show was love : my hidden love for Daddies and the path of my self discovery throughout my partying in Montréal. As an artist, I tend to do art and then find the signification after. It is a way to free myself from the shame of what I love. It made it clear how gay parties were a gateway for me to find love. The discovery of the « Bar Le Stud » was instrumental in my romantic history at least two times. It is a place I feel safe to show my « true colors ».
What I learned
As every important challenge becomes a opportunity to evolve, I learned a lot throughout this exposition. First thing is that gay bars were important for me to connect with pals. I did not realize how important these places were until they popped in my drawings with so much passion.
I am not the only one
After revealing my drawing at Le Stud, some things just became so clear : so many guys love daddies. It was easy to see them structed by the content of the show. They loved it from a very peculiar distance, like if it was a shame to show a childish devotion to something they loved. Even worst, when they were with their daddies, they would stay completely silent but almost hypnotized by the content and the « tales » behind each piece. I know that because I have lived it myself.
Hiding is worst than judgement
The first showcase of this expo was at Le Stud, Montreal’s finest daddie-bear bar. I was dreading the humiliation, as a tough man, of showing this vulnerable very candid part of me to the rest of the world. I felt naked to eventually realize…. everybody was naked : everyone was here to find their daddy. The first startled boys, soon, started to appear. They would tell me, under their breath, how they much liked it confused about their own feelings. Yet, as insecure boys, they would wait for daddy to buy them their toys……aahhhh boys and toys….
Daddies own the Parties
Meaningful events always make you evolve. I gained a certain lucidity throughout this adventure : my own dad, my perspective on art and the state of gay world. Two majors revelations happened to me :
They don’t care about the future of the culture
As a boy, you always dream that daddy is going to save you…. In reality, your dad is not your savior nor your daddy should be. Expanded to a social lucidity where millennials grew up to believe boomers would save them, it hurts. Furthermore, the lucidity of seeing all these young boys waiting to be approved for something that is never going to happen hits. Since part of my expo was on the Stud and happened to be a tribute to this institution, I became quite lucid about the disinterest to engage in any cultural statement by the gay patriarchy. I wish Rupaul had something to say about men…I realized than more than ever, bars now, were only a waiting spot for your money to be spent : a chance to socialize in a very loud space where deepness is not really there….
If, us, millennials, want to make it happen culturally, we will have to become the « bad guys ». The Boomers had to « imagine all the people » yet they could buy a house and own a shop and then denied us our right to have a place in the world with their « good principles ». We will have to say « no » and start acting as a squad.
You need a band
A great artist, Ozwazo, told me : it is when you see the 4 paintings together that you get the power of your art. This became a metaphor as I was looking at the 4 bears painted on the little table. If I am only one of them, who are the other ones. Indeed, I have talented friends, yet, we never team up for anything. Why is so? I realize things can happen if I get 3 teammates. But, Western is so individualistic, it might be hard. We have lost the belief that we can make it with our own pals.
The Punk Age is about to come!
See my article « Punk is Trump » to understand how fast the world is going to change. Not only, things are crumbling but it is clearer than ever that, as millennials, we will have to force our way in….the culture. And, I am afraid, there will be victims….sitting at the top of the food chain. I have tried for so long to do anything new in the places I would go out to, yet, apart from New York and the NYC ROCKBAR, it was always a no.
The punk mentality comes a rejection of the old, of the used and of the peace. The future holds very cut-throat parties used as statements! And New York is about to self destruct.
Can’t wait to go back and hang out with the bored kids looking for a fix…..looking for the Man.
In conclusion
Doing an art show on daddies really changed me in a a very surprising way. I became free of my lust for their approval and yet fully aware and unashamed of my love for their mind and bodies. It is with great pleasure I have entered my « Multi-Papas » era (multi-daddies) where a boy grows up in a teenager way to become an adult and who he is. I still love them and will probably always will but I am just not completely bound to them like I was before. Surprisingly the before part was also accompanied with shame that prevented me from actually enjoying those relationships. Plus, it made me reconcile with my own dad!
(picture of me and my dad)
Do art event if it sucks!
Partying In Mexico City (2022)
Hello, my name is Tom Tales. I am a party scholar which means I studied parties around the world. Especially in the gay world. Nothing straight
Mexico City is the idea of the 90s
Partying in Mexico City has a vibe of what millennials think partying in the 90s was : basements, factory like setting, barrels and cheap beers. Yes, in Mexico, beers are very cheap plus, in bars, you don’t even have to leave tip. Yeah, we have done experiences where we would check and ask…. and, in bars, people don’t leave tip. So even cheaper!
Drags are the new mainstream
Even in Mexico, drags are everywhere. It is kind of …interesting to some extent to watch guys dress as ladies sing tween songs in bars where…. there are only guys. Anyways, that is just my unpopular opinion. Nevertheless, the Mexicans love to sing and boy, does their culture give in well into drag culture for the « singing my heart out and dancing a choreography » part. And they do that in Spanish. As a Québecois who is used to have everything in American in my bars, it is very refreshing to see how the world is not all-american….in America (Mexico is still in America hahaha).
Fun fact, bars ans cafes where they played American music where more generic and expensive than others playing local music.
Mexicans are the Dancing Queens
BAILA BAILA BAILA contigo, conmigo con todo! I LOVE TO DANCE, and boys does the Mexicans dance. I’ll do another article on boys and girls in clubs, but Mexican gay clubs are usually pretty mix especially on the younger side, and…..as a dance lover, they dance. They were outdancing me, especially since they social dance in couple. Imagine a pool of dancers, even dancing on bars and on the floors with 1$ beers. They legit, outperform north american typical club goers. You should be dancing yeah !
Reggaeton is really better than dance
okay, i know you all like Britney but nevertheless, reggaeton (which was annoyingly everywhere like…..i opened my bathroom door and reggaeton was there) is really in the hips and it is so sensual. I realize how, in North Western Cultures, we lost the art of dancing with someone. There wasn’t a single club that didn’t put social dances at some point. I know we used to have slows before but now, the DON’T TOUCH ME vibes are making us cold.
Cheap, affordable, cool, edgy, young and passionate.
In conclusion, I think a great deal of future is in the CDMX (ciudad de Mexico) bar/club scene. It is still very young, fresh, unexpensive and cool. I also think that latin culture is yet to have a even bigger break on the worldwide scene. I would put my money in CDMX.
Let’s just say we are going to Marrakesh Salon which is located on a party street near the « palais royal » of Mexico. Entering there on a Friday cost 50 pesos and you get a free beer. That is 2.5US$ to get in a club with a beer! Once I was in, you can imagine a crowd of people dancing and chanting with pink lights. Cages and Dancers on the bars. Boys and Girls mostly Gays and Girls. The music is electro-pop and latin music. Very dancy and a lot of songs, unlike northern clubs, are made to be danced with a partner. That makes clubs even more fun.
Sour Candy & Chaos : my life with Michael Alig : The « Real » Sequel to Party Monster (2024)
The Parties have died a long time ago and the jail time has been done. After 17 years, Michael Alig, former King of the Club Kids, is now free once again. After being incarcarated for manslaughter, what will happen when the infamous Club Kid Killer comes out? No one knows better than the ones who actually lived with him. Riding the craziness of his everyday life, here is the natural sequel to the cult classic Party Monster
voici
Sour Candy & Chaos : My Life With Michael Alig.
The Club Kids « Myth » never faded out
The « Club Kids » were a group of young party creatures that populated, shaped and ruled the nightlife of New York during its heyday, the 90s….. until today. They made more, more, and more …than anyone. Michael Alig, among others including Ru Paul, was a pipe pier of the movement, organizing many parties in the biggest clubs of the city. Disco 2000 was his weekly party at the Limelite.
To put things in perspective Disco 2000 was a Wednesday party that involved regularly around 2000 people paying up to a 40$ cover price….in 1991. It lasted 5 years and propulsed Michael into a stratosphere of fame, glamour and excess.. 30 years after its end, we still talk about the era and its grandeur.
Sidenote : They were the first young « Gays & Trans » on television.
As a way to promote his parties, Michael Alig setted appeareances on various 90s talk show showcasing his group of young outcasts, they became the first generation of gays on mainstream television. Unappolegetic, they had the looks, the youth, the ambiguous gender and sexual orientation to capture America’s attention. These shows helped shaping the look and attitude of the gay scene for years to come.
Watch the clip here :
https://youtu.be/NRTNy_PuEOk?si=tggcjuyGz16gKYEg&t=683The Sequel to « Everything that happened before »
At the height of his popularity and under scrutiny of the FBI, Michael Alig murdered a fellow club kid and drug dealer in a twisted drug haze in his appartement.
The well is poisoned beyond repair : the scene and his legacy have this unwashable stint for years to come. To make matters worst, he tried to hide it and was free for around 6 more month after his crime, like detailed in Party Monster 1. The swindle collapsed was sentenced to 17 years in prison until his release : where Sour Candy & Chaos starts.
While Party Monster tales : The Rise, Transformation & Downfall of Michael Alig & The Club Kids, Sour Candy & Chaos tales The Comeback & The Afterlife.
A shocking intro
From the get-go we are literally inside Michael’s daily routine : no curtain, no wall, nothing. It does feel at time like reading the Kurt Cobain journal : lot of details about someone’s private life exposed with a certain morbid fascination. It makes you wonder how Michael would have felt having his life revealed like that.
How I Met the Monster : A new Narrator
Not yet a friend, nor a roomate, the narrator is waiting calmly in his Bronx appartement until arrives the « famous » friend of his husband Ernie Glam. Michael Alig, the Party Monster himself, enters, followed by James St-James, and a bunch of camera crew. The Party is On.
For this « next chapter », the perspective of James St.James is taken this time by the author, David Maurici, husband, of the club kid Ernie Glam (the Chicken in Disco 2000s), one’s of Michael closest relationship. His perspective is very insightful on the « behind the scene » of the glamourous life of party makers.
The Comeback Kid Magazine : The Pee-ew
Our protagonist, now free, is on path to reclaim everything he lost that night : his once coveted fame and position. Uploaded with a new image : le peintre, Michael Alig, though, cannot throw parties until his parole ends nor can he takes drugs.
Nevertheless, the « club kid » still has it for up-and-coming trends ; he quickly discovers the relishly new possibilities of he internet and e-shops. For the fame …or the fortune, he starts a satire of The View, on Youtube, a show called The Peews and sells club kid memorabilia. This is 2017, everything could happen now!
I was a listener of The Pee-ew. I watched it with amusement and its daily dose of gossip was quite entertaining and soothing. Jake Paul was yet to be even an adult and it felt like Michael Alig still had a shot at reclaiming his nightlife glory.
Welcome the Cancel Culture Michael!
Unfortunatly, for him, the queers of New York didn’t appreciated his antics and his comeback was blocked by another group : The Culture Whores….ironically the spiritual daughters of the Club Kids. More than this, his badmouth also prevented him from cutting a deal with the production house behind the first Party Monster Movie and Rupaul Drag Race : World of Wonders.
New York was having a blast putting him down and he was not having it!
The Drama with The Culture Whores is still iconic to this day.
When reality sinks in : everyone is sad
The book retails the drama behind the episodes and depicts an individual extremely conflicted by his story and plagued with self doubt while looking pretty chill on camera.
The bridge with reality of experiencing the show while it aired and now hearing about all the drama is very interesting, yet very unfortunate. Riddle with self-doubt, a crazy ego and a forever legacy to transport as a burden, one expression is de mise : Self-sabotage.
A cautionary tale for all procrastinating artists
The book gives great insight on the life of a struggling artist trying to reclaim his glorious past old of more than two decades. It is a great warning filled with self doubt, procrastination and doing too much at the same time : on some level it feels extremely relatable : in a way, Michael was destroyed by the internet and his ADHD behaviours were worsen by it : a warning for everyone.
Spoiler Alert : he dies from an O.D. alone on Christmass Covid Day
We can’t really assume Michael had any closure with his mom, but we do get some insights on the behind the scene « real » vibes behind his iconic « parade of his mom on ecstasy in the 90s ».
Michael Alig had probably one of the saddest life and one of the loneliest death. After spending 17 years in jail and 5 of them in solitary confinement, he died from a fentanyl laced heroin overdose on Christmass Eve during Covid. His controversial ashes are back in Indiana close to his mother..
The book shares some follow details to his release. For sure, it wasn’t all that pretty behind the glitter and the glam.
Added to that, he never realy was capable of fully expressing honest remorse about his terrible crime and also, his probable bitchy moves and antics he had done in the past while in power : he had a lot to be forgiven about.
Closure in death
This book that no one waited, actually seems to put closure on Michael Alig’s life. From a biais perspective of a « frenemy » his life is effectivelly tailed until his death on Covid Christmass Day.
Unlike what his contemporaries probably thought, his aura lasted until many years after his initial demise in 1996. Michael Alig had a unique taste of what was edgy and a capacity to express it in a party manner unique to himself. He had the « provocative witt » and was a key figure of the 90s.
Had he persevered, showed remorse and stopped self sabotaging, he could have been a key figure into making New York cool again.
Because, let’s face it, New York is not as important culturally as it was 30 years ago during his heyday.
In a twisted way, New York needed him to be New York but elsewhere around the world. As depitcted in the book, he, ultimatly, refused. It does seem like a stretch, but it reminds of the unique reasons who Elvis Presley never did a show outside the U.S.A. ultimatly died of it.
MAKE NEW YORK COOL AGAIN.
Buy Michael Alig’s Sour Candy & Chaos from author David Maurici here : https://a.co/d/3IiSO4w
Michael Alig : Can New York ever process the legacy of the Party Monster(2023)
The life of Michael alig was filled with highs and lows. Infamous drug addict and later murderer, he would, nevertheless, revolutionize the art of party in New York before falling into disgrace after the murder of Angel Melendez, his drug dealer and follower. Imprisonned for most of his adult life (17 years), he would later die from a drug overdose on Christmass Eve right into the covid pandemic. How can New York process the life & death of one of its most prominent and infamous party icon?
Beauty In The Beast (A difficult heritage to embrace)
If you ever had organized a party, you can relate how much of his work was pure art : the magnitude, the frequency (1 party a week is INSANE), he was at FOUR! Also the cultural impact of it (Where do you think Rupaul & friends come from?) HIS SCENE. There is no denial to it. And we must stop pretending it wasnt as important in nightlife culture as it was. Nothing since then, came even close to it. 2000 KIDS EVERY WEDNESDAY PAYING A 20$ COVER IN 1991. That is like 40$ bucks in 2023 on a freaking wednesday. hmmm no.
Making the Monster
I know he killed somebody. But bro, Disco 2000 was 2000 kids ! EVERY WEDNESDAY .20$ cover in 1991!!! in MANHATTAN, New York : THE LAST GLORIOUS AGE OF CLUBS and he was only 26.
Bro you like or not, but Michael Alig was instrumental to that age and on top of the pyramid #facts. Like P.Diddy he called the shots. That is not me having a point of view, that is factu. He gave a job to RuPaul BEFORE THE FAME… whatever she likes it or not He made Leigh Bowery performed in New York. FREAKIN LEIGH BOWERY. Boy George would hang out at his clubs just because …. Bjork was chilling with his crew. Madonna used to vip his clubs to see what what hip. NO QUESTION ASKED.
An underniable walk of success (His accomplishment)
If you ever had organized a party, you can relate how much of his work was pure art : the magnitude, the frequency (1 party a week is INSANE), he was at FOUR! Also the cultural impact of it (Where do you think Rupaul & friends come from?) HIS SCENE. There is no denial to it. And we must stop pretending it wasnt as important in nightlife culture as it was. Nothing since then, came even close to it. 2000 KIDS EVERY WEDNESDAY PAYING A 20$ COVER IN 1991. That is like 40$ bucks in 2023 on a freaking wednesday. hmmm no.
Gays & Trans People on Mainstream Television
The problem with facts is that they are undeniable. To say that Michael Alig’s run of mainstream talk shows bringing « freaks » for views and publicity had one understated effect : it was probably for most « young Americans », the first time they say gay & trans in their life. An example would be the presence of Amanda Lepore on Geraldo in 1991. After being asked if she is a male or a female, she simply puts that she is the « idea of woman ». This was on mainstream television, 20 years, before gay marriage was legal in New York. Again on that same show, when being asked if the intervewees are gay, none of them.
A legacy maker and honorary
He made Leigh Bowery performed in New York. FREAKIN LEIGH BOWERY. And Leigh Bowery was not cheap.
A tradition created at Studio 54
Following the steps of Steve Rubbel (infamous but notorious owner of Studio 54), he made sure people were there, at the door, to make sure your average joe bloe did not enter the club. Yet 2000 people were ready to pay 20$ in 1991 on a Wednesday. Mind you, he was only 25 then….FREAKING 25 years old.
An era of Decadence
When you look at the mainstream success of American culture in the 90s, there is a common denomitator that only grew bigger until the « 2000 bug » : the apocalypse. Put in Fight Club, Kurt Cobain, Californication, Marilyn Manson, Columbine even the Simpsons, Alexander Mcqueen, Heroin Chic, The Prodigy Firestarter, Nine Inch Nails’ The Dowward Spiral, Radiohead’s Ok Computer…Trainspotting, there was this sense that society was falling and this walk towards a certain rebellion mixed with apathy became more and more extreme gore. Marilyn Manson’s Antichrist Superstar is probably the pinacle and Columbine the horrible aftermath. In that vein, Michael Alig’s magazine « Project X » was putting ads of « CRACK » next to Armani ads. Where could it go wrong from there? This romantiscm of descending to hell feels very original especially of the mainstream stars of that time. But Courtney Love didn’t seem to have such a great time the year she was the most relevant (1995) as « Live Through this » came out 3 days after, her husband, Kurt Cobain, did himself with what was found to be 5x the lethal heroin dose amount in his blood. This bloodfeast drug days had a cost. Lives were lost and art that had a lasting impact on the world, was made.
But, wait a minute
It does put a context around these bad behaviours. Remember all those people were under 30 at the time and on top of the world. This kind of fame has been rarely seen before at that magnitude.
Celebrating American culture yet with comments
Hard facts
Michael Alig did do great parties that shaped the nightlife of New York. He also did a lot to promote on mainstream level the idea of queerness and gender bender. New York was a place of culture and music that still resonates with today’s antics. All of this before the age of 30 years old.
The Vision
According to Ernie Glam, the Club Kids had a vision : to go as extreme as possible to leave their imprint on New York. It was their plan and that is what they did.An Influençal group of pals
Bro you like or not, but Michael Alig was instrumental to that age and on top of the pyramid #facts. Like P.Diddy he called the shots. That is not me having a point of view, that is fact. He gave a job to RuPaul BEFORE THE FAME… whatever she likes it or not He made Leigh Bowery performed in New York. FREAKIN LEIGH BOWERY. Boy George would hang out at his clubs just because …. Bjork was chilling with his crew. Madonna used to vip his clubs to see what what hip. NO QUESTION ASKED.
Marilyn Manson/Walt Paper Case
Marilyn Mason 90s il litterally a straight version of the club kids as seen on Geraldo (tv spots organized by Michael Alig) and most literrally Walt Paper’s look. When you compare them both, it is obvious. There is a latter comparaison also between Lady Gage « Fame Monster » cover and Kenny Kenny looks (the wig).Madonna’s odd spiritual journey’s and Dj Keoki’s All Mixed Up Cover
Marilyn Mason 90s il litterally a straight version of the club kids as seen on Geraldo (tv spots organized by Michael Alig) and most literrally Walt Paper’s look. When you compare them both, it is obvious. There is a latter comparaison also between Lady Gage « Fame Monster » cover and Kenny Kenny looks (the wig).Bjork hanging out with kids.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/w3kGy_S5HjEA common theme is that there were very close to the culture that became mainstream in a very respected way. You have also to remember that all these people were under 30. I mean, Michael Alig, was 1 year older than Kurt Cobain and literraly fell from grace shortly after his 30th birthday.
A fallen monster : The inevitable creation of a myth
Okay you want to virtue signal that bad people are bad, but can you shut the fuck up when no one asl your opinion on the body of work of someone.
They come on stage when the performer leaves
The bliss of not Knowing
Nobody knew how things would end. It is tempting to know afterwards but it is hard to judge people that knew him before everything happened.
How do we process?
As a society we need to set up values and principles to guide us into separating the good from the bad. The problem with Michael Alig’s life is that, low key, he is very respected by party organizers and socialites. New York still parties like the Club Kids do but maybe just in a lesser manner. Before Michael Alig’s party, nobody really dressed out as a Space Punk Commander to go out and party. And on multiple occasions, he led the « A-B-C »s of doing it. Him as well as his group of followers.
Separating the beauty from the beast
Okay you want to virtue signal that bad people are bad, but can you shut the fuck up when no one asl your opinion on the body of work of someone.
They come on stage when the performer leaves
Fallen Angel : A glamourous descend to hell
Kurt Cobain said that after becoming a rock star, he decided to become a junkie and live the « sex,drug & rock’n’roll » lifestyle he always read about. It does feel part of our culture is look at our icons burn in glory until it is too late. The 00s had the barbie icons (L.A. Socialites) and Camden druggies (Amy Winehouse & The Libertines). Those glamourous descend to hell made great documentaries….
Drug Usage : Hitting the point of no return
Hiding and dismembering a dead body while a seventeen years old was living in the appartament is unforgiving….to later use his drugs and share them with pals…..vomits
Yeah, so apparently, son of famous writer Paul Auster, was a roomate (and lover) of Michael Alig (30) when the murder and dismembering of Angel Melendez happened….That is already two lifes « fucked » forever by Michael Alig’s action. Then you have his accomplice, Freeze, from his written confession, seems to have been drawned after reacting to Michael Alig’s cries for help. Then this girl « Gitsie » who died of a drug overdose, at 22 while awaiting to be a witness in Peter Gatien’s trial. Michael Alig was 30 when he was hanging it out with her and doing drugs, being « bestie », as she was only….19. #redflags.
It does feel the private life of Michael Alig was turmoiled by abuse, overbearing « problems’ sharing », disrepect, « transactional » love, and prey on young people which is especially reprehensible. Michael Alig had bad karma and lived with it until he died.
A note on Angel
Angel’s murder seems to be the pinacle of bad taste. Even if nothing is black or white, there is this sense of abuse towards Angel prior to the murder. What hurts the most, is the moment he tried to regain respect, his money back and break free, he got murdered…. dismemembered and treated like his life was not even important for people around him (like his family). It is just sad and unfair that his legacy was now forever linked to somebody that he ultimatly tried to break free from. He too, became a myth : the naive victim impressed by the glitters and smothered by the emptiness of the glamour. he was fatally going to be forever linked to Michael Alig on the very occasion he had enough. The more I read into this story and the more I could relate to the bullying as I was in the same position of Angel (trying to get into a select group during college notably selling weed to charm my way in). It ended up very badly, and got bullied immensely for it. I remember my awe (one of them actually become a huge star in Québec) was so intense and my lack of knowing what a secure relationship was so low that I endured the bullying until they literally wrote on a wall that I should die while convincing me that it was okay that they had done so. To this day, I feel so bad about that time…..That event still haunts me whenever I feel powerful and worthy as I felt dispossed of any value and self protection. Eventually that led me to the nightlife community which was full of shady characters and transactional relations. To this day, I wish I had known better. In a sick manner, Angel became this myth as he lost his life in such despicatable and sad manners.
An unfullfilled legacy
After jail, Michael was faced with a lot of opposition and backlash. It probably wasn’t the best environnement for him to show his vulnerable side and redeem himself of his past behaviours. There is a chance that we never got to see the pain behind the wall and the intresict details of his traumatic relationships. A great manipulator himself, he probably, at the top of the pyramid was facing a lot of manipulation himself and probably did a lot of bad decisions because of poor counselling from his pals or business relations. Mind you, he was only 30 years old when he went to jail. Nevertheless, had he adressed his mistakes with honesty, vulnerability, accountability and actual change, he probably would have survived and free himself of the guilt. But he did not. His last party called « Outrage » was a bit « toned-deaf » when you think about vilains redeeming arcs.
The « ABC’S » of a great party
Like it or not, Michael Alig knew the recipe for a great party like no one. He taled about it retlenlensly. For any party organizer, this is gold. He had an outlook on popular culture that few had and gladly shared his thougts and visions about it. That is precious knowledge for anyone trying to keep the party happening. His downfall too : how success (especially at a young age) will destroy you from the inside. It is like a lantern about what and what not to do. New York has to appreciate that input to move forward.
How do we reconcile?
There is two perspective : the people who knew him personnaly, on the inside, and the rest. For the first group, nothing in this article can heal the personal wounds someone may have after being publicly humiliated or ashamed because of his words and actions. For the rest, like for New York as a whole, it is to be lucid about his legacy : great parties, a love for culture and great warning for doing too much. The myth, the parties, the cultural legacy is something that changed a lof of people lives for the better. For that, we must separate the art from the person and keep only the good while acknowledging the bad. For the bad part, it is to acknowledge that no one should want someone like that in their life, no matter successful how they are.
Conclusion
Okay you want to virtue signal that bad people are bad, but can you shut the fuck up when no one asl your opinion on the body of work of someone.
They come on stage when the performer leaves
Note on the autor
Hey my name is Tom Tales. A very important in my life is fairness (libra – libra). This article tries to answer the question : should we overview and forget to recognize Michael Alig contribution to New York because of the horrendous crime he did. In short, this article will prove that no since his contribution to nightlife was not meant to perpetrate crimes.