ART is an act of curating reality. I have been mulling over this profound statement that I thought about as I was driving back from another round of home deliveries of my new album, John Bangi Blues, a few nights ago.

Yes, I’ve been doing home deliveries of my latest physical compact disc album release (my first in five years) since the end of September when I officially launched it. An ex-colleague who ordered a copy asked me as I passed him the CD: “Wouldn’t it be cheaper if you just delivered it by post?”

I had given that a lot of thought prior to hitting the roads and highways all over the Klang Valley and I think the answer is not a simple yes or no. As much as online livestreams fills in the hunger to perform – be it from my own social media profiles using my tablet or a more proper and organised set up post-MCO livestream shows I have done – I feel the tangible physical interactions are sorely missing. 

My home delivery runs (which are still ongoing and if you are interested in a copy home delivered, just drop me a direct message on my Twitter) are more an act of trying to reconnect with friends and fans (the distinction between the two is often blurred to me) who I have only “seen” via updates on Facebook or Instagram or WhatsApp messages.

So what is the big deal if I decide to fill up my tank and drive all over delivering my orders? My deliveries have so far brought myself to these towns and cities (in no particular order): Bukit Raja, Nilai, Kuala Lumpur, Kota Damansara, Mutiara Damansara, Petaling Jaya, USJ, SS19 Subang Jaya, Sunway City, Kepong, Bandar Sri Damansara, Seri Kembangan, Shah Alam, Kuang, Damansara Utama, Kampung Medan, Taman Tun Dr Ismail, Batu 9 Cheras, Pandan Perdana, Cyberjaya, and my own hometown Bandar Baru Bangi.

On paper, it looks like I have been on my own campaign trail, Abah Azmyl! Just kidding (although I am a father).

I have always had fascination with geography and, unlike most denizens, I do not find commuting or being stuck in traffic a pain nor a nuisance. Unless I am late for something, naturally. What are cities and towns, but curations of town planners, developers and politicians?

Unfortunately, these “curations” are seldom thought out thoroughly and one must find ways to deal with it rather than let it eat you up. Inculcate the habit of listening to full music albums from beginning until end in its entirety rather than opting for the fallacy of “choice” by shuffling or succumbing to some AI-induced “playlist” on your favourite online streaming service.

Our art is the manifestation of ourselves. Talking or writing about art or art making is a tightrope. There is a very thin line between being earnest and on being pretentious.

This gap does not do all art forms any favours. Instead, we find ourselves caught in the gulf between naive immersion in a hobby v supposedly professional pursuit of the same form which gives it a greater sense of validity.

The professionalisation of a vocation or activity does not necessarily make it “better”. Its assumption of “quality” is often entwined with concepts of standardisation and mass production, the hallmarks of a consumerist utopia.

Unfortunately, we in Malaysia are still caught up in this sordid fascination and endless loop of aiming to be a “professional” (for the fear of being assumed to be an “amateur”), a hallmark of being a developing industrial society, I suppose. 

In the field of music making alone, the definition of what a “musician” is already varied and embedded in different social and economic contexts which fly over the head of artless politicians. This may explain why “professional” organisations tend to foresee the “industry” often failing to see the forest for the trees. 

Think of your mother who cooks the best food and killer dishes unparalleled; did she go through professional training? Is it expected of her to start a restaurant or catering business based on this merit?

While we link these “talents” as having a “feel” for “it”, we often discount the fact that they are good at it because they genuinely love doing it and find pure joy and meaning in the activity. That is why it tastes so damn good. You lose yourself in the activity and that is why art matters. It is not quantifiable.

Likewise, with art and cultural products ranging from comics to films to music to photography, celebration of the amateur is not about celebrating its “non-professionalism”. It is really about celebrating its honesty and purity of purpose that is not driven by some commercial motive.

Curate your own reality: you cannot change reality but you can mitigate and leverage it to your own needs. In this “new normal”, it is probably the sanest tangible thing to do.

Enough of letting politicians curate our life. Reclaim it for yourself and, in turn, tell them what to curate. We voted for them after all. – October 9, 2020.

* Azmyl Yunor is a touring underground recording artiste, and an academic in media and cultural studies. He has published articles on pop culture, subcultures and Malaysian cultural politics. He adheres to the three-chords-and-the-truth school of songwriting, and Woody Guthrie’s maxim “All you can write is what you see”. He is @azmyl on Twitter.