Russell Brand: Agent of Change
Self-proclaimed self-indulgent, attention-seeking, narcissist Russell Brand sublimates his hedonistic predilections in a quest to embolden collective activism in his audience in his stand-up show, Trew World Order.
The magnetic and wickedly clever Brand captivates his devotees with messages of love, unity, and revolution delivered in histrionic bursts of manic energy.
Disillusioned by fame and riches, he views celebrity and the current state of the media as dark forces that serve to intentionally distract us from what is important, to manipulate information for nefarious purposes, and to engender fear keeping us in a voluntary state of paralysis, avoidance and ignorance.
In his live show, Brand’s philosophical eruptions are elucidated with explanatory examples of the impact of celebrity and the media on his own life including reading aloud false headlines manufactured to intentionally misrepresent his statements in interviews and displaying Rupert Murdoch and Donald Trump as the ultimate purveyors of ‘untrewths’.
Despite Brand’s serious message—abandon individualism and embrace a shared purpose—his show maintains its raunchy playfulness as he bounces around on stage recounting embarrassing stories of himself, providing self-deprecating analyses of his own failings, and allowing the audience unmatched accessibility to him both during and after the show.
Whether Brand will have a sociopolitical impact on audiences that will exact the change he is advocating remains to be seen. What is not in question is that Russell Brand successfully fulfills his primary job description: Comedian.
Published in weekendnotes
