There are certain people out there that think that just because you’re well known in the Capital District, when you get your name out there in this area, they think they get “fame”. How many times have I explained to you that there is no such thing as “fame” and being a local “celebrity” in the Capital District.
I am no big star or no big celebrity in this area. I am just a regular human being who is pretty happy enjoying life. Just a regular guy that enjoys living life, posting in my blog, just playing my guitar and writing songs. You really need to face reality that there is no such thing as “fame” in the Capital District area. Yes, there is a such thing as getting yourself recognized but that doesn’t make you celebrity.
Being local does NOT equal to national fame. The national news does not pay attention to what goes on in the Capital District. The only time when the national news do “national” reports about the Capital District is when Trey Anastasio was over here for drug treatment, 10 WWE wrestlers were suspended for failing the wellness policy in Albany, N.Y. when they performed here, and of course the Eliot Spitzer controversy.
If you want to be looked at like some celebrity, move to Los Angeles or New York City. You may have a better chance in getting “fame” in either of those two cities but you’re definitely not going to get it here in Albany, lol. But in reality, trying to get “fame” is not easy as it looks. It’s a long road, it doesn’t happen over night.
Many of the famous celebrities out there like movie stars, rock stars, sports stars, politicians, etc. They got “fame” because that’s what they were born to do. They grew up in fame because a lot of famous people grew up in a fame world. Celebs like Angelina Jolie, Drew Barrymore, Ben Stiller, Sly Stallone, Arnold, etc. They got fame ’cause they were born with it. It’s what they grew up and survived on.
You’re not going to get fame here. Even if you do move to New York City or Los Angeles permanently, it still maybe impossible to get fame in those cities as well. If I moved to California permanently (I’m not saying I will but what if), I don’t think that’ll make me a famous blogger nationally either.
When you get fame, you’ll know… when you get a gang of papparazi following you everywhere you go 24/7 but you’re certainly not going to get that in Albany. And on top of that, I don’t want fame anyways. I am not blogging or playing music for fame, they are just a little hobby I like to do in life. I’m not aiming for no big career for music or blogging, they are just something I love to do.
There is no such thing as fame or celebrity here in this area. The truth hurts but sometimes the truth needs to be said and you need to get out of that fantasy world of yours.
Kev
K'Brocking 
Well I can remember the days when MSNBC’s “Chris Jansing” was known as Chris Kapostacy to us local folks when she was on channel 13. Whoa, talk about MILF! Hawt! This was back in the days of rabbit ears, we didn’t have Time Warners in them days. We had the antennas on the TV and we had to turn it different directions depending what channel we was watching. For channel 10 someone had to actually stand there and HOLD the antenna. And then there’s “Mr Food” Art Ginsburg who started on channel 6 and is syndicated nationally, personally I think Rachel ripped him off. “Ooh it’s so good!” His ass is not as sweet as hers but I think he’d be cool to have a beer with, and maybe some bacon wrapped scallops with Tabasco and extra extra mayonnaise and piles of dijon mustard. Yum!
I do know one Albany band that tours all over America and some foreign countries too. They’re not signed to a major label or nothing but who gives a shit about major labels anymore? They get written up in magazines a lot too.
“I do know one Albany band that tours all over America and some foreign countries too. They’re not signed to a major label or nothing but who gives a shit about major labels anymore? They get written up in magazines a lot too.”
If you’re referring to that band The Erotics, yes, they do world tours every year and yes they have been written up in national magazines a lot, with magazines such as Classic Rock and others. While I’m happy for the band that they are getting those good opportunities, I respect the Erotics for that, it still doesn’t make the band nationally famous. Even Mike Trash would agree, ask himself yourself. He would even say the Erotics are still unsigned. A band doesn’t get fame until they are signed to a major label. The Erotics are not a major label band, they are an independent band.
I dig the Erotics, they are exceptional in my opinion, which means pretty good. I really dig some of the bands songs, but the only problem, I wish Trash would work on the vocals a bit, he seems to have that same growling snarl in almost every song. The band is entertaining though, I’ll give them that and I plan on getting myself out to an Erotics show at some point if I ever can.
As far as Rachael Ray goes, when she used to live over here before she became famous, she wasn’t even famous when she lived over here. Fame happened “very quickly” for her. She moved out of this area to put on her own talk show for America on NBC. I kind of blame her quick fame on her lawyer musician husband John from the Cringe. The dude’s a lawyer, I think it was him that helped make her dreams come true. Read between the lines and you’d figure it out. Do you think she would get fame this fast without him? Hell no.
About Chris Kapostasy, Lydia Kulbida, Ed Dague, John Gray, Jim Kambrich, Phil Bayly, and all those news reporters, they aren’t celebrities either, they are just local people doing their jobs. Even Ed Dague himself said he wasn’t a celebrity on his blog at the Times Union.
Kev
Actually I disagree. Ed Dague and John Gray, etcc.. are LOCAL celebrities. You don’t have to be known nationwide to be a celebrity. Besides, there are people that are famous in this country (sports guys like Manny Ramirez, Bronco Nagurski, and Sid Crosby, that someone in England never would’ve heard of. So it’s all relative). Rachel Ray was famous before she even met her husband. She had a show on the Food Network. The person that blew her up was Oprah Winfrey. She saw the Food Network show and thought she’d be good for her own talk show. Everyone knows a lawyer can’t make you famous.
Come to think of it Kev, YOU’RE a local celebrity!
You know what’s funny, is that a lot of people in this area think I’m some sort of local celebrity, but to be honest, I don’t see myself one at all. It is flattering that people out there view me as a local celebrity but to me, I find it laughable.
And come to think of it, I agree, you don’t have to be known nationwide to be a celebrity, maybe it is possible that there is a such thing as “local celebrity” here. I don’t see myself one.
People on the internet have been calling me a “local” celebrity. People in youtube, CRUMBS have even called me a local celebrity once and many other things.
I maybe popular and may have gotten my name out there in this area, true, I don’t see myself being a local celebrity, if that’s what you all want to call me, fine, I’ll take it for what it is.
Kev
The thing about celebrity is that not everyone is going to know who you are. I don’t give a damn about sports so if a famous New York Giant walked past me down Lark Street in Albany I would never know it. A few years ago I was at a bar called Bogies and my girlfriend at the time was all excited about seeing some guy whose name I don’t remember, she said he was a recent St Rose graduate and was a big star on some soap opera and he must have been in town visiting his old St Rose buds. I didn’t watch soap operas so to me he was just a kid in a baseball hat playing pool in a bar, you know what I mean?
I just remembered another local band you should check out, Rocky Velvet. They also tour nationally and get written up in all the rockabilly magazines. So they might not be celebrities “per see” because sports fans don’t know who they are but rockabilly fans all over the place and even in other countries sure know who they are because of their amazing guitar player Graham Tichy. He’s one of the best so go look them up! He gives lessons too.
Speaking of celebrities, I don’t know if you’ve seen this yet, I thought it was pretty funny: http://funwithmccain.com/
Then it might be possible that there is a such thing as “local fame” here I guess. It’s just too confusing and weird to me.
Every once in a while, I do get recognized in the public that people heard about me online and read my blog on a regular basis.
Kev
To be honest, I’ve begun responding to your blogs, Kev, because of your clout with the public of the Capital Region, as well as your ongoing support for me. You are a local celebrity in every respect and it’s your voice that will be heard once I’m elected president, although I probably won’t win.
“Then it might be possible that there is a such thing as ‘local fame’ here I guess. It’s just too confusing and weird to me.”
Well Kev, you may want to consider that some concepts are just too difficult for you to understand, and therefore you may want to stop talking about them all together, like politics and music. It’s ok, there’s some things I don’t understand either, like the U.S. and global economy, foreign relations, and how to pick a vice president. You could say I’m “retarded” when it comes to those issues.
Well I think I’ve found my new favorite blog to peruse before knocking back my nightly sixer of Mickey’s Malt Liquor!
You have some good insights here my friend. Some of your readers sound like jackasses & need to have the stamp put on them but I’ll leave that up to you. I only fight for money.
But out of The Erotics and Kris Kapastachi & Rocky Velvet & Rachel Ray I think they are just local and don’t have that “charazzma” ( as the great David Lee Roth used to say) that makes someone a “celebrity.”
The only two people that have “it” are R.M.Engelhardt and you, my friend.
There’s something some people have that is magnetic and magic and let me tell you…
Like my old man, the abusive alcoholic s.o.b. used to always say-
YOU GOTTA BE BORN WITH HEART, KID.
YOU CAN’T FAKE THAT S*IT.
You’re going places and so is this R.M. fella. You have the star quality that people look for & look up to.
Ask anyone in the local music scene if they know of Kev Brock and often the answer is ‘Yes.’ A celebrity in your own right.
If everyone wants to call me a celebrity, that’s fine. I said many times before, I don’t see myself as one. I find it embarrasing and uncomfortable being called a celebrity, and I don’t “glorify” of my so called “local fame”.
I’m just a regular resident in the Capital District area, enjoying life playing music for fun and blogging for fun. I don’t understand why so many people are so interested in me when I’m no different than other bloggers and message board users out there. I just like to use the internet to speak my mind just like the rest of you.
The funny thing is there are certain musicians out there that call themselves either a “star”, “local celebrity”, or a “legend”. What you DON’T DO is label yourself those things. A lot of musicians out there seem to label themselves as a “star” or a “legend”, when you should let the public give you that “star” quality. You don’t ask and force yourself to be a “star” or a “legend”, you have to “earn” it.
What local musician out there is a true local music legend?
That is no one other than Ernie Williams (yes he is still alive and well). The 80 year old bluesman who plays for his band the Wildcats, he’s been playing for years and still rockin’ on stage today. He is called a “legend” in this area because he is one. He earned that “Legend” title by the people in this area who respected him over the years. Ernie Williams is the real legend around this area. Not some guy with a plastic bag on his head who carries a video camera everywhere he goes 24/7.
Certain people out there who label themselves a “star” or a “legend” on your own, just goes to show that this area of the Capital District has big egos around here.
You gotta earn that “star” or “legend” quality, you can’t just go out there and say, “Hey, look at me, I’m a legend and a star now”. It makes you look crazy and foolish.
Kev
Local celebrity? Charisma? Who knew? I have for years joked with friends about anyone in Albany who gets some press being ‘minor celebrities’. Metroland, The Times Union etc. Funny. You get noticed finally after years of busting your ass for making things happen like readings & benefits and such and then oneday you wake up and everyone on Lark St. suddenly knows your name. Thanx for the compliment… I think. But as Kev has said on this blog ‘ I am no celeb’. Only a writer who lives here & who like many other poets & promoters has done his best he can to make things happen for the love of the thing … Music, poetry or art. Enjoy reading your blog Kev, an honest opinion is always the right one. Keep it going. Best. R.M.