The ‘What Do I Do with my Tesla’ Problem

A few years back I heard about a Justin Bieber video filmed in Iceland where he rolled around on fragile moss that takes decades to grow. My dad lives in Iceland, and over the years I’ve come to love the people and landscape. My impulse was: well, crap, one more artist I can’t listen to anymore.

This question of separating art from artist comes up a lot in my circles. The default seems to be yes it is too late to say sorry (that one is for the Beliebers). In other words, we have to stop supporting the musicians, leaders, spiritual teachers or, yes, EV executives that don’t embody the right values.

Rather than cancelling outright, or judging those that don’t, what if we slowed down? Enough to notice how it feels when the alignment is off. And let that guide what we want to take in and, maybe even, who we want to become.

More Than Just Music

When someone doesn’t embody their message, something feels off. We even have a whole vocabulary for it: walk the talk and practice what you preach.

The opposite is also true. Take singer-songwriter Josh Ritter. Sure, I liked his music when my friend Rachael introduced me to him 15 years ago. But I grew to love it after seeing how he shows up in real life.

At his concerts he smiles from ear to ear, effusively thanking the audience, the roadies, and the venue staff. Several years ago I went to a book signing for his novel about a talking horse in the Civil War (yes, he’s that earnest). He spent more than two hours signing books. I was the very last in line, and though he must have been exhausted, he made me feel like the real honor was that I had waited for him. (Find him on Substack here).

That warmth is now baked into how I hear his music: when he sings about joy or love, I believe him.

Meet Your Heroes

But if perfection were the standard, there’d be no music to enjoy, no leaders to follow, no teachers to learn from.

We can zoom out and see the fuller picture, that multiple things can be true. Sure, Bieber’s moss antics made me wince but the video also shared Iceland’s beauty with millions. Affordable EVs are great for the environment. Even Josh Ritter–shocker–is human. When he announced that he was getting divorced a few years back, a friend admitted that it shook her to see the love he sings so sweetly about fall apart.

But maybe instead of pedestaling our heroes, we meet them as full humans. Their missteps a reminder of shared humanity, not an excuse to cancel.

Alignment in Practice at Springwater

There’s a meditation center I go to in upstate New York called The Springwater Center. It’s not flashy: no branding, fancy buildings, star teachers, or Instagram reels. But it’s caring and honest. These aren’t just values on a website. The food is thoughtfully prepared and lovingly labeled with masking tape. Scraps are composted, containers are reused. The staff are ceaselessly kind and accommodating, whether it was my late arrival or my dog running off-leash where she shouldn’t. They aren’t pushy with ideas; they just leave a few books and printouts around.

That Springwater’s values are embedded in what they do, not just the subject of a dharma talk, helps me trust it, and it keeps me coming back.

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So no, I don’t think you can separate art from artist. But what we do with that realization isn’t as clear cut. We don’t need to cancel anyone to realize that the walk energizes the talk and the practice empowers the preaching. We just need to notice.

A song about love lands better if the artist treats people with love. A leader who shares credit inspires me more than one who bulldozes his peers. I trust a CEO making green cars more when he’s not in a rush to leave this planet.

So maybe your next car is a different brand, you listen to one artists a bit less and others a bit more. You invest more in learning from teachers and leaders who embody what they profess.

And that’s a lesson for all of us, and especially me. The ideas I write about matter more if they rhyme with how I live. So please, lovingly, let me know if I’m rolling in any moss. 🌿

How do you navigate the art/artist question? How do you feel about competent jerks at work? Kanye’? Your Tesla? Let us know below! ⬇️

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