Why Celebrities Stopped Being Cool

When I was growing up, “cool” was everything. The musicians, actors, writers, and talking heads we idolized and tried to imitate were outspoken, often on drugs, and sometimes straight-up bad people. I recognize that it was a simpler time before social media and stan culture. People of note could do as they pleased without much risk of blowback—but now, in our sanitized world, cool has become almost meaningless. Playing it safe is the top priority for some of our most prominent and influential artists.