Talk about THE CROW cawcawing the carved raven "block"! The raven mannequin retaliates by sayin' through permanently parted, sawed sanded completely smooth smooth-talking squawkbox, "I may be the one carved from a log, then permanently adhered atop another different log...but, of the two of us, my fellow actually-feathered friend, you're definitely a toothpick, or two short of a whole haystack; also, I'm unable to move, and -- inevitably -- I bein' the one bound (to the ground) to be destined to gettin' pooped on by the foulest of fowl "Friendly Fire," here, in Lincoln Park, between both of us again you're definitely the one with poop and pulp for some shitty brains, there, Peckerwood..." Lmao!
I Always Loved preforming, or well more activities that got preformed, but I never once wanted to get famous with IT cause the Idea terrified me!!! There IS such a big difference between the Attention in the Moment you consent to IT, while you Play a role and IT IS about the craft and getting IT without your consent from some Stranger, that intrudes on you, feels entitled to you . . . .getting recognised on the streets IS my nightmare. I really want to publish, but only in a way that absolutely garanties Instay annonym
@@SingingSealRianaI'm a performer and an artist, I have even streamed large portions of my life online for 20 years, but I still don't want to be famous in the way that makes it so I can't have a life. I've never tried to get attention that way because I'm sure it's a nightmare.
I'm soo conflicted on that particular line. While there's a TON of weight behind it, I also think that some of us have things we need to say. For instance myself, I've become a vocalist and taught myself how to do metal vocals SPECIFICALLY after being diagnosed with PTSD, because I've made the decision I refuse to let my abusers that caused the PTSD to have the last word. That I myself have things that I want/need to scream into a microphone at anyone willing to listen, partially for self therapy, but also as a warning to others, not unlike many of Bo's more serious topics. I don't want fame and money - I'm a minimalist who is content with little, in fact if money was to ever become a thing I had access to, I'd likely just get myself some land to make my own log cabin on with a studio, build a permaculture forest, and anything above and beyond that would probably go to charity. I'm not in music for the fame, I'm in it for the message and the soul healing.
“Come let’s watch the skinny kid with a steadily declining mental health, and laugh as he gives you something that he cannot give himself” has stuck with me for years. Bo is a genius at making poetically sad comedy. Funny with sadness in the eyes
@@tropicturtle9021 I don't think it's that therapy is hardly guaranteed to work because it absolutely does. The thing about therapy is the problems people go to therapy to help with eventually are removed from that person's life or is augmented in a more manageable way. Your parents are fight? Hold on you'll be moving out in a few years then you won't have to be in the middle of it. Your dog just died? Relax, breathe, it's okay to not be okay. Express yourself to your support system whenever you feel like you need it. Ect. Therapists give skills to people who need to learn how to either cope, or hold on. However, when you are constantly faced with a problem that you cannot avoid and there is no way to augment how you interact with that problem then therapy is much less likely to work. I.e Bo's struggle with fame that he himself exemplifies. If fame is the issue, it in itself cannot be avoided if you are to continue to have it. You are either famous or you are not. Deal with it. And he's tried, but he has to maintain some sort of notoriety if 1) he continues to essentially preach to people about the shortcomings of fame and 2) indulge in the things that make him happy. He loves music, writing, comedy. If he gave those things up sure he'd deal with the fame issue but lose what makes life worth living. It's a double edge sword that therapy can't fix.
"he's always been a great comedian, but he's always been a greater poet." never heard something that describes an artist so perfectly. bo burnham went from this comical kid to an honest, understanding adult and his works speaks so many truths i feel too many people are afraid to admit
"Come and watch the skinny kid with a steadily declining mental health And laugh as he attempts to give you what he cannot give himself" One of the coldest bars in history. Still can't hear it without tearing up a little.
the openening song where he says "i can't wrap my mind around exactly why I'm here. I should be funny, I know you paid money- other than that- don't know why I'm here. To make you laugh right? that's only half right. Look at the world, I don't know why I'm here, none of this laughter can feed starving Africans. I just hope I don't get more from this than you do." also makes triggers my emotions. Something about the way he flutters when he says "that's only half right"
@@TheDavveponken oxford languages definition of metaphor: "a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable." so yeah, it's a metaphor.
@@sirenaisle not even with the definition at hand are you grasping the concept: a metaphor is the following: the girl was a rose, socializing is like theater, etc. It is ascribing one thing with properties that of another. It is subtle. It may sound like a metaphor but it isn't. He is LITERALLY describing a feeling/situation/a memory. A metaphor is not a literal description. It is description by analogy, by metaphor. Again, a simplervexample, "a mighty fortress is our god"
Bo Burnham is the definition of how depression feels. The thought that your life fucking sucks so you joke about everything so others don't know you're depressed. That's why you can't judge people based on if they're "happy" or laughing because you never know what's going on inside. If you are depressed though, your life is worth it. You're loved and needed even though it may not feel like it sometimes
Bo is the intellectual opposite of "ignorance is bliss". He's so self-aware it sometimes cripples him. It seems like he finds some relief in comedy, but I think what really helps him find peace is pulling the curtain down and showing his audience a perspective they may not have otherwise considered. Videos exactly like this one prove that his message does get through.
I do really feel frustrated with him sometimes, in the sense that he is so helplessly in need of peoples attention (as he has implied several times in his own art) that he's ready to continually defile his entire life to make another comedy special, and reluctanctly do it all over again next time, pretty parallel to the endless scroll/social media he often complains about. Bo Burnham has a problem. He can forever investigate, analyze, and make jokes about this problem, yet he never bothers to solve it for himself.
@@Forcoy im sorry but what ? Have you ever in your life looked into a mirror and thought to yourself that there are so few people out there who you could talk to the way you would want to talk ? That there is a bigger chance at you losing people once you open up to them simply cause the way you are drives people away from you the deeper you go but for some reason you are like a people magnet as long as they know you on the surface ? Have you ever made a subtle hint and felt the joy of someone acknowledging the hidden gem only to be met with the sad reality that it really was just this one gem that you shared and thats it ? Thought to yourself what kind of narcissitic personality you got while also throwing yourself away at a heartbeat to the point you feel ripped apart ? The apathy in your general life with the insane spikes of emotions in certain moments like your brain cant just hold it back and it shoots through it like a lightning jolt ? Your comparison to the endless scroll and social media is pretty hitting but while the scroll on social media is just a shortterm "im looking for something entertaining" his scroll feels more like a reason to find something thats worth it. I dont know why but most songs of him sound more like an agressiv way of a discussion in which you point your facts and just wait for your opponent to counter. There are some things you cant solve for yourself since your point of view went so far to one end that without anyone actually convincing you on the field that you are standing on that you are not seeing the whole picture you end up stuck. Like that one guy who went to members of the KKK and befriended them only for them to realize that being racist and generalizing isnt the answer. Also imagine asking someone who has a question and is reading books over and over again why he gets frustrated with every book he reads where he cant find the answer and why he keeps reading.
Comedy is his medium, but his means is poetry. He finds every possible way to meaningfully present his message, and all of it masquerades as being funny because it makes the message digestible.
I feel like calling him an artist is a pretty good descriptor - because, yes, he is a wordsmith and a poet, but he is also a comedian, a songwriter/composer, a film director, and a videographer
It was a line in the song for me that lead to why his "I hope you're happy" stung so much. He set it up by telling the audience to "Come and watch the skinny kid with the steadily declining mental health. And laugh as he attempts to give you what he cannot give himself". That shit left me shattered.
I'll say what I've always said. Bo isn't a comic, he's a performer. Every light, every note, every movement is planned down to the millisecond. He's painfully aware of his talent and the exploitation of talent as a whole. He's brilliant absolutely brilliant, and its killing him while we all laugh.
💯💯 for those who are empaths as I believe you may be as well, you could kind of see it from the first time you watch him.. but you came to laugh and he does that so well, hard not to enjoy it when he is so good at it.. but at the end of each set, (and during in many cases ) you feel a certain way.
I will never forget bawling my eyes out to Inside during the lockdown and having to desperately try and explain to my mother, who didn't understand why I'm so upset over this "confusing mess", how much it hurts to see something that accurately represents *my* mental illness and gives us insight Bo's deeply upsetting mind
I tried to show the special to my Dad back when it came out and he didn't find it interesting or understood why my wife and I were obsessed and so mentally invested in it
I also bawled my eyes out to it but more just cause I’ve grown so fond of him over the years and I was genuinely concerned for him. Edit to say - I hope you’re okay now x
He intentionally avoids any online chatter that might involve him. He popped up on his reddit fan page after people questioned his mental health, and told everyone he was good, not to worry, and that while he knew those pages existed he made it clear he would not be back and had no desire to because he thought it would be unhealthy.
@@AllenSmithe After Make Happy I was so worried about him, and then when he made the comment about shooting himself in Inside I became genuinely concerned I would wake up one day to read another genius talent was gone. Hopefully his comment about being good mental health wise was real/true and long lasting.
Fr. The moment he said that and the montage began- that was so intentional byw- it was just giving off this vibe of "yeah, see him? He's not who you thought he was?" I always referred to bo burnham as an artist, but poet? God, how did I NOT make that connection lol
I think, 20 or 30 years from now, we'll be using Bo as the example for how this era affected us. He's one of the greatest artistic geniuses of our time, and I just can't wait to keep watching him develop. Whatever he makes, I want to see.
@@lucyandecember2843 do you think someone who the general population hasnt heard of before, and who generally hasnt impacted much, will be remembered as an example of an era?
@@lucyandecember2843because he is widely unknown to MANY regions of the world. The only group he reaches is people on UA-cam willing to listen to edgy english songs.
I hope it makes it that far. Seems like he's struggling. But if he does personally I think his projects will only grow in scope. Inside had much more of an impact than people might think. Especially during Covid. I don't know anyone that didn't see it.
One of the differences about Bo Burnham’s stuff that didn’t age well is mainly that he’s quite clear that he’s a young kid that was doing some shock stuff for some quick laughs, yet at the same time he’s fully aware of what he’s doing . Then, as you said, you just watch him grow artistically and even mentally and it’s a crazy journey
Bruh this video is amazing. Tying everything together like this and explaining why we like Bo Burnham, and what he's greatest joke is... Most people would've made this a 45 minute video. You made such a great and concise point in almost 14 minutes. Wow.
I'll always remember the time I met Bo. It was right before Eighth Grade was set to release in theaters, and my local theater had its posters put up all around outside, on the marquee and everything. I was walking by one day when I saw Bo standing outside the theater. He was just... looking up at the posters, the marquee, with this sort of wistful expression I can't honestly describe as happiness. I can't imagine what must have been going through his head. (I let him have his moment and then managed to catch him for a quick hello as he was walking away; he's a very nice and gracious guy.)
The guy obviously thinks about the larger ramifications of what it means to seek fame. How empty, and sad it is. Bo seems to have taken his anxiety very seriously. Instead of weaponizing it he stepped away. He doesn't go out and seek fame anymore. He just creates, with complete honesty and sincerity. His works ceased to be comedy a long time ago. He obviously wants to see and approach life with more respect and value than he was before. He is of course a creative person, and unfortunately when you want to make money, and live within the capitalistic confines of our modern day society - you have to grapple with your own contribution to that hell. That one interview where he talked about "conquering land" seems to me as though he was beginning to understand how imperialism, capitalism, and colonialism have ravaged the earth... and now peoples brains are next. He hates that he was ever a part of the genesis of that... and it shows. I know he gets a lot of shit for being a "privileged but pained artist" trope... but he honestly does seem to grapple with his own contributions to the problem. The Way the World Works really highlights this in a multitude of ways - lampooning him being a privileged rich white guy who's words honestly give little to the actual victims of the system. I think he knows that more than anyone can tell him. People are weird, and if anyone wants you to not have a para-social relationship with them... it's Bo.
We're all true addicts here. We warn eachother so dearly about the dangers of social media, yet everyone here is addicted to Instagram or UA-cam or Twitter. We need dedicated support groups for this kind of stuff, on par with drug rehabs and AA meetings.
I got off several years ago. Still have it for messages with old friends / family. But I don't "use" it. I remember growing up and getting nervous all the time hoping for likes and attention, I really hated that feeling. Been a lot better since then.
I recognize the point you are making here but I'd like to take this opportunity to mention that 12 step programs like AA are statistically ineffective, discourage things like reporting abuse and harassment, and their entire premise is pretty much "pray the pain away." It's incredibly toxic. Having that said you're right on the money.
That was beautiful. As someone who found him when youtube just started blasting off, to now. You did him as much justice as any true fan, possibly could. Ty.
8:49 “…sort of like making eye contact with sunglasses on.” There’s a lot to love in this video essay but bro that’s low key a brilliant line. Bo would be proud.
@@ilvanezzo Fun fact: my depression was exacerbated by anti-drug culture. I didn't stop getting worse and start getting better until I gave up trying to saddle the burden on my own and accepted medication into my life. Drugs can be bad, but they aren't always bad, mkay?
@@TheReaverOfDarkness Fun fact: Mitch Hedberg didn't die from taking a bunch of Tylenol. He died from mixing cocaine and heroin (among other things). So STFU ok?
Bo did warn us all. I was a freshman when his first special came out. We all had smartphones, Facebook, Instagram etc already. Now, all of my friends and I realize we are addicted and that social media is poison. He tried to warn us. Not everyone listened.
I always took those "serious songs" where he gets existential to be the ones where he's being the most honest. It was him sharing his real feelings, instead of trying to make us laugh. But he still wanted us to laugh a little, and worked with that. Because he knew if we didn't find it funny, we wouldn't commit it to memory as well. We wouldn't understand it. And I thought we had done so... but apparently there's people still wondering "if there were signs" sounds like me before I got diagnosed... Like yup. Everything about me screams ADHD, but I didn't get medicated until I was 32.
Art is Dead remains my favorite Bo Burnham song to this day, and the video of him performing it in the Green Room in front of a bunch of other comics is amazing. The people in the audience are laughing and cheering and all the comics on the couch have this moment where they go "oh, shit, this song is about US"
You ever notice on that episode he says "no one wants a twenty something year old kid telling them how the world works. And then on Inside right after he turns 30 he plays" This Is How The World Works".
That Green Room episode is incredible. The dynamic with the older jaded comics before he played that song was great. Then after he played the song they understood how talented he is. Also Gary Shandling was so awsm on that episode. Love that guy.
It definitely is and it's why he's so popular. I will say it does start to veer into teenager who thinks they're deep territory, but he's not wrong. The whole "corporations are colonizing your mind, man!" stuff is a little cringe but there is certainly some truth to it as well. It's just not as deep as he seemingly thinks it is, honestly. Super talented and funny guy though.
@@SpartanArmy117 Yeah I have to disagree with you. I do think it's as deep as he says it is but it's easy to ignore and most people will as we always do.
Bo: The subtle way that the internet interfaces with our hearts- Her (on her phone): No that's-! Bo: The way it makes us feel kinda nervous in our beds at night Her (still on phone): Tha- Bo: How you have to choose between all the information in the world, and the back of your eyelids. That's kinda sad" Her (back to looking at her phone): Ok. Well. Bo: 😊
I noticed that too. Girl couldn't pull her eyes from her phone while he was talking. I don't think it could've been more apparent if he planned it. And the irony completely escapes her
I've been trying to explain to my friends that inside feels like the climax to a 15 year story but it's so hard to convey why. This video does it perfectly.
Especially since Bill Burr will absolutely trash the hell out of something or someone if he thinks it's/they're bad. If Bill Burr is impressed and thinks you're great then you're probably amazing.
When I was in middle school, I once told the class "I would never want to be famous," and the class all thought I was crazy. "But money!" But fame!" "But success!" Bo Burnham would have been my Exhibit A.
My thought's always been I'd rather be one of the people behind the scenes surrounding the artist or figurehead, like a songwriter or producer. You still have a hand in making it just not personally marketing it.
In high school I took a "Media English" class as an alternative to just regular English where we dissected various forms of media and things of that nature. Bo wasn't out at the time or he ABSOLUTELY would have been a feature in one of my projects. We did do one once, where we had to choose between fame or fortune, and we had to justify our reasons, then do a counter argument for the opposite. I was one of 3 students in the class who chose fortune and not fame. MOST of the students' reasons for choosing fame was simple: money. Some wanted notoriety also. Out of the 3 of us who chose fame, I was the *only* person to make the argument for anonymity. That being famous comes with a terrible mental toll, and that as a person who has ALWAYS had things like environmentalism at the forefront of my mind, having wealth and none of the fame could almost be an advantage. You can toss around the weight of that money without anyone tracing it back to you, potentially making your life more miserable. My teacher LOVED my answers and made me present my project to the class, as well as the top fame choice, which lead to a debate that lasted in our class the rest of the week.
You get money, fame, success, and you never get to live in peace again. You get the entire world speculating about everything you do at all times and you can almost never directly get involved with the conversation. Have fun never walking down the street again without being harassed
@@anishinaabaeguy is one of the best to ever do it. No doubt one of the best of his generation at the very least. I can understand if you don't like Bill. The style of comedy isn't for everyone. But a washed up hack? C'mon now that's crazy. But I want to hear the rationale. So a couple questions. 1. What makes him a hack? 2. Why do you consider him washed up? When was the peak and what changed since? 3. Who are your favorite comedians? Give me at least one current one who isn't "washed up." Not trying to come at you. Genuinely want to know lol.
cant tell you how relieving it is to click on a video essay with less than 10k views that isnt written by chatgpt. hope this video and your channel blows up, this is really good work.
I've been following his work for a long long time. My wife took me to his comedy show when he toured our city. When it was over, she finally realized what I saw in this kid. She's a therapist and saw much deeper things and saw more to him than just jokes. Just like you did. Thank you for your perspective.
@@drockopotamus1 And what exactly IS fixed? Would it mean the same thing to you; to me; to him? I hope he finds the peace he deserves. Happiness isn't possible for everyone, but maybe peace can be.
This is the best analysis of one of the greatest artists on the planet. Defining him as a "poet" feels like I should have recognized it sooner but somehow knew it all along.
except it very much isnt. dont get me wrong i do believe social media has a strong impact on the mental health of a lot of young people, and its not like we havent made scientific research on this already, its not a qustion of the world being just or not, we have already theorized some correlations regarding mental health, its just hard to make absolute long term conclusions right now. having that said its simply not comparable to dying horrible deaths by cancer and other respiratory problems. but regardless whether one thinks its comparable or not though, i dont get why you have to approach it from a grounds of comparisson, bot can be bad in their own specific way.
wtf are you both on about, we already have studies on the matter who already theorize social media might create a toxic environment that influences mental health on a lot of youth. why wouldnt we? we just are incapable of making conclusion on long term, cause logically we havent gotten there yet. what i dont get is, why would you need an approach of comparisson. for as impactful as social media may be on the mind it doesnt compare to dying a horrible death of cancer or other related issues caused by concumption of tobacco. but regardless whether you agree with that or not BOTH can be bad in their own specific way, why do you need to declare it as worse than so and so?
Bo Burnham like many of us, was a normal kid who grew up on the internet. It seems he made it his life's purpose to stay in our court and protect us from the pitfalls he experienced when he lost his own ability to lead a normal life without fame. He was on the same side of the road as us and is now yelling from across the road telling us not to cross.
As a performer, I identify with your comment. I keep it local and small even though I get offers for more. As a home chicken farmer, gardener, husband, etc; I'm happy that being a performer is only a piece of my life. A necessary piece, but a piece none the less. Simplicity is key. The further you are from society, the less rubble you get buried in when it crumbles.
It's a song I never need to hope I can hear again for the first time. Every subsequent listening does the exact same thing to me. I remember the show ending, the screen going black, and my wife and I muttering "God I hope he's found some happiness since filming this."@@AmberLie
@@devinkerr5474 as somewhat of a musician myself...I know there's a sense of catharsis behind finishing a song and getting that perfect (enough) take. So I'm once it was done and he knew he did his best work he found some peace. I think that was actually one of his last live performances before he released Inside where he did mention he did get better... right as covid was shutting down all the venues.. then he spiraled a bit again. But I think that special was also very therapeutic for him.
The laughter at 7:09 haunts me. In part because I know that if I were in the audience, I likely would have laughed, too. There's an energy that a crowd has which influences every person in it and the moments where someone doesn't get sucked into it are rare for many, many people. The job of an audience at a comedy show is to laugh. The people in the audience are reduced down to this in the moment, and the artist is often reduced by this, as well.
So, this is actually a psychological phenomenon that has been studied rather a lot. I can't remember the name of it off the top of my head, but the loss of one's own decision-making or thinking skills in submission to that of the group happens so frequently. There's a weird bias shown in studies on it where, even when someone knows for a fact that the group is wrong in a decision, they'll vote with the group. Often, the person either just feels like they shouldn't speak up, or they feel like the group must know better than they do. It's really interesting how our minds have been shaped for social survival to the point that we'll often accept essentially all jumping off the same bridge rather than be seen as the one who openly disagreed with the group.
@@colixnaia6512I think it’s because our very sense of self is dependent on others validating that we exist. So when any majority of selves is doing a a thing the psychological weight is too much to withstand with your comparatively small individuality that will now have to wrestle with both disgust and loneliness.
@@maxxcrafting7519 I ended up looking it up. It's called groupthink. Believing that the others in the group who are agreeing are representative of the whole group can cause someone to change their thinking or behaviour to agree with the group. Perhaps ironically, it's in a way a form of confirmation bias, as agreeing despite oneself only adds more appearance of unanimity and increases chances that others will conform to groupthink as well.
@colixnaia6512 Precisely that. It is something humans evolved as it improved survivability - if you react to an external event/stimulus (e.g. a large predator, a potentially-venomous snake or spider, unexpected loud noises etc) the same way as the majority of others around you, you are more likely to survive to pass on your genes. I got my degree (nearly 25 years ago!) in Social Psychology, and it is incredibly useful for understanding why people act like they do. There are a relatively small number of people who have 'abnormal psychology', but the VAST majority of people interact with other humans in a fairly predictable manner (the outliers tend to be people who have some nonstandard psychology (eg psychopathy, bipolar, BPD etc) or neuropsychological issue (something on the edges of the autism spectrum, brain damage etc) that prevents them from responding to things 'appropriately'. However I don't recommend a psychology degree for anyone other than those who plan to work in the mental health field - it's simply not widely required. Interesting af though! 😊
He's always been a great comedian, but he has always been a greater poet." actually made me a little emotional. So true. I wish the best for that dude.
This was by far the best video essay I’ve ever seen on Bo Burnham. You were able to articulate accurately things that I knew but did not know how to express. I really like how you went through everything he did in a chronological way showing his development over time.
“The subtle way that the internet interfaces with our hearts, the way it makes us feel kinda nervous in our bed at the end of the day, how you have to choose between all the information in the world and the back of your eyelids… that’s kinda sad” holy shit I felt that my whole childhood. Being a child online and on social media it RULED my life, I didn’t have the will power to pull myself away from it like I can now that I’m an adult.
The way that the internet was my crutch growing up. I would be awake into the hours of the night searching on google or youtube to try to find answers of why I was the way that I was. My family life, we were all emotionally neglected. None of us knew how to communicate well or share our feelings because we would be punished for feeling the wrong way. I spent every day I could just trying to find community or answers to help me find out how to have relationships with the people in my life. I was so desperate for help, and to this day I still fall into that habit of searching for peace outside of myself. I just wanted to understand why people acted the way they did and why empathy wasn’t a common trait among all of us.
I don't know if I've ever replied to a comment of youtube before, but your comment hit me hard. I'm a millennial: I grew up with the emergence of the internet and cell phones. It was developing as I was developing. We were perhaps the first to be pulled into social media at a young age, but we were pulled into a much smaller version than it is now. It was a stream, a pond, a lake: dangerous, but easier to avoid. Now it's an ocean: an endless, wrenching void that actively and intentionally pulls you in to drown you. I've always known that I want to keep my small children away from social media, from embedded, ingrained, and pervasive prejudice and sexism and violence in movies and tv. I've always had that goal, but now, reading your comment about it ruling your life, I want to actively double my efforts. Not just shelter my girls, but educate them, discuss with them, give them the tools to regulate themselves. I desperately want my girls to be confident and capable, to be happy; to live their lives instead of watching others' lives. I don't know how to do all of that. I'll get parenting therapy/coaching if I need to. But thank you for sharing. I hope I can help keep my girls from struggling as you and so many others have.
I have always been SO grateful that social media wasn't popular or even around until I was almost in high school. I barely made a FB when a friend in 10th grade made me do it, didn't have IG until I was like 21? Yeah, I am so grateful... I had computer access but all we had were like forums! And I wasn't on myspace really. Anime forums in middle school was peak internet for me haha (I'm almost 31, born early 94)
Inside is still one of the greatest artistic works of pretty much any comedian so far. I have watched Bo for so long, and feel such a deep connection to everything he has gone through.
Literally got chills with your last line. "Because he's always been a great comedian... but he's always been a greater poet..." I honestly hope he finds this video and that line someday because what a beautiful way to be seen and heard.
I actually started tearing up when you mentioned The Chicken, when the inside outtakes were released I remember that song impacted me so much, and for exactly the reason you described. Taking the structure and form of comedy and turning it into something genuinely honest and impactful, that is Burnham’s art.
same here! one of the many songs of his that got me through terrible times. only bo could make a song like that to completely break me and lift me up again 🙏
"The Chicken" makes me cry every time I hear it!!! Like ugly uncontrollable crying. I'm smiling and bawling and my boyfriend is just sitting there horrified, confused, and wondering what the hell just happened!!!!!
What's crazy to me is that it took people until Inside to realize this and I heard it back when Bo and I both were in middle school and you had to dig through early UA-cam to find him.
"The subtle way that the internet interfaces with our hearts - the way it makes us feel kinda nervous in our bed at the end of the day. How you have to choose between all the information in the world and the back of your eyelids. That's kinda sad.." Well fuck
I suffered depression in my 20s, and just happened to be an artist, so when I finished watching Inside…I cried. I didn’t know who he was or know any of his previous work, but I knew exactly what he was trying to convey. My husband just stared at me when I cried, he was so confused. Bo Burnham is a genius. It’s sad only some can see it.
That final song in make happy hit me like a ton of bricks, because I could tell he meant every word underneath that protective facade he cloaked it in to keep the audience in it. I myself was having regular panic attacks and that “I don’t think I can handle this right now” line being said over and over and over….and he’s just directing that panic into vibing, in like, a self soothing rhythm….life changing. The comedy relaxed and disarmed me, and the final hit sunk deep into my soul and I connected with the message. He’s a genius. Thanks for this essay, my guy.
Whatever caused the UA-cam algorithm to promote this video, I’m so glad it popped up on my Recommended feed. Haven’t seen such a brilliant and succinct video essay in a while. You have my subscription, funny rock man.
Can't Handle This is still one of the most powerful performances I've ever seen, and it was only through UA-cam videos. And when I watched Inside, I had to split my viewing into two parts because I got so overwhelmed by the sheer raw emotions contained in that special. I genuinely wish Bo only the best.
Thank GOD someone talks about The Chicken, I think it's the best song Bo's made in his whole career, I've been a fan since Words Words Words, and I still get chills every time I hear it. It's an incredible song that says so much about himself, his career, and it's a great metaphor.
At the same time I always expect Bo to come out with something brand new, I would be totally satisfied if he decided to stop making art. It seems fit for him looking back at all of his trajectory.
I have cant handle this on my spotify. To this day it always gets me, you can hear Bo's voice tremble, you can hear even through the reverb how his screams are not just singing but are in fact real bursts of angst and anxiety. For those with anxiety you can FEEL the song and then to learn later that he was having a panic attack and that song was a literal cry for help, it was just PURE emotion on stage. The most him he had ever been and it was at one of his lowest scariest career moments. Just literal amazing art that can never be truly recreated. Edit: Also wanted to praise you and how well you did making this video coherent and fluid. Great job!
This fucking video is exactly what I've been trying to tell people for a long time... This man is so much deeper than is comedy and he actually uses it to explain messages and try to inform people.
I feel he's telling us about Corporate greed and human disconnect. Mostly he seems to express his own discontent with this. He deals with the falsehood of 'mainsteam' similar to how Jim Carrey does. @@mandrewraeth
@@mandrewraethwell there are several but one of them i feel is that we as a society are plagued by our own hubris and inaction and for a lot of people their lives are an elaborate performance that we're almost too scared to show the full truth, like in the video with the "making eye contact with sun glasses" analogy its a level of vulnerability that feels almost sickening to even consider showing, and we always feel this need to have some sort of veil over it to make it easier to digest, whether that be the internet or an elaborate act on a set to portray some kind of persona that hides the full truth does rhat make any sense? im tryin my best to explain this in words that make sense LMFAO
Wow. What a brilliantly reasoned and presented argument you've made. This is an excellent channel; from the script, your delivery of it, and the swift editing tying it all together. Man, well done. Subscribed. (PS and wow Bo Burnham is miles ahead of the rest of us in the way Thomas Jefferson, Mozart, Simone de Beauvoir, Shakespeare, etc were)
the song handle this is so good. the effects when he says “a part of me loves you, a part of my hates you. a part of me needs you. a part of me fears you”. ahh so good
Omg this was such a good explanation of Bo's body of work and the main point he's trying to convey through his art, you have no idea how annoyed I've been at people who just knew him from inside and believed that inside was just about quarantine.
Yes, I saw a lot of people thinking that inside was a special about the experience in quarantine and it is much more than that, it is above all an incredible and critical read about the internet and capitalism
Inside helped my struggle with social anxiety and being an absolute shit show fuck up. It was never about quarantine but the point he was making was a totally different point to me.
growing anxious about the internet and capitalism to a dangerously self destructive degree wasn't part of your guy's quarantine? Lucky. seriously though seeing this i almost wish i had people analyze my development over the last decades and make sense of it for me, but then again, I wouldn't really have listened to what Bo has warned us about...
I'm actually impressed people didn't get it. There was very clearly a *lot* there beyond quarantine commentary, that should be clear to anyone who watched it.
The last sentiment is perfect. As an actor, I'm told to not "try to be funny", it's the same for comedians. You're not "trying to be funny" you're trying to get something from the audience, whether that's relief, a reaction, whatever. Comedy and laughter are simply byproducts of honesty and truly asking for what you want. It's so interesting and Bo is perfect at that. It's why the best comedians are honest to themselves (or truly honest to their characters). And when they're not, they suck!
I loved it when he sang "Art is Dead" in front of all those egotistical comics. You can tell by the look on their faces that they're like "oh shit. That's us".
The way they asked him to do it too. All of them but 1 were so exicted. And the one that knew what they were unintentionally asking sat there and watched. And by the end, I dont think any of them actually fulmy understood
you guys are totally off the mark, you dont think the comic who REQUESTED & ALREADY heard the song and was friends with the guests DIDNT get the joke HE set up? Lol. Also the comics there are famously good natured, Ray Romano is known as a very nice guy. You guys are way off base. Bo is friends with them too. like they didnt know who bo was and didnt intentionally invite him for what he brought to the discussion. they even make funny jokes after saying "Cute" clearly being facetious. jfc
His special "Inside" sincerely got me through the beginning of the pandemic, and I felt so much less alone because of him. Everything he spoke about, I was feeling and unable to describe/understand fully until I heard him talk about it. I'll forever be grateful for his vulnerability and artistry during the hardest period of my life.
If I recall correctly, Bo had MULTIPLE panic attacks while performing Can't Handle This. He's probably the strongest person I've ever seen by doing that, simply the thought of a panic attack nearly breaks me.
Bill Hader has also spoken about how he regularly had panic attacks while doing SNL. It's mind boggling that he and Bo and I'm sure untold other performers can get through that and still continue a performance.
I genuinely feel so grateful to have been taking in Bo's art for all these years. For the people just discovering him because of Inside, i'm sure it's a fantastic retrospective, but for those of us who have been paying attention for the past 15 years, it feels like Inside came along and gave us the punchline to the joke only we were in on. And truly, there's no way to describe that to those who weren't there. Bo grew up, and we grew with him.
Agreed. This guy is my longest “obsession”, he has no idea how he helped to truly shape me into who i am today, and watching him for the past 12 years (CRAZY??? I DISCOVERED HIM WHEN I WAS 12) is such an interesting experience. We really did grow with him.
I originally experienced Bo Burnham as a middle school boy during Words Words Words. Now, as an adult, his humour has faded into the issues that I care so more about. This man has truly shaped my view of fame and showed me that I really just want to live contently in my small life.
Bo Burnham was my inspiration and the main reason I avoided making my hobbies my career. I was a brown queer kid making jokes and telling stories at lunch and being told my potential wasn't being reached even though I was clearly gifted. Now I'm the future gifted kid... an autistic, anxious, burnt out adult in middle management. I order lunch, do accounting shit without an accounting degree, and move things around while masking 50+ hours a week. I'm exhausted. I can't imagine ALSO being exploited online. I'm almost 30 and watching kids in their teens and early adult hood just ROT online is sad... not in a "kids these days" but in a "you don't even understand the damage that's happening to your brain before its fully developed. You're gonna be fucked in a decade and you won't really understand why and there's nothing I can do because people a decade ago let it happen to me..."
God, this is so scarily accurate I can't even. There's no fixing it really either. If I had enough time, social energy, charisma, political sway, etc, I still wouldn't even have the foggiest on how to fix it here. But sadly I have none of that and, like you, will wail into this void.
The saddest part is, if someone tried to stop that when you were a teenager, you probably wouldn't have listened, since we always think we have it figured out at that age. I'm in the same position as you now so I'm not trying to say you specifically, just being that age in general
I feel this so much I too am an autistic adult (28 and also ADHDer) wishing I’d listened and properly learned from what Bo’s work warned me about in life. Just the line “so when you develop a dissociative mental disorder in your late twenties don’t come crawling back to me”, is such a big thing that I wish I’d had any idea about before it was too late.
Went from a happy and curious 8 year old kid to a 26 year old addict and agoraphobic really fast. Not any of it would probably have happened if i didnt degen online and chase impossible goals on my computer for the better part of my adult life. The mans message is clear
He's somehow perfectly explained this deep duality I feel- a hatred I have for what's happening in the world that makes my heart shatter, and the use of comedy as one of the only ways I can fight back against how powerless that world makes me feel. "Live your life without an audience" was the advice he gave that I've held really near to my heart.
Bo burnham's work has been something that I got to grow with as he grew. I am 3 years younger than him and I literally started listening to him after his second youtube video went up. I watched myself grow from the person that loved all his work to the person I am today that see's his old work as still funny but also problematic and his new stuff is just pure art. I love that his comedy has grown in the same ways that I did over time and that way his "joke" as you call it in the video hit so much harder
@Spyracik I agree, content has changed so much since then. But on the flip side of this I have seen so many creators I like completely implode in on themselves by being horrible people
@@Spyracik I'm so lucky I got to grow up with creators like pewdiepie, jacksecpticeye, markiplier, and dantdm. I feel like you don't really get those same types of sincere and humble creators nowadays, many of the currrent creators are so obviously taking advantage of children's attention spans, it's sickening. I think it's also so different because these creators really tried to distance themselves from the audience and condemned parasociality, I literally remember many videos from pewdiepie or jacksepticeye where they explicitly stated "I am not your friend, please don't act like you know me, I am just a performer".
It’s crazy how at 9:54 as he’s literally talking about how we’re addicted to the internet, the interviewer is scrolling thru her phone instead of making eye contact or actually listening to him 😭
I think she might be reading notes on what questions she's supposed to ask during the interview, but yeah not paying attention to the person you're interviewing is strange
Can't Handle This is such an incredible song. Gives me goosebumps and makes me tear up every time. Really feels like the full culmination of his career and perfectly sums up his entire approach to art.
I stopped using social media around the beginning of dec for certain reasons mostly because i was becoming overwhelmed. Super hard to curb the addiction at first but my phone use decreased. I started to feel good again and decided to log back in around 2 days ago and I’ve noticed I’m in a bad moods again and not feeling good. I love how entertaining the internet can be but with how bad it can get it’s becoming something I want to avoid most of the time
Unfortunately as people it's really hard to not compare ourselves to others. And the thing about social media is people mostly post the BEST things about their life. Vacations, major milestones, relationships, families, etc. We end up subconsciously comparing our current normal state to the "super happy" state we assume everyone else must be online since they're posting the BEST things going on. We end up feelings worse thinking we're not as good as the people online, although that's nonsense. Our lives at one time cannot be as 'interesting' or 'good' as tens or hundreds of others enjoying abnormally good days combined. I've been off social media completely for 3-4 years now, and I cannot recommend it enough. It's poison for the human psyche.
About 25% of gen x talked non-stop about how social media and cell phone living were terrible and dangerous. They now get called boomers. The remaining 75% raised their kids on the stuff the way they were raised on TV. And when your kids get to be 20 themselves they're old enough and educated enough to state honestly and confidently exactly how you screwed up. And you should listen. It's going to be how you allowed them to put all of their pain and their every waking moment of life on the effing internet for the world to laugh at. You allowed your kids to become a cringe meme. They had all of their puberty and learning experiences televised for the world's entertainment and laughter. I can only imagine that to be 1,000 times more painful than the puberty Gen X had that was never documented and that not a single person alive can remember. Just a thought.
I hate instagram and tiktok especially. They let people spout off hate speech, and the algorithm just pushes it further to the top. The stupider, meaner, and grosser something is, the more the algorithm pushes it for engagement. Idk, I can't log on without this very real feeling that every time I open this app I'm being manipulate by media corporations😭 Plus I'm tired of seeing 13 year olds talk about politics.
As someone who’s been through this cycle, I strongly encourage you to stay away from it while you’re not completely sucked back in. The allure isn’t real. It’s a memory of meaningless and useless dopamine surges.
Yes, I got rid of FB and Insta in 2019, and for a whole year I struggled with the desire to check. After a year I was fine, but I was shocked by how long it took. I started looking at Insta again and felt terrible. I felt so insecure and inadequate. It is sad we let children on these sights.
This explained in words every reason that I could never realize behind why I love Bo Burnham's art so much. To this day, Art is Dead is one of the few songs I regularly go back and listen to, as well as "can't handle this"
This is the best dissection of Bo's career that I have seen so far, extremely impressive video 👏 Zach Stone is Gonna be Famous is such an underrated masterpiece.
The sheer impact of the subtle pause leading up to POET and the dramatic pause after... holy shit man, just... you got me. Slow claps my way out. Thank you for your service. ❤
"Patient Zero of Internet Fame" As a Psychology Undergrad, this fascinates me! We are literally guinea pigs to the *New Era of Internet!* A mass experiment is currently underway!!
🤨 *Wouldn't that make us **_figurative_** guinea pigs?* (well ... that is assuming you are not, in fact, a group of _literal_ guinea pigs -- some with unusually intenses academic passions for the study of human psychology and commenting on UA-cam videos lol) *I mean, to be fair, this IS the internet; a place where weirdness abounds and seemingly anything is possible.* 🐹💻
No, the experiment is over. The freedom, the randomness, the shear unadulterated creativity is dead. While we played, they plotted. It was dead far before the first pages on facebook, the first tweets took place. It was lawless, it was dangerous, and i was beautiful. And just like every new colonized place, those who enjoyed it turned around and demanded safety and uniformity. This is no longer the experiment it is now the dull greige colored corporate practice to steal your money, data, and attention. An infection of attention that only creates a prison.
As a post-grad psychologist this still fascinates me. My thesis was on microtransactions and the ethical implications of using psychology in games when its used to make people spend money. We are using this knowledge irresponsibly
Even his old vines have the underlying depressive state. Which one of my favourites being the one where he’s just making silly noises and then says “I’m gonna die alone”
This is incredibly well done. Bravo. As a fan since "Bo Yo" This video represented every feeling I've had for him and his art for 14 years and put it down into a script. Incredible video
@@uncledeadhead3674there’s a difference between being a fan, and worshipping someone. people are fans of bo- some have been for many years. that is not worship. that’s being a human.
when you say the things people say here about how amazing he is etc, yeah thatsthe same as worship, noone is saing they hold services to him, but its worship none the less, fan worship IS worship. @@chiffonlime643
@@uncledeadhead3674 i don't think enjoying some one's art enough to follow their journey is worship. But go ahead and keep commenting brain dead stuff stranger's opinions. Good way of finding your own fulfillment.
Dude what a killer fucking analysis on Bo. You hit the nail on the head. I love comedy, but I remember showing my best friend years ago one of Bos' specials, and he just didn't vibe with it like I did. I guess I've always understood that undercurrent of honestly from Bo, and I've always appreciated it. Great video, I'm glad the algo is pushing good content like this.
Just wow, i don't normally comment or like anything but this. This video deserves praise. No exploiting of the audience trying drive engagement, no embedded ads or selling of merch. Just quality content that actively makes the audience think and feel something other than a long stream of envy and want. Awesome job on the video.
I've been watching Bo Burnham's career more or less the whole time, being about his age, but never paid much attention to it because of the early UA-cam and Comedy Central stuff that was just "I'm a kid in the early social media era" with some Carlin-esque twists. Then Inside came along and I realized just what I'd been missing when I started actually paying attention to his older stuff. I'm glad the algorithm brought this video to me unasked for.
The part at 9:50 where he is talking about how dangerous the internet has become because it's in the palm of our hands now, while that woman is ignoring him for her phone is just... pure fucking irony.
His experiences are pretty much like that one episode of Rick and morty: Tiny Rick. How Rick is constantly telling everyone he’s hurting but people won’t take him seriously and just enjoying the art he made.
I remember being 12 years old and seeing his performance of Art is Dead on Comedy Central and just bursting into tears. I felt this insanely deep connection to this piece in particular after growing up watch him in the early aughts of UA-cam. I was a lost weird kid, alone in their room, trying to carry the new weight of the surprise death of my father figure and life felt so infuriatingly fake. I was angry at the world, and it seemed no one had the courage to take a look around and see how life was a long journey of bullshit with the occasional happy moment. It was such a relief in this moment of intense grief to see someone I looked up to be honest and say, hey the world is shit and it consumes the gentle and creative, especially from the guy that I watched telling dick jokes online. It was so raw and getting to see his evolution of just unfiltered honesty and struggle with mental health in the crumblings of morality made me feel not so alone in the worst times in my life.
“what” cured my depression, idk how to explain it, just watched every day for a week. this was the first time i saw anything from this man and never saw anything like it.
Aside from SCP breakdowns I usually never watch commentary/explanation videoss but this was so well put together. All eyes on me really spoke to me in some ways. I think i even teared up when first listening to it. This might be tmi/not important or even cringe-I think a year or so ago even-I also happened to be listening to it before having my own type of breakdown. Both from what I was going through and really internalizing the lyrics a second time around
Hope you're in a better place now bud. The song that really hit me was Don't Wanna Know. "Am I on in the background? Are you on your phone? I'd ask you watch you're watching but I don't wanna know- Is there anyone out there? Or am I all alone? It wouldn't make a difference still I don't wanna know." I always listen intently to this song. Bo is never on in the background, for me.
@@karlnicholson414 I think that’s cause in the outtakes it shows just how much effort goes into it. In the actual special you can tell the amount of work, but people rarely think or realize just how many takes you do to get the “perfect”one
“if you can live your life without an audience you should do it” is something that lives in my head a LOT and genuinely informs my decisions at time
Talk about THE CROW cawcawing the carved raven "block"!
The raven mannequin retaliates by sayin' through permanently parted, sawed sanded completely smooth smooth-talking squawkbox, "I may be the one carved from a log, then permanently adhered atop another different log...but, of the two of us, my fellow actually-feathered friend, you're definitely a toothpick, or two short of a whole haystack; also, I'm unable to move, and -- inevitably -- I bein' the one bound (to the ground) to be destined to gettin' pooped on by the foulest of fowl "Friendly Fire," here, in Lincoln Park, between both of us again you're definitely the one with poop and pulp for some shitty brains, there, Peckerwood..." Lmao!
Every parent should have this mantra in their kit
I Always Loved preforming, or well more activities that got preformed, but I never once wanted to get famous with IT cause the Idea terrified me!!! There IS such a big difference between the Attention in the Moment you consent to IT, while you Play a role and IT IS about the craft and getting IT without your consent from some Stranger, that intrudes on you, feels entitled to you . . . .getting recognised on the streets IS my nightmare.
I really want to publish, but only in a way that absolutely garanties Instay annonym
@@SingingSealRianaI'm a performer and an artist, I have even streamed large portions of my life online for 20 years, but I still don't want to be famous in the way that makes it so I can't have a life. I've never tried to get attention that way because I'm sure it's a nightmare.
I'm soo conflicted on that particular line. While there's a TON of weight behind it, I also think that some of us have things we need to say. For instance myself, I've become a vocalist and taught myself how to do metal vocals SPECIFICALLY after being diagnosed with PTSD, because I've made the decision I refuse to let my abusers that caused the PTSD to have the last word. That I myself have things that I want/need to scream into a microphone at anyone willing to listen, partially for self therapy, but also as a warning to others, not unlike many of Bo's more serious topics. I don't want fame and money - I'm a minimalist who is content with little, in fact if money was to ever become a thing I had access to, I'd likely just get myself some land to make my own log cabin on with a studio, build a permaculture forest, and anything above and beyond that would probably go to charity. I'm not in music for the fame, I'm in it for the message and the soul healing.
“Come let’s watch the skinny kid with a steadily declining mental health, and laugh as he gives you something that he cannot give himself” has stuck with me for years. Bo is a genius at making poetically sad comedy. Funny with sadness in the eyes
Personally I feel like there's a saturation point where you could use your art money to buy some therapy and a cool gaming setup.
@@ctdaniels7049 would be genuinely surprised if Bo hasn’t gone to therapy. It’s just therapy is hardly guaranteed to work.
Modern Shakespeare
I feel that line, but the full on screaming into the mic during that last song hits me way harder
@@tropicturtle9021 I don't think it's that therapy is hardly guaranteed to work because it absolutely does. The thing about therapy is the problems people go to therapy to help with eventually are removed from that person's life or is augmented in a more manageable way. Your parents are fight? Hold on you'll be moving out in a few years then you won't have to be in the middle of it. Your dog just died? Relax, breathe, it's okay to not be okay. Express yourself to your support system whenever you feel like you need it. Ect. Therapists give skills to people who need to learn how to either cope, or hold on. However, when you are constantly faced with a problem that you cannot avoid and there is no way to augment how you interact with that problem then therapy is much less likely to work. I.e Bo's struggle with fame that he himself exemplifies. If fame is the issue, it in itself cannot be avoided if you are to continue to have it. You are either famous or you are not. Deal with it. And he's tried, but he has to maintain some sort of notoriety if 1) he continues to essentially preach to people about the shortcomings of fame and 2) indulge in the things that make him happy. He loves music, writing, comedy. If he gave those things up sure he'd deal with the fame issue but lose what makes life worth living. It's a double edge sword that therapy can't fix.
"he's always been a great comedian, but he's always been a greater poet."
never heard something that describes an artist so perfectly. bo burnham went from this comical kid to an honest, understanding adult and his works speaks so many truths i feel too many people are afraid to admit
"Come and watch the skinny kid with a steadily declining mental health
And laugh as he attempts to give you what he cannot give himself"
One of the coldest bars in history. Still can't hear it without tearing up a little.
the openening song where he says
"i can't wrap my mind around exactly why I'm here. I should be funny, I know you paid money- other than that- don't know why I'm here.
To make you laugh right? that's only half right. Look at the world, I don't know why I'm here, none of this laughter can feed starving Africans. I just hope I don't get more from this than you do."
also makes triggers my emotions. Something about the way he flutters when he says "that's only half right"
Same
That bar resonated so hard with me when I first heard it that I routinely go back and listen to that song.
It’s hauntingly beautiful
My jaw literally fell open when he dropped that line.
“Making eye contact with sunglasses on” is such a phenomenal metaphor btw
Yeah, as an autistic person that metaphor goes hard af
Agreed. IDK why this is a real thing!
While poignant, not a metaphor.
@@TheDavveponken oxford languages definition of metaphor: "a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable." so yeah, it's a metaphor.
@@sirenaisle not even with the definition at hand are you grasping the concept: a metaphor is the following: the girl was a rose, socializing is like theater, etc. It is ascribing one thing with properties that of another. It is subtle. It may sound like a metaphor but it isn't. He is LITERALLY describing a feeling/situation/a memory. A metaphor is not a literal description. It is description by analogy, by metaphor. Again, a simplervexample, "a mighty fortress is our god"
Bo Burnham is the definition of how depression feels. The thought that your life fucking sucks so you joke about everything so others don't know you're depressed. That's why you can't judge people based on if they're "happy" or laughing because you never know what's going on inside.
If you are depressed though, your life is worth it. You're loved and needed even though it may not feel like it sometimes
Bo is the intellectual opposite of "ignorance is bliss".
He's so self-aware it sometimes cripples him. It seems like he finds some relief in comedy, but I think what really helps him find peace is pulling the curtain down and showing his audience a perspective they may not have otherwise considered.
Videos exactly like this one prove that his message does get through.
It doesn't sometimes cripple him, the point is he's permanently unescapably crippled by it
@@VanK782 I’d argue he always feels it, but it’s not always crippling. Otherwise he wouldn’t ever move forward
I do really feel frustrated with him sometimes, in the sense that he is so helplessly in need of peoples attention (as he has implied several times in his own art) that he's ready to continually defile his entire life to make another comedy special, and reluctanctly do it all over again next time, pretty parallel to the endless scroll/social media he often complains about.
Bo Burnham has a problem. He can forever investigate, analyze, and make jokes about this problem, yet he never bothers to solve it for himself.
@@Forcoy im sorry but what ? Have you ever in your life looked into a mirror and thought to yourself that there are so few people out there who you could talk to the way you would want to talk ? That there is a bigger chance at you losing people once you open up to them simply cause the way you are drives people away from you the deeper you go but for some reason you are like a people magnet as long as they know you on the surface ? Have you ever made a subtle hint and felt the joy of someone acknowledging the hidden gem only to be met with the sad reality that it really was just this one gem that you shared and thats it ? Thought to yourself what kind of narcissitic personality you got while also throwing yourself away at a heartbeat to the point you feel ripped apart ? The apathy in your general life with the insane spikes of emotions in certain moments like your brain cant just hold it back and it shoots through it like a lightning jolt ? Your comparison to the endless scroll and social media is pretty hitting but while the scroll on social media is just a shortterm "im looking for something entertaining" his scroll feels more like a reason to find something thats worth it. I dont know why but most songs of him sound more like an agressiv way of a discussion in which you point your facts and just wait for your opponent to counter. There are some things you cant solve for yourself since your point of view went so far to one end that without anyone actually convincing you on the field that you are standing on that you are not seeing the whole picture you end up stuck. Like that one guy who went to members of the KKK and befriended them only for them to realize that being racist and generalizing isnt the answer.
Also imagine asking someone who has a question and is reading books over and over again why he gets frustrated with every book he reads where he cant find the answer and why he keeps reading.
@Forcoy The human condition cannot be solved
"Poet" finally feels like a good word to describe him.
"Comedy" isn't enough to fit what he does.
Wordsmith
Right. I was just trying to explain to my daughter, who doesn't understand what Bo does, what he did and poet honestly dint even cross my mind.
Comedy is his medium, but his means is poetry.
He finds every possible way to meaningfully present his message, and all of it masquerades as being funny because it makes the message digestible.
@@crystallakedoodexactly
I feel like calling him an artist is a pretty good descriptor - because, yes, he is a wordsmith and a poet, but he is also a comedian, a songwriter/composer, a film director, and a videographer
When bill burr genuinely compliments you without any jokes, you know you did something right
The "I hope YOU're happy" from the end of Make Happy genuinely tore my heart to pieces.
I felt somewhat guilty for laughing all these years after hearing him say that. He's such a great human and artist.
i always think of that ending. its beautiful
I've watched Make Happy more times than I can count, and the end never fails to make me burst into tears.
It was a line in the song for me that lead to why his "I hope you're happy" stung so much. He set it up by telling the audience to "Come and watch the skinny kid with the steadily declining mental health. And laugh as he attempts to give you what he cannot give himself". That shit left me shattered.
Yo. Vibes dawg.
I'll say what I've always said. Bo isn't a comic, he's a performer. Every light, every note, every movement is planned down to the millisecond. He's painfully aware of his talent and the exploitation of talent as a whole. He's brilliant absolutely brilliant, and its killing him while we all laugh.
He's an artist
@@sarahwozniak5638he’s a great artist while art is dead
That's why we're called fools. Doesn't stop the drive though. It's literally just the way the world works.
beautiful
💯💯 for those who are empaths as I believe you may be as well, you could kind of see it from the first time you watch him.. but you came to laugh and he does that so well, hard not to enjoy it when he is so good at it.. but at the end of each set, (and during in many cases ) you feel a certain way.
I will never forget bawling my eyes out to Inside during the lockdown and having to desperately try and explain to my mother, who didn't understand why I'm so upset over this "confusing mess", how much it hurts to see something that accurately represents *my* mental illness and gives us insight Bo's deeply upsetting mind
But did you facetime with your mom?
I tried to show the special to my Dad back when it came out and he didn't find it interesting or understood why my wife and I were obsessed and so mentally invested in it
just go workout, get some sun. you will be fine
@@dukenukem7043 well that wasn't really an option in the middle of lockdown, I'm waaay better since then
I also bawled my eyes out to it but more just cause I’ve grown so fond of him over the years and I was genuinely concerned for him.
Edit to say - I hope you’re okay now x
Bo is a great example of the "classroom clown at home" funny when you see him struggling with unfathomable problems when no one's around
So true
classroom clowns are usually more unlikeable than bo burnham. Not even for the super studious "smart" people in school.
you missed a important komma
I might need aome help to understanf this.
@@katedayton3746funny when you see him, (but) struggling with unfathomable problems when no one’s around (I think)
I genuinely hope Bo sees this video. I feel like it's a big sign reading "Bo, your message has been heard.".
He intentionally avoids any online chatter that might involve him. He popped up on his reddit fan page after people questioned his mental health, and told everyone he was good, not to worry, and that while he knew those pages existed he made it clear he would not be back and had no desire to because he thought it would be unhealthy.
@@AllenSmithe After Make Happy I was so worried about him, and then when he made the comment about shooting himself in Inside I became genuinely concerned I would wake up one day to read another genius talent was gone. Hopefully his comment about being good mental health wise was real/true and long lasting.
Hoping Bo sees a successful video with tons of views and comments all adoring him is kind of missing the entire point of the video.
@@CAMELOT331 lol you seem to be missing it. They're saying he needs to seek therapy, bud.
@@drockopotamus1 thats... not at all what they're saying.
"He's always been a great comedian, but he is an even better poet. This line goes as hard, as it is accurate. Great video!
Fr. The moment he said that and the montage began- that was so intentional byw- it was just giving off this vibe of "yeah, see him? He's not who you thought he was?" I always referred to bo burnham as an artist, but poet? God, how did I NOT make that connection lol
I think, 20 or 30 years from now, we'll be using Bo as the example for how this era affected us. He's one of the greatest artistic geniuses of our time, and I just can't wait to keep watching him develop. Whatever he makes, I want to see.
bo will fade into irrelevancy in 20-30 years
@@Seinsmelled why do you think so?
@@lucyandecember2843 do you think someone who the general population hasnt heard of before, and who generally hasnt impacted much, will be remembered as an example of an era?
@@lucyandecember2843because he is widely unknown to MANY regions of the world. The only group he reaches is people on UA-cam willing to listen to edgy english songs.
I hope it makes it that far. Seems like he's struggling. But if he does personally I think his projects will only grow in scope. Inside had much more of an impact than people might think. Especially during Covid. I don't know anyone that didn't see it.
One of the differences about Bo Burnham’s stuff that didn’t age well is mainly that he’s quite clear that he’s a young kid that was doing some shock stuff for some quick laughs, yet at the same time he’s fully aware of what he’s doing . Then, as you said, you just watch him grow artistically and even mentally and it’s a crazy journey
two sides of life. he was always the same person, just needed to go through the journey.
I think that’s called growing up
it all aged perfectly well if youre not a puss, ya know? people get upset at the mildest stuff.
It's life
He pretty much explains this in Problematic
Bruh this video is amazing. Tying everything together like this and explaining why we like Bo Burnham, and what he's greatest joke is... Most people would've made this a 45 minute video. You made such a great and concise point in almost 14 minutes. Wow.
I'll always remember the time I met Bo. It was right before Eighth Grade was set to release in theaters, and my local theater had its posters put up all around outside, on the marquee and everything. I was walking by one day when I saw Bo standing outside the theater. He was just... looking up at the posters, the marquee, with this sort of wistful expression I can't honestly describe as happiness. I can't imagine what must have been going through his head. (I let him have his moment and then managed to catch him for a quick hello as he was walking away; he's a very nice and gracious guy.)
You describe him like seeing a rare pokemon xD
@@kingwalz it kinda is like that tho 🤣
The guy obviously thinks about the larger ramifications of what it means to seek fame. How empty, and sad it is. Bo seems to have taken his anxiety very seriously. Instead of weaponizing it he stepped away. He doesn't go out and seek fame anymore. He just creates, with complete honesty and sincerity.
His works ceased to be comedy a long time ago. He obviously wants to see and approach life with more respect and value than he was before. He is of course a creative person, and unfortunately when you want to make money, and live within the capitalistic confines of our modern day society - you have to grapple with your own contribution to that hell.
That one interview where he talked about "conquering land" seems to me as though he was beginning to understand how imperialism, capitalism, and colonialism have ravaged the earth... and now peoples brains are next. He hates that he was ever a part of the genesis of that... and it shows.
I know he gets a lot of shit for being a "privileged but pained artist" trope... but he honestly does seem to grapple with his own contributions to the problem. The Way the World Works really highlights this in a multitude of ways - lampooning him being a privileged rich white guy who's words honestly give little to the actual victims of the system. I think he knows that more than anyone can tell him.
People are weird, and if anyone wants you to not have a para-social relationship with them... it's Bo.
That's very considerate that you waited for him to finish his alone moment
Never heard of him until the Bezos song i just laughed my ass off to and listened to about 10 times so far
What a gigachad
We're all true addicts here. We warn eachother so dearly about the dangers of social media, yet everyone here is addicted to Instagram or UA-cam or Twitter. We need dedicated support groups for this kind of stuff, on par with drug rehabs and AA meetings.
Yup its ruining lifes
yeah the network society is... wait, I'm not supposed to say this.
social media bad!!!!
I got off several years ago. Still have it for messages with old friends / family. But I don't "use" it. I remember growing up and getting nervous all the time hoping for likes and attention, I really hated that feeling. Been a lot better since then.
and here you are posting comments to people who dont care about you. i think you failed@@thanksyoutubefortakingmyhandle
I recognize the point you are making here but I'd like to take this opportunity to mention that 12 step programs like AA are statistically ineffective, discourage things like reporting abuse and harassment, and their entire premise is pretty much "pray the pain away." It's incredibly toxic.
Having that said you're right on the money.
That was beautiful. As someone who found him when youtube just started blasting off, to now.
You did him as much justice as any true fan, possibly could.
Ty.
8:49 “…sort of like making eye contact with sunglasses on.”
There’s a lot to love in this video essay but bro that’s low key a brilliant line. Bo would be proud.
yeah, it's in his style
This is literally what Mitch Hedberg was doing on stage. On a side note, I hope Bo never gets into drugs.
@@ilvanezzo Fun fact: my depression was exacerbated by anti-drug culture. I didn't stop getting worse and start getting better until I gave up trying to saddle the burden on my own and accepted medication into my life. Drugs can be bad, but they aren't always bad, mkay?
@@TheReaverOfDarkness Fun fact: Mitch Hedberg didn't die from taking a bunch of Tylenol. He died from mixing cocaine and heroin (among other things). So STFU ok?
@@TheReaverOfDarknessWhen they said drugs, they mean the shit that kills you, not advil or whatever you guys are supposed to take
Bo did warn us all. I was a freshman when his first special came out. We all had smartphones, Facebook, Instagram etc already. Now, all of my friends and I realize we are addicted and that social media is poison. He tried to warn us. Not everyone listened.
I was young, I didn't realize there was any deep meaning to his songs. Guess it's too late now
@@jackalexande it’s never too late.
@@jackalexande Nothing is ever too late. Social media addiction can be broken.
Bo's warning is his "Sound of Silence"
Its funny cause people view me as weirdo cause i dont have ig or fb or any other social media except youtube
So i get secluded by that as well
I always took those "serious songs" where he gets existential to be the ones where he's being the most honest. It was him sharing his real feelings, instead of trying to make us laugh. But he still wanted us to laugh a little, and worked with that.
Because he knew if we didn't find it funny, we wouldn't commit it to memory as well. We wouldn't understand it. And I thought we had done so... but apparently there's people still wondering "if there were signs" sounds like me before I got diagnosed... Like yup. Everything about me screams ADHD, but I didn't get medicated until I was 32.
Art is Dead remains my favorite Bo Burnham song to this day, and the video of him performing it in the Green Room in front of a bunch of other comics is amazing. The people in the audience are laughing and cheering and all the comics on the couch have this moment where they go "oh, shit, this song is about US"
You can also 100% see that only some of them really get it. It's in their eyes.
You ever notice on that episode he says "no one wants a twenty something year old kid telling them how the world works. And then on Inside right after he turns 30 he plays" This Is How The World Works".
That Green Room episode is incredible. The dynamic with the older jaded comics before he played that song was great. Then after he played the song they understood how talented he is. Also Gary Shandling was so awsm on that episode. Love that guy.
The only way I listen to Art is Dead is by listening to it twice - first the studio version, then the Green Room version. It’s just perfection
@@justinbrooke3511 And he also made a joke about it at the end of "Lower Your Expectations".
He is the only person I have seen laughing at his self awareness in a way that doesn't sound disingenuous, it sounds sincere somehow
It definitely is and it's why he's so popular. I will say it does start to veer into teenager who thinks they're deep territory, but he's not wrong. The whole "corporations are colonizing your mind, man!" stuff is a little cringe but there is certainly some truth to it as well. It's just not as deep as he seemingly thinks it is, honestly. Super talented and funny guy though.
@@SpartanArmy117 alternatively, it's deeper than *you* think it is and the brilliant artist has his finger on the pulse of the zeitgeist
He doesn't pretend it's deep... it's just truth. @@SpartanArmy117
@@ringehdingehdurgen Haha yeah that's probably it. It's just so deep I couldn't fathom it.
@@SpartanArmy117 Yeah I have to disagree with you. I do think it's as deep as he says it is but it's easy to ignore and most people will as we always do.
Bo: The subtle way that the internet interfaces with our hearts-
Her (on her phone): No that's-!
Bo: The way it makes us feel kinda nervous in our beds at night
Her (still on phone): Tha-
Bo: How you have to choose between all the information in the world, and the back of your eyelids. That's kinda sad"
Her (back to looking at her phone): Ok. Well.
Bo: 😊
I noticed that too. Girl couldn't pull her eyes from her phone while he was talking. I don't think it could've been more apparent if he planned it. And the irony completely escapes her
I've been trying to explain to my friends that inside feels like the climax to a 15 year story but it's so hard to convey why. This video does it perfectly.
Yeah whenever I want to show Inside to someone, I’m like “ok just 3-4 quick hours of his other stuff first” lol
I personally think "Inside" is to us what, "Pink Floyd - The Wall" was to our parents.
@@phenel wow very good insight and comparison, totally agree
Oddly that’s what makes me not want to watch it. I don’t want one of my favorite comics to stop making me laugh 😢
@@c0mplex564 2 sides to every coin. Embrace it.
Hearing Bill Burr talk up Bo Burnham is a good mood.
Bill Burr rarely has L takes.
Boll Burrnham
Especially since Bill Burr will absolutely trash the hell out of something or someone if he thinks it's/they're bad. If Bill Burr is impressed and thinks you're great then you're probably amazing.
I hope when Bo is Burrs age, 50s, he will be able to still be putting out these messages.
Both Boston boys :)
This made me so emotional, i loved every second of it
Just THANK YOU for this!!
Coming back to this after 4 months
When I was in middle school, I once told the class "I would never want to be famous," and the class all thought I was crazy. "But money!" But fame!" "But success!"
Bo Burnham would have been my Exhibit A.
My thought's always been I'd rather be one of the people behind the scenes surrounding the artist or figurehead, like a songwriter or producer. You still have a hand in making it just not personally marketing it.
andd the most succesfull people, with the most money arent even famous, you cant enjoy your money when you are famous
Same, AS much AS I Love acting, or singing ITS . . . .
In high school I took a "Media English" class as an alternative to just regular English where we dissected various forms of media and things of that nature. Bo wasn't out at the time or he ABSOLUTELY would have been a feature in one of my projects. We did do one once, where we had to choose between fame or fortune, and we had to justify our reasons, then do a counter argument for the opposite. I was one of 3 students in the class who chose fortune and not fame. MOST of the students' reasons for choosing fame was simple: money. Some wanted notoriety also. Out of the 3 of us who chose fame, I was the *only* person to make the argument for anonymity. That being famous comes with a terrible mental toll, and that as a person who has ALWAYS had things like environmentalism at the forefront of my mind, having wealth and none of the fame could almost be an advantage. You can toss around the weight of that money without anyone tracing it back to you, potentially making your life more miserable. My teacher LOVED my answers and made me present my project to the class, as well as the top fame choice, which lead to a debate that lasted in our class the rest of the week.
You get money, fame, success, and you never get to live in peace again. You get the entire world speculating about everything you do at all times and you can almost never directly get involved with the conversation. Have fun never walking down the street again without being harassed
man, hearing bill talk so highly of bo was such a treat.
Especially when you know that if Bill mentions your name, you should be VERY nervous until he gets his thought out.
Bo is a real artist
nah that guy is a washed up hack
@@anishinaabaeguy is one of the best to ever do it. No doubt one of the best of his generation at the very least.
I can understand if you don't like Bill. The style of comedy isn't for everyone. But a washed up hack? C'mon now that's crazy. But I want to hear the rationale. So a couple questions.
1. What makes him a hack?
2. Why do you consider him washed up? When was the peak and what changed since?
3. Who are your favorite comedians? Give me at least one current one who isn't "washed up."
Not trying to come at you. Genuinely want to know lol.
@@Later_Nerd commenting because I want to see the followup lol
I still go back to ‘What.’ multiple times a year it is such a musical, comedic, and cinematic masterpiece that will never be able to be reproduced
cant tell you how relieving it is to click on a video essay with less than 10k views that isnt written by chatgpt. hope this video and your channel blows up, this is really good work.
Over 200k now :) FANTASTIC video man really hope you see more success!
I hope they ban AI created videos from YT. That or heavily watermark/filter them.
@@petercruz1993i get so upset when I see a title I like and it turns out to be a robot with a million views. Take me back to like 2009.
are you kidding me akhzjsh this video sounds like it was written by chatgpt
This truly is fantastic work. Video essays are utter garbage, and this one is a masterpiece in a sea of schlock
I've been following his work for a long long time. My wife took me to his comedy show when he toured our city. When it was over, she finally realized what I saw in this kid. She's a therapist and saw much deeper things and saw more to him than just jokes. Just like you did. Thank you for your perspective.
Right, as in he should get fixed lol
@@drockopotamus1 And what exactly IS fixed? Would it mean the same thing to you; to me; to him? I hope he finds the peace he deserves. Happiness isn't possible for everyone, but maybe peace can be.
This is the best analysis of one of the greatest artists on the planet. Defining him as a "poet" feels like I should have recognized it sooner but somehow knew it all along.
If the world is just, there will be studies in 10-15 years talking about how social media is worse for you than cigarettes.
except it very much isnt. dont get me wrong i do believe social media has a strong impact on the mental health of a lot of young people, and its not like we havent made scientific research on this already, its not a qustion of the world being just or not, we have already theorized some correlations regarding mental health, its just hard to make absolute long term conclusions right now. having that said its simply not comparable to dying horrible deaths by cancer and other respiratory problems. but regardless whether one thinks its comparable or not though, i dont get why you have to approach it from a grounds of comparisson, bot can be bad in their own specific way.
Man it’s a shame we live in this world then.
wtf are you both on about, we already have studies on the matter who already theorize social media might create a toxic environment that influences mental health on a lot of youth. why wouldnt we? we just are incapable of making conclusion on long term, cause logically we havent gotten there yet. what i dont get is, why would you need an approach of comparisson. for as impactful as social media may be on the mind it doesnt compare to dying a horrible death of cancer or other related issues caused by concumption of tobacco. but regardless whether you agree with that or not BOTH can be bad in their own specific way, why do you need to declare it as worse than so and so?
that's just not true
This is a very unfounded position lol
Bo Burnham like many of us, was a normal kid who grew up on the internet. It seems he made it his life's purpose to stay in our court and protect us from the pitfalls he experienced when he lost his own ability to lead a normal life without fame. He was on the same side of the road as us and is now yelling from across the road telling us not to cross.
Well put.
👏
yours should be top comment
@displayname2198 “I go on Reddit so I’m cultured “
As a performer, I identify with your comment. I keep it local and small even though I get offers for more. As a home chicken farmer, gardener, husband, etc; I'm happy that being a performer is only a piece of my life. A necessary piece, but a piece none the less.
Simplicity is key. The further you are from society, the less rubble you get buried in when it crumbles.
"Can't Handle This" broke my heart for Bo, because I could tell he meant what he was saying, and those screams were guttural/visceral and pained. 😭😭😭
His song "Cant handle this right now" from make happy was pure genius. There was so many layers and it mamaged to be so genuine.
This song. Broke. Me.
It's a song I never need to hope I can hear again for the first time. Every subsequent listening does the exact same thing to me. I remember the show ending, the screen going black, and my wife and I muttering "God I hope he's found some happiness since filming this."@@AmberLie
@@devinkerr5474 as somewhat of a musician myself...I know there's a sense of catharsis behind finishing a song and getting that perfect (enough) take. So I'm once it was done and he knew he did his best work he found some peace. I think that was actually one of his last live performances before he released Inside where he did mention he did get better... right as covid was shutting down all the venues.. then he spiraled a bit again. But I think that special was also very therapeutic for him.
The laughter at 7:09 haunts me. In part because I know that if I were in the audience, I likely would have laughed, too. There's an energy that a crowd has which influences every person in it and the moments where someone doesn't get sucked into it are rare for many, many people. The job of an audience at a comedy show is to laugh. The people in the audience are reduced down to this in the moment, and the artist is often reduced by this, as well.
So, this is actually a psychological phenomenon that has been studied rather a lot. I can't remember the name of it off the top of my head, but the loss of one's own decision-making or thinking skills in submission to that of the group happens so frequently. There's a weird bias shown in studies on it where, even when someone knows for a fact that the group is wrong in a decision, they'll vote with the group. Often, the person either just feels like they shouldn't speak up, or they feel like the group must know better than they do. It's really interesting how our minds have been shaped for social survival to the point that we'll often accept essentially all jumping off the same bridge rather than be seen as the one who openly disagreed with the group.
@@colixnaia6512I think it’s because our very sense of self is dependent on others validating that we exist. So when any majority of selves is doing a a thing the psychological weight is too much to withstand with your comparatively small individuality that will now have to wrestle with both disgust and loneliness.
@colixnaia6512 iirc it's called mob mentality
@@maxxcrafting7519 I ended up looking it up. It's called groupthink. Believing that the others in the group who are agreeing are representative of the whole group can cause someone to change their thinking or behaviour to agree with the group. Perhaps ironically, it's in a way a form of confirmation bias, as agreeing despite oneself only adds more appearance of unanimity and increases chances that others will conform to groupthink as well.
@colixnaia6512 Precisely that. It is something humans evolved as it improved survivability - if you react to an external event/stimulus (e.g. a large predator, a potentially-venomous snake or spider, unexpected loud noises etc) the same way as the majority of others around you, you are more likely to survive to pass on your genes.
I got my degree (nearly 25 years ago!) in Social Psychology, and it is incredibly useful for understanding why people act like they do. There are a relatively small number of people who have 'abnormal psychology', but the VAST majority of people interact with other humans in a fairly predictable manner (the outliers tend to be people who have some nonstandard psychology (eg psychopathy, bipolar, BPD etc) or neuropsychological issue (something on the edges of the autism spectrum, brain damage etc) that prevents them from responding to things 'appropriately'.
However I don't recommend a psychology degree for anyone other than those who plan to work in the mental health field - it's simply not widely required. Interesting af though! 😊
He's always been a great comedian, but he has always been a greater poet." actually made me a little emotional. So true. I wish the best for that dude.
This was by far the best video essay I’ve ever seen on Bo Burnham. You were able to articulate accurately things that I knew but did not know how to express. I really like how you went through everything he did in a chronological way showing his development over time.
so much yes
“The subtle way that the internet interfaces with our hearts, the way it makes us feel kinda nervous in our bed at the end of the day, how you have to choose between all the information in the world and the back of your eyelids… that’s kinda sad” holy shit I felt that my whole childhood. Being a child online and on social media it RULED my life, I didn’t have the will power to pull myself away from it like I can now that I’m an adult.
The way that the internet was my crutch growing up. I would be awake into the hours of the night searching on google or youtube to try to find answers of why I was the way that I was. My family life, we were all emotionally neglected. None of us knew how to communicate well or share our feelings because we would be punished for feeling the wrong way. I spent every day I could just trying to find community or answers to help me find out how to have relationships with the people in my life. I was so desperate for help, and to this day I still fall into that habit of searching for peace outside of myself. I just wanted to understand why people acted the way they did and why empathy wasn’t a common trait among all of us.
I don't know if I've ever replied to a comment of youtube before, but your comment hit me hard. I'm a millennial: I grew up with the emergence of the internet and cell phones. It was developing as I was developing. We were perhaps the first to be pulled into social media at a young age, but we were pulled into a much smaller version than it is now. It was a stream, a pond, a lake: dangerous, but easier to avoid. Now it's an ocean: an endless, wrenching void that actively and intentionally pulls you in to drown you.
I've always known that I want to keep my small children away from social media, from embedded, ingrained, and pervasive prejudice and sexism and violence in movies and tv. I've always had that goal, but now, reading your comment about it ruling your life, I want to actively double my efforts. Not just shelter my girls, but educate them, discuss with them, give them the tools to regulate themselves. I desperately want my girls to be confident and capable, to be happy; to live their lives instead of watching others' lives.
I don't know how to do all of that. I'll get parenting therapy/coaching if I need to. But thank you for sharing. I hope I can help keep my girls from struggling as you and so many others have.
Haha as an adult I still struggle with this. It sucks.
you can now?
I have always been SO grateful that social media wasn't popular or even around until I was almost in high school. I barely made a FB when a friend in 10th grade made me do it, didn't have IG until I was like 21? Yeah, I am so grateful... I had computer access but all we had were like forums! And I wasn't on myspace really. Anime forums in middle school was peak internet for me haha (I'm almost 31, born early 94)
Inside is still one of the greatest artistic works of pretty much any comedian so far. I have watched Bo for so long, and feel such a deep connection to everything he has gone through.
Literally got chills with your last line. "Because he's always been a great comedian... but he's always been a greater poet..."
I honestly hope he finds this video and that line someday because what a beautiful way to be seen and heard.
it is not "dance, monkey, dance" but "dance, poet, dance"
@@mf--That doesn't make sense. Monkey's dance for coins, poets don't. Keep trying to be clever, you'll get it someday.
I actually started tearing up when you mentioned The Chicken, when the inside outtakes were released I remember that song impacted me so much, and for exactly the reason you described. Taking the structure and form of comedy and turning it into something genuinely honest and impactful, that is Burnham’s art.
same here! one of the many songs of his that got me through terrible times. only bo could make a song like that to completely break me and lift me up again 🙏
"The Chicken" makes me cry every time I hear it!!! Like ugly uncontrollable crying. I'm smiling and bawling and my boyfriend is just sitting there horrified, confused, and wondering what the hell just happened!!!!!
I didn't care for it but that's because I have no soul.
Chicken was dogshit. I watch Bo for his great humor, but his poetry, while well done, keeps him from being top tier.
@@blad...🤓
What's crazy to me is that it took people until Inside to realize this and I heard it back when Bo and I both were in middle school and you had to dig through early UA-cam to find him.
"The subtle way that the internet interfaces with our hearts - the way it makes us feel kinda nervous in our bed at the end of the day. How you have to choose between all the information in the world and the back of your eyelids. That's kinda sad.." Well fuck
Have a kid, you'll choose sleep every damn time, I promise.
That lady trying so hard to interrupt him made me nervous
I suffered depression in my 20s, and just happened to be an artist, so when I finished watching Inside…I cried. I didn’t know who he was or know any of his previous work, but I knew exactly what he was trying to convey.
My husband just stared at me when I cried, he was so confused.
Bo Burnham is a genius. It’s sad only some can see it.
I absolutely cried. My bf did too though.
I am not an artist but I SOBBED after finishing Inside. Same experience my partner looked at me like “huh?”
Same.
xD
I cried too. Though, I would say I'm more of an aspiring artist than anything
That final song in make happy hit me like a ton of bricks, because I could tell he meant every word underneath that protective facade he cloaked it in to keep the audience in it. I myself was having regular panic attacks and that “I don’t think I can handle this right now” line being said over and over and over….and he’s just directing that panic into vibing, in like, a self soothing rhythm….life changing.
The comedy relaxed and disarmed me, and the final hit sunk deep into my soul and I connected with the message. He’s a genius.
Thanks for this essay, my guy.
Whatever caused the UA-cam algorithm to promote this video, I’m so glad it popped up on my Recommended feed. Haven’t seen such a brilliant and succinct video essay in a while. You have my subscription, funny rock man.
same
Same here. Didn’t think I’m in for a UA-cam character arc type night but here we are
"and watch him try to give you what he cannot give himself" i hope he's happy
Can't Handle This is still one of the most powerful performances I've ever seen, and it was only through UA-cam videos.
And when I watched Inside, I had to split my viewing into two parts because I got so overwhelmed by the sheer raw emotions contained in that special.
I genuinely wish Bo only the best.
Thank GOD someone talks about The Chicken, I think it's the best song Bo's made in his whole career, I've been a fan since Words Words Words, and I still get chills every time I hear it. It's an incredible song that says so much about himself, his career, and it's a great metaphor.
Hi, I do not understand The Chicken and had a hard time watching the outtakes after the multiple songs with spiders in them (arachnophobia) Help?
You can just watch the chicken song by itself! I really recommend it's very funny.
His best song is I’m bo yo but yea whatever that “this is deep” song could be second
The chicken destroyed me when I first heard it. I got got.
At the same time I always expect Bo to come out with something brand new, I would be totally satisfied if he decided to stop making art. It seems fit for him looking back at all of his trajectory.
0:37 lol i cant take the angsty shot seriously when i know in reality its just "PROLONGED EYE CONTACT"
Real 🥲
I have cant handle this on my spotify. To this day it always gets me, you can hear Bo's voice tremble, you can hear even through the reverb how his screams are not just singing but are in fact real bursts of angst and anxiety. For those with anxiety you can FEEL the song and then to learn later that he was having a panic attack and that song was a literal cry for help, it was just PURE emotion on stage. The most him he had ever been and it was at one of his lowest scariest career moments. Just literal amazing art that can never be truly recreated.
Edit: Also wanted to praise you and how well you did making this video coherent and fluid. Great job!
This fucking video is exactly what I've been trying to tell people for a long time...
This man is so much deeper than is comedy and he actually uses it to explain messages and try to inform people.
What's the message he's trying to convey?
@@mandrewraethmocking the hand that feeds? That's how I live life.
@@handsomezack2054 That's really vague. You know he's a millionaire, right?
I feel he's telling us about Corporate greed and human disconnect. Mostly he seems to express his own discontent with this. He deals with the falsehood of 'mainsteam' similar to how Jim Carrey does.
@@mandrewraeth
@@mandrewraethwell there are several but one of them i feel is that we as a society are plagued by our own hubris and inaction and for a lot of people their lives are an elaborate performance that we're almost too scared to show the full truth, like in the video with the "making eye contact with sun glasses" analogy
its a level of vulnerability that feels almost sickening to even consider showing, and we always feel this need to have some sort of veil over it to make it easier to digest, whether that be the internet or an elaborate act on a set to portray some kind of persona that hides the full truth
does rhat make any sense? im tryin my best to explain this in words that make sense LMFAO
Wow. What a brilliantly reasoned and presented argument you've made. This is an excellent channel; from the script, your delivery of it, and the swift editing tying it all together. Man, well done. Subscribed.
(PS and wow Bo Burnham is miles ahead of the rest of us in the way Thomas Jefferson, Mozart, Simone de Beauvoir, Shakespeare, etc were)
the song handle this is so good. the effects when he says
“a part of me loves you,
a part of my hates you.
a part of me needs you.
a part of me fears you”.
ahh so good
Omg this was such a good explanation of Bo's body of work and the main point he's trying to convey through his art, you have no idea how annoyed I've been at people who just knew him from inside and believed that inside was just about quarantine.
Yes, I saw a lot of people thinking that inside was a special about the experience in quarantine and it is much more than that, it is above all an incredible and critical read about the internet and capitalism
Inside helped my struggle with social anxiety and being an absolute shit show fuck up. It was never about quarantine but the point he was making was a totally different point to me.
growing anxious about the internet and capitalism to a dangerously self destructive degree wasn't part of your guy's quarantine? Lucky.
seriously though seeing this i almost wish i had people analyze my development over the last decades and make sense of it for me, but then again, I wouldn't really have listened to what Bo has warned us about...
I'm actually impressed people didn't get it. There was very clearly a *lot* there beyond quarantine commentary, that should be clear to anyone who watched it.
At minimum people also need to watch Make Happy and understand that the last song of Inside is basically a sequel to the last song of Make Happy.
The last sentiment is perfect. As an actor, I'm told to not "try to be funny", it's the same for comedians. You're not "trying to be funny" you're trying to get something from the audience, whether that's relief, a reaction, whatever. Comedy and laughter are simply byproducts of honesty and truly asking for what you want. It's so interesting and Bo is perfect at that. It's why the best comedians are honest to themselves (or truly honest to their characters). And when they're not, they suck!
Bo didn't *try* to warn us.
He sang it to our faces.
I loved it when he sang "Art is Dead" in front of all those egotistical comics. You can tell by the look on their faces that they're like "oh shit. That's us".
The way they asked him to do it too. All of them but 1 were so exicted. And the one that knew what they were unintentionally asking sat there and watched. And by the end, I dont think any of them actually fulmy understood
you guys are totally off the mark, you dont think the comic who REQUESTED & ALREADY heard the song and was friends with the guests DIDNT get the joke HE set up? Lol. Also the comics there are famously good natured, Ray Romano is known as a very nice guy. You guys are way off base. Bo is friends with them too. like they didnt know who bo was and didnt intentionally invite him for what he brought to the discussion. they even make funny jokes after saying "Cute" clearly being facetious. jfc
@@KoiWolf-m1k people these days man
This was beautiful crafted & illuminating. It makes me think about the deeper ideas I want to explore as a creator. Thank you.
His special "Inside" sincerely got me through the beginning of the pandemic, and I felt so much less alone because of him. Everything he spoke about, I was feeling and unable to describe/understand fully until I heard him talk about it. I'll forever be grateful for his vulnerability and artistry during the hardest period of my life.
If I recall correctly, Bo had MULTIPLE panic attacks while performing Can't Handle This. He's probably the strongest person I've ever seen by doing that, simply the thought of a panic attack nearly breaks me.
Bill Hader has also spoken about how he regularly had panic attacks while doing SNL. It's mind boggling that he and Bo and I'm sure untold other performers can get through that and still continue a performance.
love this, one of the best mini docs ive seen, captured him perfectly
I genuinely feel so grateful to have been taking in Bo's art for all these years. For the people just discovering him because of Inside, i'm sure it's a fantastic retrospective, but for those of us who have been paying attention for the past 15 years, it feels like Inside came along and gave us the punchline to the joke only we were in on. And truly, there's no way to describe that to those who weren't there. Bo grew up, and we grew with him.
❤
Agreed.
This guy is my longest “obsession”, he has no idea how he helped to truly shape me into who i am today, and watching him for the past 12 years (CRAZY??? I DISCOVERED HIM WHEN I WAS 12) is such an interesting experience. We really did grow with him.
And I'm just a year younger than him, so the song 30 hit me the same way. Though I'm a big failure. Still building that birdhouse.
I originally experienced Bo Burnham as a middle school boy during Words Words Words. Now, as an adult, his humour has faded into the issues that I care so more about. This man has truly shaped my view of fame and showed me that I really just want to live contently in my small life.
After”Inside” I really worried about his mental health
Bo Burnham was my inspiration and the main reason I avoided making my hobbies my career. I was a brown queer kid making jokes and telling stories at lunch and being told my potential wasn't being reached even though I was clearly gifted. Now I'm the future gifted kid... an autistic, anxious, burnt out adult in middle management. I order lunch, do accounting shit without an accounting degree, and move things around while masking 50+ hours a week. I'm exhausted. I can't imagine ALSO being exploited online. I'm almost 30 and watching kids in their teens and early adult hood just ROT online is sad... not in a "kids these days" but in a "you don't even understand the damage that's happening to your brain before its fully developed. You're gonna be fucked in a decade and you won't really understand why and there's nothing I can do because people a decade ago let it happen to me..."
God, this is so scarily accurate I can't even. There's no fixing it really either. If I had enough time, social energy, charisma, political sway, etc, I still wouldn't even have the foggiest on how to fix it here. But sadly I have none of that and, like you, will wail into this void.
The saddest part is, if someone tried to stop that when you were a teenager, you probably wouldn't have listened, since we always think we have it figured out at that age. I'm in the same position as you now so I'm not trying to say you specifically, just being that age in general
I feel this so much I too am an autistic adult (28 and also ADHDer) wishing I’d listened and properly learned from what Bo’s work warned me about in life. Just the line “so when you develop a dissociative mental disorder in your late twenties don’t come crawling back to me”, is such a big thing that I wish I’d had any idea about before it was too late.
hey im 15 can you explain it to me i really don't get how it makes your brain rot.@boy07
Went from a happy and curious 8 year old kid to a 26 year old addict and agoraphobic really fast. Not any of it would probably have happened if i didnt degen online and chase impossible goals on my computer for the better part of my adult life. The mans message is clear
He's somehow perfectly explained this deep duality I feel- a hatred I have for what's happening in the world that makes my heart shatter, and the use of comedy as one of the only ways I can fight back against how powerless that world makes me feel.
"Live your life without an audience" was the advice he gave that I've held really near to my heart.
Just something about “choosing all the information in the world and the back of your eyelids” really got me, hes so right for that 9:59
Bo burnham's work has been something that I got to grow with as he grew. I am 3 years younger than him and I literally started listening to him after his second youtube video went up. I watched myself grow from the person that loved all his work to the person I am today that see's his old work as still funny but also problematic and his new stuff is just pure art. I love that his comedy has grown in the same ways that I did over time and that way his "joke" as you call it in the video hit so much harder
Same! I grew up alongside Bo and PewDiePie. Can't imagine growing up now alongside today's online content creators..
@Spyracik I agree, content has changed so much since then. But on the flip side of this I have seen so many creators I like completely implode in on themselves by being horrible people
Same, 93 til infinity
@@Spyracik I'm so lucky I got to grow up with creators like pewdiepie, jacksecpticeye, markiplier, and dantdm. I feel like you don't really get those same types of sincere and humble creators nowadays, many of the currrent creators are so obviously taking advantage of children's attention spans, it's sickening.
I think it's also so different because these creators really tried to distance themselves from the audience and condemned parasociality, I literally remember many videos from pewdiepie or jacksepticeye where they explicitly stated "I am not your friend, please don't act like you know me, I am just a performer".
It’s crazy how at 9:54 as he’s literally talking about how we’re addicted to the internet, the interviewer is scrolling thru her phone instead of making eye contact or actually listening to him 😭
I know!!! I came to the comments to find this. I was wondering if anyone else was shocked enough to point it out.
I think she might be reading notes on what questions she's supposed to ask during the interview, but yeah not paying attention to the person you're interviewing is strange
Can't Handle This is such an incredible song. Gives me goosebumps and makes me tear up every time. Really feels like the full culmination of his career and perfectly sums up his entire approach to art.
I stopped using social media around the beginning of dec for certain reasons mostly because i was becoming overwhelmed. Super hard to curb the addiction at first but my phone use decreased. I started to feel good again and decided to log back in around 2 days ago and I’ve noticed I’m in a bad moods again and not feeling good.
I love how entertaining the internet can be but with how bad it can get it’s becoming something I want to avoid most of the time
Unfortunately as people it's really hard to not compare ourselves to others. And the thing about social media is people mostly post the BEST things about their life. Vacations, major milestones, relationships, families, etc. We end up subconsciously comparing our current normal state to the "super happy" state we assume everyone else must be online since they're posting the BEST things going on. We end up feelings worse thinking we're not as good as the people online, although that's nonsense. Our lives at one time cannot be as 'interesting' or 'good' as tens or hundreds of others enjoying abnormally good days combined.
I've been off social media completely for 3-4 years now, and I cannot recommend it enough. It's poison for the human psyche.
About 25% of gen x talked non-stop about how social media and cell phone living were terrible and dangerous. They now get called boomers. The remaining 75% raised their kids on the stuff the way they were raised on TV.
And when your kids get to be 20 themselves they're old enough and educated enough to state honestly and confidently exactly how you screwed up. And you should listen.
It's going to be how you allowed them to put all of their pain and their every waking moment of life on the effing internet for the world to laugh at. You allowed your kids to become a cringe meme. They had all of their puberty and learning experiences televised for the world's entertainment and laughter. I can only imagine that to be 1,000 times more painful than the puberty Gen X had that was never documented and that not a single person alive can remember.
Just a thought.
I hate instagram and tiktok especially. They let people spout off hate speech, and the algorithm just pushes it further to the top. The stupider, meaner, and grosser something is, the more the algorithm pushes it for engagement. Idk, I can't log on without this very real feeling that every time I open this app I'm being manipulate by media corporations😭 Plus I'm tired of seeing 13 year olds talk about politics.
As someone who’s been through this cycle, I strongly encourage you to stay away from it while you’re not completely sucked back in.
The allure isn’t real. It’s a memory of meaningless and useless dopamine surges.
Yes, I got rid of FB and Insta in 2019, and for a whole year I struggled with the desire to check. After a year I was fine, but I was shocked by how long it took. I started looking at Insta again and felt terrible. I felt so insecure and inadequate. It is sad we let children on these sights.
This explained in words every reason that I could never realize behind why I love Bo Burnham's art so much. To this day, Art is Dead is one of the few songs I regularly go back and listen to, as well as "can't handle this"
This is the best dissection of Bo's career that I have seen so far, extremely impressive video 👏 Zach Stone is Gonna be Famous is such an underrated masterpiece.
The sheer impact of the subtle pause leading up to POET and the dramatic pause after... holy shit man, just... you got me. Slow claps my way out. Thank you for your service. ❤
"Patient Zero of Internet Fame"
As a Psychology Undergrad, this fascinates me!
We are literally guinea pigs to the *New Era of Internet!*
A mass experiment is currently underway!!
And it's going quite Pavlovian😂😂
Oh joy, how wonderful 🙄
🤨 *Wouldn't that make us **_figurative_** guinea pigs?*
(well ... that is assuming you are not, in fact, a group of _literal_ guinea pigs -- some with unusually intenses academic passions for the study of human psychology and commenting on UA-cam videos lol)
*I mean, to be fair, this IS the internet; a place where weirdness abounds and seemingly anything is possible.* 🐹💻
No, the experiment is over. The freedom, the randomness, the shear unadulterated creativity is dead. While we played, they plotted. It was dead far before the first pages on facebook, the first tweets took place.
It was lawless, it was dangerous, and i was beautiful. And just like every new colonized place, those who enjoyed it turned around and demanded safety and uniformity.
This is no longer the experiment it is now the dull greige colored corporate practice to steal your money, data, and attention. An infection of attention that only creates a prison.
As a post-grad psychologist this still fascinates me. My thesis was on microtransactions and the ethical implications of using psychology in games when its used to make people spend money. We are using this knowledge irresponsibly
Even his old vines have the underlying depressive state. Which one of my favourites being the one where he’s just making silly noises and then says “I’m gonna die alone”
This is incredibly well done. Bravo.
As a fan since "Bo Yo" This video represented every feeling I've had for him and his art for 14 years and put it down into a script.
Incredible video
great your worshipping a celebrity, just like he literally tells you not to do.
@@uncledeadhead3674there’s a difference between being a fan, and worshipping someone. people are fans of bo- some have been for many years. that is not worship. that’s being a human.
when you say the things people say here about how amazing he is etc, yeah thatsthe same as worship, noone is saing they hold services to him, but its worship none the less, fan worship IS worship.
@@chiffonlime643
@@uncledeadhead3674 i don't think enjoying some one's art enough to follow their journey is worship.
But go ahead and keep commenting brain dead stuff stranger's opinions.
Good way of finding your own fulfillment.
you really don't get it , he is literally telling you not to follow people on you tube etc, and you still do it. @@dogxwaffles
Dude what a killer fucking analysis on Bo. You hit the nail on the head. I love comedy, but I remember showing my best friend years ago one of Bos' specials, and he just didn't vibe with it like I did. I guess I've always understood that undercurrent of honestly from Bo, and I've always appreciated it. Great video, I'm glad the algo is pushing good content like this.
Love your comment
Just wow, i don't normally comment or like anything but this. This video deserves praise. No exploiting of the audience trying drive engagement, no embedded ads or selling of merch. Just quality content that actively makes the audience think and feel something other than a long stream of envy and want.
Awesome job on the video.
13:02 "He's always been a great comedian, but he's always been a greater poet" DAMN
Agreed, this is a great ending to an even greater video about an even greater and sophisticated man.
I've been watching Bo Burnham's career more or less the whole time, being about his age, but never paid much attention to it because of the early UA-cam and Comedy Central stuff that was just "I'm a kid in the early social media era" with some Carlin-esque twists. Then Inside came along and I realized just what I'd been missing when I started actually paying attention to his older stuff. I'm glad the algorithm brought this video to me unasked for.
The part at 9:50 where he is talking about how dangerous the internet has become because it's in the palm of our hands now, while that woman is ignoring him for her phone is just... pure fucking irony.
His experiences are pretty much like that one episode of Rick and morty: Tiny Rick. How Rick is constantly telling everyone he’s hurting but people won’t take him seriously and just enjoying the art he made.
I remember being 12 years old and seeing his performance of Art is Dead on Comedy Central and just bursting into tears. I felt this insanely deep connection to this piece in particular after growing up watch him in the early aughts of UA-cam. I was a lost weird kid, alone in their room, trying to carry the new weight of the surprise death of my father figure and life felt so infuriatingly fake. I was angry at the world, and it seemed no one had the courage to take a look around and see how life was a long journey of bullshit with the occasional happy moment. It was such a relief in this moment of intense grief to see someone I looked up to be honest and say, hey the world is shit and it consumes the gentle and creative, especially from the guy that I watched telling dick jokes online. It was so raw and getting to see his evolution of just unfiltered honesty and struggle with mental health in the crumblings of morality made me feel not so alone in the worst times in my life.
That favorite joke bit in the script got me good. Nice story writing Mr Rock.
As another great artist once said, "There is no fulfillment in a lazy nation that keeps feeding our infatuation with the idea of being famous."
who said that?
@@mcos6 Eyedea
EYEDEA!!!
Exhausted love right?
@@SadBadge Junk
Was waiting for so long for someone to make an analytical video about Bo Burnham. I'm so happy that you made a video about him thank you
This is an insanely good video about one of the best people to ever create things
Underdeveloped wit was so ridiculously spot on for his early stuff lol. the genius was always there. I'm 26 & still resonate with young Bo
You did him justice. simply put. it takes a brilliant mind to understand another. well done.
“what” cured my depression, idk how to explain it, just watched every day for a week.
this was the first time i saw anything from this man and never saw anything like it.
Aside from SCP breakdowns I usually never watch commentary/explanation videoss but this was so well put together. All eyes on me really spoke to me in some ways. I think i even teared up when first listening to it. This might be tmi/not important or even cringe-I think a year or so ago even-I also happened to be listening to it before having my own type of breakdown. Both from what I was going through and really internalizing the lyrics a second time around
It's not cringe to be open about your feelings. I hope you're doing better now :o)
Hope you're in a better place now bud. The song that really hit me was Don't Wanna Know.
"Am I on in the background? Are you on your phone? I'd ask you watch you're watching but I don't wanna know- Is there anyone out there? Or am I all alone? It wouldn't make a difference still I don't wanna know."
I always listen intently to this song. Bo is never on in the background, for me.
@@Michael_MWwhat song is that
The other recording, from the special outtakes hits harder for me,
@@karlnicholson414 I think that’s cause in the outtakes it shows just how much effort goes into it. In the actual special you can tell the amount of work, but people rarely think or realize just how many takes you do to get the “perfect”one