Bo Burnham: The Voice Of a Generation | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Entertainment

Bo Burnham: The Voice Of a Generation

We think we know you...

330
Bo Burnham: The Voice Of a Generation
Twitter

Bo Burnham is not only a genius comedian, but also the voice of our generation. He started his career on YouTube in 2006 but that was just the tip of the iceberg. He released his newest comedy show titled 'Make Happy' on Netflix this June and let me tell you, it is pure gold. He thinks up his bits with such purpose and so much passion and the best part of his comedy is how honest and genuine it is. Bo leaves no rock unturned, he speaks about religion, race, pop culture, daddy issues, and people's reaction to his fame. He delivers these well thought out jokes through his music and his lyrics to are so witty, charismatic, thought provoking, and also a little vulgar. When you put all of these factors together you get the most amazing comedy experience!

Bo delivers most of his jokes and bits through irony. He will go on and on about how we should kill ourselves and I'm sure that he has gotten some serious hate for that, but you have to appreciate the irony of it all. Of course he doesn't want us to kill ourselves, he is just using humor to get the point across. His message from that song is that we won't be able to answer life's hardest questions with something so trivial as a overplayed pop song. If we are feeling sad, depressed, or lonely telling us to be brave and to just roar won't solve anything

He also touches on racism and sexism in his song called 'Straight White Man.' This song is mainly about the "struggles" of being a straight white man, which we all know are slim to none. Bo has a knack for taking something that we all are aware of, rarely talk about, and put it into a catchy song to make us laugh and gain a different perspective from what we all have been told.

In his song 'Lower Your Expectations' he explains what people of this generation refuse to do. He tells the people that we have an obsession with perfection, we all want love, but we only want it as long as it's perfect. We want the perfect girl that's smart but not too smart, sexy but not a slut. We want guys who believe we are equal, but will always pay for everything, super hot but also sensitive. We have this idea of the perfect man or woman in our heads, but as long as we hold onto that image, we will never find love because that level of perfection just isn't attainable. But, if we lower our expectations we will find the love we all so deserve and make our lives a little bit better.

Bo also opens our eyes to things that we may have never thought of, such things like; how valuable our attention is, how we only have ideas bases on other peoples ideas, everyone is a performer, and finally are we happy?

Your attention is a valuable thing

He explains that our attention is something that should be valued, taken seriously, and not wasted on useless bits of entertainment with no substance. We as a society have gotten so used to just watching or listening to things that don't matter, that don't require any thought but something just to pass the time. He is telling us that we deserve more than what are are getting, our attention is too valuable to be wasted.

I only base my ideas on other people's ideas

When we have an idea or an opinion on a particular issue, it's often based off of someone else's idea or opinion. How often do we have an idea that is so organic that no one else has thought of or influenced? That's really hard, especially when you put how in tune this generation is with the internet. We are constantly being subjected to other people's ideas or opinions. I don't really take this as a negative thing because it takes a village right?

Everyone is a performer

Our generation is now in the digital age, we have so many social media outlets to put ourselves out there for the world to see. Doesn't that make us all performers? Each of us are sharing a little piece of us in order to gain a following and that is exactly his point. Our profile on Instagram, all of our tweets, post on Facebook and Tumblr is a forever refreshing performance.

Are you happy?

He asks, "On a scale of one to Zero, are you happy?" There are so many aspects of life that lead to this question. Are you happy with the friends are surround ourselves with? Are you happy with everything you have achieved? Are you happy with the choices that you've made for yourself? Have you reached your happiness? As people are main goal in life is to find whatever makes us happy, we obsess over it. We think that we will find our happiness in pleasing others such as our parents, friends, peers, and our audience but working so hard to please others, often takes away our own happiness.


Bo brings up the point that the kids just like him, that were raised in the 90's were told that we could create, perform, and people would really care about what we had to offer. He admitted that he, along with a lot of millennials, realized that's just not the case, people don't care. He raises the question if we are a generation that is so self-centered all we are about is performing, or are we just living the way we were thought was expected of us?

Bo Burnham isn't just a comedian; he is an artist, musician, and the voice of a generation. His style may come off as crass, or silly but the heart of his show is so honest and is relatable and understood so well by our generation. He is making us laugh, but best of all, he is making us think.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Entertainment

Disney magic for New Year!

The "Happiest Place on Earth" has a lot of characters with some pretty great advice.

3980
Disney magic kingdom castle on new years
StableDiffusion

Disney movies are well known and very popular in today's world. Although many people appreciate the plot and the storyline, not many people appreciate the wisdom these characters possess. Every Disney movie has unique advice that can be applied to everyday life. Here are 11 Disney quotes to help start your New Year off right:

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

40 Gift Ideas for the Indecisive

It's a time of love, family, memory-making, and gift-giving. But also a time of stressing over the perfect gift.

118443
Christmas gifts around a tree
StableDiffusion

It's officially December. There is less than a month of 2024, and I still feel like yesterday was summer. Now comes the merriest time of the year, the Christmas season.

Everyone has been waiting for this time of year since mid-October (which is way too early, in my opinion) or before. It's a time of love, family, memory-making, and gift-giving. A lot of times when I ask friends and family what they want, I get a lot of "I don't know" or "I don't care."

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

Bucket List To Live In The Now

Find excitement in your life and start exploring wherever you are right here, right now.

657
mu bucket list

I was sitting at my cubicle, now that I am an adult, looking at the rain pouring down on the windowsill, bumming on life, wishing for the rain to just stop for a full day.

There are moments where we count down the hours until work is over and how many more days till the weekend, and this many weeks until something exciting. Or something like that? Well, I was bumming because my next day off from work is not until Memorial Day weekend, which is not until the end of May. And since this is my first year out of college being a “real person,” I am totally missing the winter, spring and summer breaks. I am sure all of us have felt this way even if just for a hot minute…

Keep Reading...Show less
Entertainment

11 Ways To Survive Finals As Told By Leslie Knope

Because you know you're going to be stressed out, and Leslie knows exactly how to survive.

481
Everything hurts and I'm dying

So finals are on their way. That's right everybody, finals are about to start.

But hey, don't panic. Start getting your affairs in order and prepare for a week of hell. Here's a few things Leslie Knope wants you to do to make your finals week just a little bit less stressful:

Keep Reading...Show less
Kent State University
Great Value Colleges

If you go to or went to Kent State, then more than likely you have done or will do some of these things.

1. You’ve slipped and fallen on the ice at least once.

The winters at Kent are brutal, and while the heated sidewalks and some great snow boots are always a help, there’s no chance you won’t bust it on the ice at least once in your four plus years at school.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments