Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau for March 14, 1999

Transcript:

TV show host: Jimmy, all your Vietnamese fans are dying to know...when can we expect another album of John Denver classics? Jimmy Thudpucker: Soon, soon. TV show host: Good morning, Ho Chi Minh city! We're back with ex-pat American pop star Jimmy Ray Thudpucker! Jimmy, something I've always wondered about - what does "selling out" mean? Jimmy: Well, basically it means putting commercial considerations ahead of artistic ones... to be honest, it's pretty much a middle-class, white rocker pre-occupation. The hip-hop guys who grew up with nothing are less ambivalent about success. In fact, for most rap artists selling out means buying into the whole idea of selling out. That's not "keeping it real". TV show host: Yes, yes, I understand. In traditional Vietnamese culture, we have a concept similar to "keeping it real". Jimmy: What's it called? TV show host: "Not starving to death". Jimmy: Oh, right - which as produced some great music, by the way.