Get to know Max
Welcome back! I hope you’re doing good :)
Today’s story is about Max, a 22-year old student in Rotterdam. I got to know Max about a year ago. I thought he was interesting because he does not have social media, besides Snapchat, he explains his reasoning in this post. A friend of mine from school, mind you we study Creative business (which has a lot to do with media), has no social media accounts as well. Since then I have created an interest in people who choose not to go online. Maybe I am a little jealous too.
Max is a musician, he collects records and he inspires me with his hard work to realise his dreams. I enjoy talking with him about both the problems and the good in this world, so doing this interview was a blast. Enjoy!
What is your favourite song: At the moment my favourite song is Dealers by Sor, I just like the vibes of the song. My all-time favourite is Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe by Kendrick Lamar, this is the first hip-hop song I got really into. It was also the first record I bought, so it is extra special to me.
What is your favourite book? 21 lessons for the 21st century by Yuval Noah Harari. He wrote Sapiens about the history of the world and Homo Deus about the future. This book is about the present and the challenges we are facing in the 21st century. I like it because it’s basically the world summarized in 300 pages. I like reading physical books, partly because I want to have a very big collection of books, that makes me look smart.
Can you tell me why you don’t have social media? Yes, I think it’s a waste of time. I’ll try to summarize in one sentence, I do not have Instagram etc because, to some extent, I dislike the make-believe world that is Instagram. Maybe it is contradictory that I do have Snapchat, but that’s just to stay connected to my close friends, I do not have to be “perfect” on Snapchat.
What celebrity would you punch in the face if you could? Trump. I don’t think I need to elaborate, do I? He deserves that :)
What is your favourite piece of art? I like Solfège by Yaacov Agam (1928) (Solfège means music theory). I saw it in the Kunsthal in Rotterdam. First I just thought it was cool, but then I looked closer and realised it was portraying rhythm. Every time you look at it, you see something different; “An image has to arise, not exist”. I think it sparked my interest because it is an artwork combined with the thing I love most; music.
Which piece of your own art are you most proud of? I don’t have any specific track I made I am most proud of. Maybe that’s because it is not available to the public yet, I want to make it perfect. However, I did get a scoop, Max put his first track on Soundcloud, so you can give it a listen! You can also check out some of Max’s work on my Instagram.
What is your life motto/quote? I don’t have one I guess. I do love this quote though “A smart person can substantiate his own right, a wise person can admit his own wrong”. I think it is very important that one does not always have to be right, sometimes it is better to admit you’re wrong or to just don’t say anything at all.
Do you consider yourself an artist? Yes, I do. I think art is consciously practising whatever artform you’re into. I put time into my music almost every day and I consciously move forward keeping my dreams in mind.
What stranger do you still remember? I ran into a friend from kindergarten on Kingsday. That was 5 years ago I think, so I was about 16/17. I hadn’t seen this guy since we were 6. But the strange thing was, we recognized each other immediately, so we started talking a little bit. We even sent his mom a picture of us together. That was a cool ‘stranger’ experience.
What do you love about life? I like that you are never done exploring the world. I explore the world by travelling, meeting new people and having engaging conversations. However, Covid makes that a little harder, so I started exploring by reading books and listening to podcasts. My favourite podcast at the time is Wilde Haren by Jiggy Djé.
Can you tell us a little more about the podcast? Yes, as I said, it is by Jiggy Djé. He is the co-owner of TopNotch, a Dutch hip-hop record Label. He has very diverse guest and talks about topics such as climate change and politics; topics I find important. The conversations feel very spontaneous so it’s nice to listen to, highly recommend it!
What would you like to tell your younger self if you could? That’s a difficult question. I think this question points to ‘mistakes’ you made or regrets you have in life, I do not have any regrets, really. When something doesn’t go the way I planned, I reflect on it and learn from the experience. However, my parents used to tell me Always be yourself, that’s something I find important and hopefully get to tell my kids too.
What is something you love about yourself? I love that I am socially strong. I can get along with practically everyone.
Even if the other person has very different beliefs than you do? Yes, I think you can think differently and believe what you want, as long as you let others do the same thing. Some of my oldest friends have different political views than mine, but I am still friends with them. I love discussing our different views, but sometimes it is pointless. If no one is open to different opinions and we’re not changing each other’s perspective, we’re just in a constant loop of “I’m right, you’re wrong”, pointless. I believe agree to disagree is the best option in that scenario.
What basic, everyday thing makes you happy? Seeing my closest friends. I live with a couple of them, so that makes me happy. For me, seeing my friends is kind of like free therapy. Living and being near my closest friends and family means happiness, that’s my happy place.
What habit changed your life? Smoking weed. It changes my perspective, I can see things in a fresh way. I think it is, partially, a source of inspiration for my music. When I started smoking weed, it felt like a whole new world opened up to me.
Describe your perfect day. I would wake up early and work out. Then I would walk through the city with a friend while drinking coffee. In the afternoon I’d smoke some weed and then work on my music, like I said, it is a source of inspiration. I would work on my music alone for a couple of hours, then a friend would join me. In the evening more friends would come over at my place, after a while we would go to a party in the city centre. The party resembles the vibe of WOO HAH, that would be the absolute perfect ending of that day.
Describe yourself in five words. Extravert, curious, open-minded, clumsy… The irony is that Max couldn’t come up with the word most obvious to me; creative. But in the end, he got there! So, I would describe myself as creative (!!!), extravert, curious, open-minded and clumsy.
Do you have some questions for me? Yes! How would you describe yourself? Flo: I hate this question, that’s why I enjoy asking other people that question ;) But, I think I would describe myself as social, friendly, curious/eager to learn, creative and organized-chaotic.
What do you value in life? Flo: security, in every sense of it. I find it very valuable that I am financially stable while we’re in a literal worldwide pandemic. I find connection very important, feeling connected to people, whether they are right next to you or live on the other side of the world. That’s why I love social media I guess.
What piece of advice changed your life? Flo: Never take criticism from people you wouldn’t go to for advice. I can get really worked up over things people say to me, but most of the time these people are not the one’s I would go to for advice. So why bother listening to their opinion?
That wraps up the third entry of the slam book! I enjoyed learning from Max. I aspire to be as tolerant as Max is one day. Tolerant to other people, life and his own mistakes, or as he says: lessons. If everyone would be a little more tolerant, in every way, the world would be a better place. Until the next one,
x Florian
ps: You can check my Instagram, @so.whoartthou, for highlights of this interview.
