Imagination is essential to the existence of creative work.

For full experience we highly recommend going to your music provider and play “Aquemini | Outkast” as you are reading this, promise it’s worth it. Ok back to the topic now!

By creating something/by being creative, we are making something that was not there before, and if it does not exist yet then it is indeed, a product of our imagination.

Think about it for a second; think of your favorite artist, whoever it may be, now think of your favorite album by them? got it? great! that album came from their imagination and creativity. If they could not imagine it, it would not be feasible and we would not be listening to it today, their creativity could not create it without imagination.

Now, what really happens when creative work is no longer driven by imagination and instead runs on certainty or technique? A great question.

At that exact moment barriers are being set unconsciously by the creative, onto themselves. From that point on, the only thing that can come out as a body of work is a rendition of something that existed before, not inspired by it, and not to be mistaken with inspiration at all.

This becomes copying something that was already there, because the mind is no longer capable of imagining something that should exist in the world but does not yet exist. And based on how things are moving, it probably never will if that linear progress keeps evolving the same way.

Repetition also plays a big role here. Once something is done the same way or created the same way for a long time, it becomes almost impossible for things to change. It is like trying to change someone who has been behaving a certain way for twenty years. You would have better luck hitting the lottery twice.

Imagination is risk, and there is no real support in it being successful since it never existed before, so it is a big bet. Psychologically speaking, we tend to move toward the familiar to save ourselves from situations of embarrassment or disappointment, or even from letting ourselves down.

So we choose what we know, whether that is repetition or work that has already been proven to function. Even when it is not what the industry or the world needs right now, it still feels safer. That is probably why many artists release albums that feel disconnected or unnecessary in a way.

Once imagination is treated as a responsibility to the work itself and not as a gamble, we get the Marc Jacobs grunge collection moves, Kanye Sunday Service, Virgil Abloh at LV and Off White.

We get what humanity needed in that moment, because it was waiting for someone to take a leap of faith and understand that imagination can serve humanity on a creative scale.

It can provide material to be studied for years to come and even pave the way for the next version of that thing, eventually advancing the creative industry a few steps at a time.

Think about it. If Dilla was not leaning into those drunk drums, how many producers today would be missing an entire layer of understanding in their production? That is the point. We must imagine, as a responsibility to ourselves, to the work, and to the audience consuming what we create.

Imagination is essential, and once we understand that - we can never turn our backs on it, assuming we take our craft seriously. Ask yourself what does not exist yet, meditate on it, find the solution, and take it out the park. There are really no limits to your imagination, and if you can imagine it, it can happen.