What is a Sell-Out ? (8.4)

What can we learn about Status from Artists?

Intro
To understand the term ‘selling out’, you have to look at examples.
Green Day are often labelled the biggest sellouts in music history.
But other bands have sold way more records and not labelled sellouts.
What’s the difference between the Beatles and Green Day?

What is selling out ?
Selling Out is basically desiring Status.
But it disgusts us.
It is so repulsive because an individual ‘sells’ the Status they have been allocated.
Green Day had a loyal base of Punk fans in their early days.
These fans entrusted the band to represent them.
They were Allocated Status by the ‘Punk tribe’.
However when they started producing mainstream music and courted the masses many of their fans were insulted.
They had had sold their existing status amongst punk fans for the more lucrative pop market.
They sold their Status for more Status.

Is Selling out offensive to people who initially gave you Status?

Evolution
In the tribal context we gave or loyalty to those we believed would advance the cause of the tribe.
In exchange for this status we expect protection.
If a tribal leader then gains personally from the Status they are allocated it is seen as betrayal.

Alexander the Great
This happened to a degree with Alexander the Great.
He conquered Persia and started to adopt sometimes superior Persian customs.
He was signalling to his loyal troops that he now desired Status from the Persian elite.

Alexander adopted Persian Culture to the horror of some of his men.

Authority
Desiring approval from authority is another way of selling out.
An example is the class pet at school.
This is a child who will sacrifice his fellow students to gain favour with the teacher.
Even children understand this is a betrayal.
This is Status Desire.

Charity.
A close cousin of selling status is Buying Status.
In the modern world Charity is a way for influential people to signal they are virtuous.
There is a difference many of us can sense between genuine care for fellow human being and strategic move for Status.
Bill gates was famously public enemy number one in 1998/99 when Microsoft was under investigation for Monopolistic practices.
That same year with the advice from a large public relations firm he started his Charitable foundation.
This may have been an honest attempt to start doing good.
He and other Philanthropists may be completely genuine in their desire to help.
But is it also a subconscious desire for more Status?
This helps us understand the skepticism felt by many.

Conclusion.
A sellout is someone who values their own Status over the welfare of the group.
Humans evolved to be suspicious of Status seekers as they would have hurt the tribes chances of survival.