Capital STEEZ was a rapper from New York. He founded the popular hip-hop collective Pro Era with fellow New York rappers CJ Fly and Joey Bada$$. Pro Era is known for rapping about its prophetic visions of an apocalypse in the year 2047. This prophecy was created by Capital STEEZ, who claimed that the number 47 was recurring to him beyond coincidence. While his rapping companions embraced 47 and its message as powerful music material and praised its unique perspective, none of them took it as seriously as STEEZ. STEEZ was unceasingly tearing down common core social beliefs and replacing them with his own bizarre philosophies, such as a belief in energy points in the soul known as chakras, the significance of the number 47, and the belief that he had his "third eye open" and was a prophet. As his beliefs became stranger, STEEZ grew increasingly withdrawn. On December 23, 2012, STEEZ took his beliefs to the extreme and jumped off of a building in Manhattan to his death.
Postmodernism is a complicated artistic movement which strives to capture the true essence of the world we live in. Through skeptical critique, the postmodernist breaks down cultural norms that people tend to accept as absolute truths about the world. After this deconstruction of norms, the postmodernist is left with a blank canvas which gives him free reign to decide what is true. This is an extraordinary amount of responsibility, because the person's entire life hangs in the balance, as the way life is lived is based off of beliefs. It can be personally dangerous not to be on the same page as everybody else in terms of common core beliefs. If the postmodernist finds himself like STEEZ, fabricating a belief system that is alien to the rest of the world, then he may soon become alien to the world as well. It is important to recognize the value of current world beliefs, and to be wary of what beliefs you decide to tear down.
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