Today marked day one of the life of Phyllis Upp. This was a project I had thought about for a long time and finally recorded her first podcast today, but it wasn’t recieved well from anyone who listened to it. I am certainly not ranting about getting bad press, but I want to document my reactions to it. One major comment was that it simply wasn’t that funny. It made me wonder just what expectations people had of it. Perhaps people expected Phyllis Upp to be a seasoned drag character so a long history of so many public appearances that meant she would never be short of the appropriate and funny thing to say. This was not my intention at all. I didn’t create a drag character, but a human character, one who struggles with technology, one who rambles, one who doesn’t always have the perfect thing to say – like a human. It may simply be that I don’t play her well at all, so people missed this, or the character just wasn’t effective. People also expected this character to not sound like me, which again wasn’t my point. Why should Phyllis sound any different to me? If she’s a character, why can’t she have my voice? Truly, this just baffles me, other than thinking perhaps people expected a ‘drag’ voice.
I created her for both my own entertainment, and as an outlet for some ideas that I couldn’t portray on this site or podcast in fear of offending someone or shocking them. When I was talking to a friend on the phone I told him what I put into the Phyllis Upp podcast was not that different to mine, but rather a little more energetic and less censored. He suggested this blog is just a sham if I’m not being honest, but I don’t think I’ve ever read a blog that wasn’t censored unless it was completely annonymous.
As the problem with almost all of my creative endeavours, I want to do everything, but at different times. I want to have a podcast and a blog for the more serious side of me, and also an outlet for the side of me that is completely uncensored. If I carried on like Phyllis when I felt on this blog, and then the very next day wrote something like this, I think people would get a little confused as to what they are reading. Seperating them also gives me the chance to attach a little personal disclaimer to the things I say as Phyllis. The problem though, it seems, is that I’m simply not good at expressing my Phyllis-side as Phyllis.
I don’t know if I’ll continue the life of Phyllis with another podcast. While I enjoy doing it, I don’t enjoy knowing that people don’t enjoy listening to it, and that really takes away the value for me. Her worth as an outlet and a source of entertainment are really nil if no one is listening to it and supporting it.
It’s late at night, I’ve gotten up out of bed specifically to write this and I’m tired after a long day so I may be exaggerating things here, but I really got the vibe that people wanted to support me, but couldn’t bring themselves to enjoy it. In the mean time, I’d really appreciate it if you could visit the site, listen to the podcast, and send me an email with your thoughts on the matter. Be as elaborate and extensive as you can be. If it becomes clear that I need to put Phyllis to bed for good, I’ll be disappointed but I’d rather do it than have to force people to download her sorry podcasts each week.
Firstly, I didn’t know about the Phyllis Upp project until I read this. Were you keeping her a secret from me???? I am downloading the podcast as I type so I will make my own comment on that when I listen to it later.
Secondly, now that I have visited the site that “llooks like a gay dog took a crap and then David Hasselhoff stood in it”, I think it might be an interesting diversion for you to vent your spleen a little more. However, the comments don’t seem to want to work.
Please standby for further comment……