How to deal with the "Art Police"

As one of the best-selling jazz artists of all time, Kenny G is a widely known name in and out of the genre. His work is an essential reference of "smooth jazz", a radio-friendly type of jazz that crosses over to popular genres like pop and R&B. As it's unfortunately unavoidable, a sector of the jazz community sees Kenny's formidable commercial success as something negative, criticising him for not staying true to the genre, among other things.

This is what he had to say when asked about it during an interview with The Hang Podcast:

His words ring true and apply to the experience of all musicians, or in a wider sense, to all artists. There's always someone who won't like what you do, and a few more people who won't like that you're successful doing what you do. Part of growing as an artist is to learn from whom to accept criticism, and how to tell the difference between constructive and destructive criticism.

If you're visited by the "jazz police", the "rock" police, the "heels dance police", "digital painting police", whatever it is that you do, make yourself questions like this:

• Is this person qualified —by experience and/or study— to talk about your art in a meaningful way?
• Have they engaged with your art at all before voicing their opinion on it?  
• Are they really criticising a flaw in your craft, or are using it as an excuse to attack you as a person by focusing on your identity, history, social/cultural context, beliefs or values? 
• Is what they're saying a valid observation that, if you address it, will help you improve and get closer to achieve your personal artistic vision?

Assessing all this can be difficult or cumbersome at the beginning, but rest assured that you'll learn with time until it becomes intuitive. What matters is that you remain faithful to yourself, taking what's given to you with the intention to help you grow and flourish, and ignoring what aims to hinder you or change you in order to please others. Just like Kenny G, trust that there's an audience for you out there who will bring the best out of you, without anxiety or policing, and a community who will support you!