How Giving Builds Community: A Study of Sonic Youth
Here’s another article by Ruth Blatt who kindly sends me links to the stories she writes for big-name publications. This one appeared in Psychology Today:
“We wanted to do as good as Sonic Youth” – Krist Novoselic, bassist for Nirvana, in 1992 (emphasis mine)
The avant garde noise rock band and Do-It-Yourself pioneer Sonic Youth is better known for getting talked about by famous musicians than for the number of albums it sold. It was a major influence on the guitar feedback-laden sound of grunge-era bands, such as Pavement, Radiohead, and Nirvana. More importantly, perhaps, it was also major professional advocate for these bands.
Sonic Youth was a giving band that sat at the nexus of a large and diverse network of independent musicians. According to Wharton professor Adam Grant, givers such as Sonic Youth benefit in many ways from their generosity. In his new book, Give and Take, Grant distinguishes between givers, takers, and matchers. Givers are generous and provide help without keeping tabs about who owes them what. Takers try to get as much for themselves and as little as possible for others. Matchers work on a tit-for-tat basis.
