Growing up in the 2000s was an interesting time for me. I was passionate about entertainment and wanted to be a part of it in some way, because it looked like fun. I thought that celebrities were the coolest people on the planet, living their best lives. And yet over the years, I watched as celebrities dealt with controversies such as divorce, private photos leaking and addiction of all kinds. Now in 2026, the controversies are more evident because of social media, but I’m still invested in celebrities as much as I was when I was a child. As a literary studies major, I look at entertainment now as a way to make a positive impact on people’s lives. This makes me look at celebrities differently than I had before. Rather than just thinking of them as cool, I also see them as people who are themselves trying to find their own ways in the world and making careers out of their own passions despite the troubles they deal with along the way.
Don’t get me wrong, though. I’ve been star-struck too.
As a child, one of my favorite shows was American Idol. In fact, a lot of my favorite singers came out of the show, including Christian singer Colton Dixon. A few years back, I ended up going to his outdoor concert at a local church in my town. Although I knew he was a believer, this night gave me a new respect for him. When children began to innocently chant his name, Dixon made sure to turn the focus back onto the Lord and not make things about himself. It’s no wonder that after the concert, I became annoyed when fans tried to go to his tent as he was probably decompressing. This begs a question we should all ask ourselves. Are we too invested in celebrities?
Oftentimes, we might idolize celebrities, thinking that we know everything about them based on the projects they’ve done. We don’t see them as gods, but we tell them we love them if they post any modeling-type photo online, or we ask for autographs if we meet them in person. We think they are our friends when we don’t know them personally. I know that I don’t want to look up to celebrities based on how they look on the outside. I want to look up to them based on their wisdom, philosophy and character. There are certain celebrities I might really enjoy because of the type of work they do and how they live their lives, especially when it comes to how they view morality. Then there are other celebrities I might like because I respect their work ethic, but I’m sure they don’t agree with me politically or in a religious sense. Regardless, if I were to meet any sort of celebrity or interact with them on social media, I might be excited by it, depending on the situation, because it would be surreal. At the same time, as they are people like us, they are going to say or do things we don’t like. But just because they’re different doesn’t mean they’re not people. This is evident when you meet them in person for the first time.
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After Dixon’s concert, I went to a tent where people were selling some of his merchandise, thinking I would just get something and go home. When I noticed that the line wasn’t moving forward, I asked someone if Dixon was coming out. This person told me that he would be taking pictures with fans and signing autographs. Of course, at that point, I wanted to stay because I was intrigued. I ended up with one of Dixon’s merch items, a picture with him and a big smile because I did have that moment of, “Wow! I watched you on American Idol. This is really cool.” Yet despite that surreal moment, it was also a moment where I grew to have more respect for a celebrity because of the way he lived his life.
So are we too invested in celebrities? If so, why should we care? I think it comes down to being careful who you listen to on a daily basis. As someone who believes in God, I want to be careful of what my mind consumes and how I interact with people. There’s nothing wrong with being a fan, but we don’t know what goes on behind closed doors. Who knows? An encouraging word might go a long way.
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