Should an artist be able to say whatever they want?

Just a quick philosophical/societal opinion-based thought process that's been building in my head today, after some of the stuff I've heard today on songs and YT.

Technically, yes. I believe in freedom of speech, free press, artistic right to express oneself, etc. No one should go to jail or be killed because they chose to say something, that's what those terms mean, but people seem to often mix up freedom of speech and freedom of consequence.

Just because you're technically allowed to say anything, doesn't mean you should. First reason people usually think about is that they don't want to offend anyone or hurt another person's feelings.

But there's also the fact that words have power, not only over that individual person or group you're possibly hurting or offending, but other people as well. Everything we consume shapes us into what we are, so everything you produce that you put out there for other people to see shapes them.

And if we take the 100% selfish route, words still have consequenses. Just because you're legally allowed to say something, doesn't mean other people aren't allowed to be upset about it and express it. They have the freedom to express themselves as well, and crying about your "freedom of speech" at that point is 1) misusing the term and 2) futile, because the other person is also entitled to their freedom of speech. If you're being an asshole, they're allowed to call you an asshole.

As a person on the internet and as an artist, your words are what you leave behind on this planet after you're gone. Those words are your legacy. Not your kids, they are human beings shaped by many things, not just one of the parents. Not your boring day job, in about a decade no one will remember what you did anymore. But if you put something on the internet, it will stay there. If you create a piece of art, that'll live on after you. That is how future generations are going to remember you.

Now, can you say more things in art than what you can outside art? Yes, I'd say so. Not in the legal sense in this case (legally, I wouldn't put nearly any restrictions on it), but in how socially acceptable it should be, IMO. Art is, among other things, a tool to express feelings you don't want to act upon or hypothetical people and situations your mind has created. In example metal musicians very often write about committing violence instead of acting upon it. It's an outlet for their anger. There's horrorcore and horror movies, which I see as people being like "wouldn't THIS kind of person/situation be horrible??" And people who get it being like "Yes! Tell me more!"

Art is also sometimes meant to start a conversation. In example with horrorcore, writing about the most horrible person you can think of as if you were that person, likely results in what I just said, other people reacting to the horribleness. Everyone in their right mind IS horrified by horrorcore, but how different people react themselves being horrified about something varies. Some people want it to go away and cancel it, remove it from existance. I'll get to them in a bit. Some people want it to go away and they click away. I don't see a problem with that, if that just means they don't want to see it, but don't mind others seeing it. Art is subjective and this art piece was not for them. Some people are uncomfortable but stay and try to understand. I'm quite often in this category with controversial rap lyrics. I wish I had more time in my hands - I'd sit with every thought-provoking song for days, and then write about them excessively... And then there are people who really get it, who see the artistic value and message right away, despite the controversial take. 

Now, cancelling. We had cancel culture, then we were cool for a while, and now we have Blockouts.

My stance:

1) Everyone should make up their mind individually at what kind of people they calcel/block, and if there are any exceptions and why. No one should be 100% cancelled/blocked because people unanimously decided so. Don't be a sheep. Think for yourself.

2) If everyone does this and follows through, people who are no longer socially acceptable as a whole will be naturally deplatformed over time. And yes, it might take decades and that person might retire before that, but I think that's a more natural progress as a society. Lets say person A divides people - some say they're fine, others ban them. More and more people ban them over the decades, but they're able to live happily ever after with the support of the remaining people they got. After their career, people's opinion shifts to, lets say, 90% being against a thing person A did. Person B is in the 10% and tries to start a career. But only the 10% support them, while 90% ban them. More years go by and the number of people who banned B grows and grows. Until, finally, they are forced to end their career, because no one supports it. So, A survived, but B didn't. 

If A would have been banned by a loud group of 5% in today's world, the people who think A is ok would become louder as well, and this would 1) create division between people 2) hinder A and people like A being banned as a whole.

But I think the loud groups of 1) Take No Shit From Artists, Lets Ban Them All! and 2) Freedom Of Speech And Artistic Expression Means They Should Be Able To Say Anything And Have No Consequences! are gonna continue to be loud and obnoxious and to some extent, keep the conversation going... People like me would just ban artists with a burning hateful passion alone in my bubble and not talk about it to anyone because saying mean things is rude 😂

I'm getting over that, though, I'm speaking my mind up more freely year by year. Like this blog post I'm typing right now. I have about 5-7 posts in my Drafts I started writing about topics like this, just free thought flow, but that I never published, because I was afraid to express my opinion online for some reason. I think I was afraid of confrontation, but no one even reads my blog, lmao. It's just me, letting thoughts spill out. Leaving my mark and legacy on the internet. A sign that hey, I existed, and these were my thoughts. (Holly Bourne reference - those that get it, get it.)