What Makes An A-lister

Reducing person to an A-lister or Z-lister sounds superficial, yet we live in a world of labels. But this is quite easy, and it all comes down to name recognition. Not to mention it’s far less degrading than any list of top 10 hottest celebrities… Since social media plays an essential role in creating a star, the rules among labelling A-listers, B-listers, etc., have changed.

Ten years ago, reality stars were Z-listers, the bottom of the food chain. Now, we have Kim Kardashian, and she may not be permanent A-lister, but she is close to it. The whole system was made up to sort of rate actors and people from the movie industry. Now, it’s about all celebrities, and that includes politicians and royals as well.

Speaking of permanent A-listers, often mentioned on CDAN, we are talking about people who brought significant changes in the art world. Frank Sinatra, Audrey Hepburn, Elvis Prestley, you really cannot compare them to current A-listers. Why? Because we cannot predict if Angelina Jolie or Taylor Swift will be household names in the upcoming decades.

Being an A-listers is a burden, don’t let the perks fool you. You have to control the image, have stylists on speed dial, smile to your fans no matter how you feel. But more importantly, you live in constant fear of dropping from your position. A-listers have to reinvent yourself, stay away from scandals and pray that past mistakes won’t come to bite them. To top it all, you have to be careful who’s in your inner circle. Even at events, you cannot allow yourself to be photographed with someone some might consider controversial. At the same time, you have to be controversial yourself and keep the media and the public on their toes.

It’s quite disturbing that one decision, one mistake, can end your career. Some celebrities deserve, what we now call, to be cancelled. But there are many cruel examples of people losing their jobs over their sexual orientation, for example. It’s harder to get that A-list approval if you are a woman, person who isn’t white, or celebrity who’s also sex symbol and gay. In a superficial world of showbusiness, staying true to yourself is not an option. Too many people depend on you, the A-lister, the superstar; you make too much money for others. They don’t want to see you fail, but if you do, these people won’t go down with you.

Today, anyone can become famous. And it’s easy to get to that A-list position. But only a few really deserve this place. The people who deserve it are the ones changing the world, making it better, even if it’s just with their art. Somehow, even reality stars are among the chosen ones. Because it’s more about how you use your platform, then what you made. Getting the name recognition, having longevity in your career, knowing when to talk and when to shut up, it’s all part of making an A-lister, a star. Nothing sells like a falling star, but then again, people love to see a successful comeback.