Who gets to count as a Thinker?

An artist's response to FKA Twigs

By now, you have certainly heard or seen the FKA Twigs Opening Keynote talk at RA Exchange Live with Nadine Noor. In this short clipped exchange, we hear:

Twigs: “Where are the thinkers?”

Noors: “I think…we’re all thinkers, but we’re blocked by so much”

Twigs: “Yeah…but where are the great thinkers now?”

Noors: “What, like…?”

Twigs: “I don’t know. I feel like throughout history there’s always been thinkers. Now we’re like, regurgitators. Am I wrong?”

Noors: “No, you’re not wrong because like, we’re fed algorithms all the time, right?”

The clip that has been going around ends there. Quickly, TikTok videos rumbled in annoyance by how out of touch Twigs sounds, and my goodness, do I resonate it.

When I hear “throughout history there’s always been thinkers. Now we’re like, regurgitators”, I can only assume that they have crafted the perfect archetype of a thinker in their mind to be so blind as to not see the actual abundance of thinkers today. Of course, I don’t know Twigs’ intent with this anecdote, and I don’t really care. I more so want to explore who I deem the Thinkers of today to be, and to give them credit. I want to do this because in supportive response, I have also seen a LOT of TikToks saying that the thinkers are in university, studying, attending lectures, doing research. While of course this is true, I think it still is not a wide enough lens to capture the reality of the array of thinkers we have around us. I can assure you that once you broaden your definition of a scholar, a thinker, a student, then your thinking capabilities will expand, leading you to new questions and thoughts that would not have been possible before, and are vital to your philosophical journey.

This whole conversation reminds me of an exchange I had with my dad in 2017. My dad is a carpenter. When he was a kid, he used to build bikes. Later, he used to be a women’s hairdresser, and everyone loved getting their haircut by my dad. Now, my dad can build houses.

One time, I think I was 12, my mom and I went to his job site where only he and my uncle were working at the time. It was the guest house to the mansion on this enormous plot of land, complete with a tennis court, water fountain, and manicured grass as far as the eye could see. Inside were the bones of this guest house (which, by the way, was a mansion as far as I understood). All single colored wood, stairs and landings and hallways. I couldn’t believe he and my uncle were the ones responsible for this magic. Two immigrants, building a mansion guesthouse from the ground up. If he was capable of this, what more could he create?

In 2017, I asked if he could build me a table specifically for my record player, one that could store the vinyls underneath and display the player on top. I drew it out, and he executed it flawlessly. This thing was a masterpiece, an instant heirloom. I asked him to carve his name on the bottom with the date. He wouldn’t do it, though laughing shyly, which is normal for him. I asked him, “Why not? You are literally an artist”.

“I am not an artist”, he replied.

The thing is, my dad and those with skills alike are artists in my eyes. If my dad is an artist, then what can I, as an artist, learn from him? I can learn and understand precision. I can empathize with ghostly work, creating only to never be acknowledged. My dad is a carpenter, and to me he is an artist.

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So, where are The Thinkers?

First and foremost, I want to acknowledge perhaps the “bottom-of-the-barrel” (from what I understand with Twigs’ logic here), “The Regurgitators”.

We hear and read so much, especially here on Substack, about how tired everyone is of reading the same “think piece” about “girlhood” and “pomegranate symbolism”. With each note shared about this annoyance, another similar think piece is abandoned and hidden in shame. Do I read these works? No, I don’t. Simply because I am just not interested in those topics. Am I annoyed that so many exist? Not in the slightest.

As an artist, I only love to see other artists slowly explore the world around me. I will always be that kind of artist to another. We are all slowly and carefully exploring. Just because these writing pieces have been done over and over, does not mean I respect them less. The thought that one was inspired enough to share their perspective is enough validity to view them as a Thinker, and because of that alone, I’d love to hear from them.

Why do I feel this way? Well, because a lot of the time in these settings, The “Regurgitator” is just a teenage girl grasping the world for the first time (using the case of the “overdone” think-pieces). I think there is nothing more thought-provoking and marvelous than the human experience unraveling through their own nuance and humanity. There is no regurgitation in art and philosophy, because to be a Thinker, you must listen, evaluate, remain curious, and either share or don’t. That’s it! The teenage girl is not a Regurgitator, because her experience, though similar to her cohorts, is still hers, shaped by the web of life before and what will come after.

Like it or not, this is my perspective. There is no Regurgitator. There are only Thinkers. You just don’t care about what they have to share.

Additionally, the Thinkers of course are in traditional academia. They are your perfect archetype of a Thinker, from what I understand as Twigs to be describing. There are college students taking philosophy courses and humanities, understanding what it is to Think in the respectable manner, in the way that comes with a beautiful certificate in the end. Of course, these Thinkers, to most, are the most valid of them all. I, however, personally cannot understand how you can be a Thinker and not acknowledge the profound thoughts that every human being can acquire. Sometimes, perhaps, they cannot articulate those thoughts eloquently or in a way that is digestible. Sometimes they may never speak them at all. But I don’t think- I know- that the greatest Thinkers among us are the ones that can understand that thinking comes from every sector of life, and can smile across a city street, and simply believe that their philosophies are valid, without needing to comprehend them flawlessly.

Why do I think this? Well, because I understand that the Thinkers are also too poor for college. Or the Thinkers got grants to attend university, but could not afford a degree that would not provide a secure future (this was me). The Thinkers have also accepted that college does not suit their needs and their minds. The Thinkers are neurodivergent. The Thinkers work night shifts. The Thinkers don’t speak English. The Thinkers are The Abandoned. The Thinkers love animals and take care of them. The Thinkers take care of elderly. The Thinkers are daycare workers. The Thinkers are scared of deportation. The Thinkers had a child before they were ready. The Thinkers battle addiction. The Thinkers are minority groups. The Thinkers are mothers. The Thinkers are oppressed. The Thinkers are obsessive. The Thinkers are empathetic. The Thinkers are teenage girls. The Thinkers are The Regurgitators.

The list can go on, infinitely.

Unveil to yourself the archetype of what you presume a Thinker to be and to look like, and try to relearn, reshape, redefine. It is here, that you will encounter true thoughtfulness.