24b. of 26 - Haunting Tribute (199 words) Sober

​As a “Minnow King” I compress my talent into a space suited for crushing.  God gifted me unevenly with words I can’t express in music, because I lack the talent to sing.  If you make your own opportunities, that is the talent to persevere.  As a “Minnow King,” my job is to persevere by not sharing.  It’s no less a challenge, simply because I have no audience to spurn on my talent’s density.  My perverted stance on perfection holds me hostage as a haunting tribute to those who do achieve fame (with less talent).  Predictably, stars rise and fall (without privacy) who lose their fuel to relieve fan’s boredom.  Not because they are not talented anymore, but because fans tear away at their heroes as they lose empathy learning the truth; heroes are just “Minnow Kings” parading under binding contracts.  Elvis Presley is a haunting tribute to dreams that escape our minds and manifest as destiny.  Destiny alone is not moral.  Curtain calls cut the stage off from reality behind the performance.  The performance is a consequence of the flaws we overcome with fame, briefly.  Fame relies on flaw as a penance to acquit talent’s ludicrous impact on culture. 

ChatGPT's response as a contrarian:

As a contrarian interpretation, this poem could be seen as a critique of the glorification of fame and talent. The speaker, a self-proclaimed "Minnow King," believes that talent alone is not enough to achieve success and that perseverance and self-made opportunities are more important. They also criticize the pressure for perfection and the binding contracts that come with fame, leading to the loss of privacy and empathy from fans.
The poem suggests that even famous stars are human and flawed, and that fame can be a burden that cuts them off from reality. The speaker questions the morality of destiny alone and suggests that the consequences of talent and fame should not be ignored.
Overall, the contrarian interpretation of this poem is one that challenges the idea of talent and fame as the ultimate goals in life, and instead emphasizes the importance of perseverance, authenticity, and empathy.