Ever heard of the musician, Rodriguez? Well I hadn’t either, but he is bigger than Elvis in South Africa! The movie SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN follows the journey of two musicologist detectives (who even knew those existed ?!) as they look for the lost rock icon known as Rodriguez.
This music documentary plays like an unsolved mystery and
it’s captivating. The film starts with the myth that a talented musician killed
himself in a gruesome suicide. The truth is sought by two detectives who feel
passionately about his life and pursue clues left in Rodriguez’s music. Their
karma collides as the search ensues and their lives are changed for good.
I was shocked that I was so pulled into this story about a
musician I had never heard of and impressed that his music is so beautiful and
moving. I believe the reason this documentary has become so
popular is because it’s a mindful movie with a meaningful story and some deep
spiritual lessons.
We learn a lot, although not all, about the mysterious
Rodriguez as the details of his life unfold.
We learn that he was not only a talented songwriter and singer but that
his calling was to represent those who didn’t have a voice, first with the apartheid movement and then with the poor and working class in Detroit. We learn that he was an amazing father and
taught his daughters culture in an environment where it was not readily
available. We learn that he was a very hard worker, modest, and lived in the
same home for forty years.
Rodriguez was first told that his music wasn’t selling and
that no one wanted it. He was considered
a failure in the United States although he is clearly talented when you listen
to his deep, philosophical lyrics that sound like sung poetry. Yet South Africa was obsessed with Rodriguez
and he never knew it because the news of his massive fame, and also of his
supposed death, never traveled to him in Detroit.
(Spoiler Alert!) I was totally blown away when the
detectives found out that Rodriguez was alive and well in Detroit but no one
knew him as talented musician in his home town and yet was considered a rock god
and legend in another country thousands of miles away. It made me think a lot
about how we can be two people at the same time – an “average Joe” and a
“superstar”. Rodriguez was poor, but he was also rich. He transformed pain into beauty in his songs and exemplified the dual
nature of our reality here as divine beings having a human experience.
The biggest lesson
for me in the film is that how people receive you does not define you. This means that what people think of me is actually none of my business. Rodriguez
literally didn’t know that he was famous and that millions adored him! It keeps
one humble to just show up and do the best you can, as he did with his records. He didn’t know why they weren’t a hit. It seemed that Rodriguez just shared his
voice, his love, his gifts, and wasn’t attached to the outcome. Even when he did learn of his fame and
received more money, he didn’t change.
He remained modest and authentic. You can tell he just loved to sing and
share his music and that was enough for him.
His message and the message in this film touched me deeply
as I sometimes struggle with my own attachments to the outcome with my
business. Rodriguez reminded me to just
do the best I can and show up in the love and joy for it. He reminded me that we may never know the impact of sharing our gifts or the lives we touch. He certainly didn’t know for decades. He
didn’t need the recognition, money, and fame because he knew that wasn’t why he
was here. He just wanted to do the best
he could for the people around him and his music had a huge impact on a tribe
that resonated with it and understood his messages. He is a true example that we can trust that sharing our gifts will have
an impact and even if we don’t see the recognition to continue to give and love
anyway.
Rodriguez seems to
understand a fundamental truth that Mother Teresa first shared with us: “Give
the best you have, and it will never be enough. Give your best anyway. In the
final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never been you and them
anyway.”
Our egos don’t like to hear this because we search for
approval, love, and recognition outside of ourselves. Yet that will never fill us or ever be
enough. Rodriguez got it and he just showed up as an instrument for the divine
to channel through him and shared his gifts whether it was in music,
fatherhood, politics, or demolition work in poor communities. What we do never ends up mattering, but who
we are while we do our work does. Share from a space of love and let the
miracle of who you are move the world in the way it’s meant to. Stay humble,
remember your roots, do the best you can and let go of attachments to the
outcome. Thank you for all the “sugar
man” lessons, Rodriguez and for being what I like to call a “Conscious
Rockstar”!
Entertain, Enlighten, Inspire,
Kate Neligan – CEO/Founder of Synergy TV
Great review Katie. I love how this film preserves the element of mystery all the way through by revealing to the audience just enough to keep us intrigued and at the same time keeps us questioning about the meaning of destiny, purpose, and presence of our lives. Rodriguez never took off his sunglasses except for one scene where he still refused to look at the camera during the interview. He was careful to never reveal to us who he really was, as the eyes are the windows to a person's soul and he made sure to keep his hidden at all times. It makes us wonder if he knew more than we thought he knew about the stories that were circulating about his suicide or that his art was recognized in South Africa. By the end of the film he leaves us with a deep respect for his spiritual knowledge and depth of storytelling that he moved his fans with through the poetic delivery of his songs' rich lyrics.
ReplyDelete