“Wonder they haven’t stoned me to death”: why Joni Mitchell was surprised by her own success
Joni Mitchell could have walked away from the music industry multiple times. Not only has she pushed through during several of its most pivotal moments in history, but she has done so with the courage of someone who truly understands art and its power to be a true driving force for change. She could have turned her back on it, marred by the harsh burn of uncertainty, but she kept going, urging others to follow suit.
Perhaps what makes Mitchell so timeless is just that: when eras and movements begin to wane, or historical events call for unification amid times of trouble, the potential for losing sight of what’s important never seems to settle in. Instead, it makes her stronger and more resilient, especially when it seems she’s the only one to even feel that way to begin with.
For instance, at the tail-end of the counterculture movement, when it seemed the blissful haze of new beginnings had transitioned into something far more sobering and even less exciting, Mitchell hit back with Blue. At this time, many corners of the music industry felt at a loss with what to do or how to guide the industry forward, but Mitchell used her perceived weaknesses as her strength, unknowingly birthing the beginnings of the new singer-songwriter explosion.
To Mitchell, however, doing so was never really about strength. In her mind, it was the only way she could continue doing what she loved, even if it meant embracing the risks of losing everything. That said, she knew exactly what loss felt like in her personal life, but she also knew what it meant to find yourself when you’ve reached rock bottom. In a way, this is what makes her music more important now than ever: its ability to shine a light on all of life’s ambiguities, even the ones that feel burdened by the darkness.
At every juncture, Mitchell also knows how to reinvent herself. Countless stars have become endeared to how she simultaneously captures moments in time and still surges forward, like someone always on the precipice of something, even when something feels completely intangible. Between these lines is someone whose artistic intent is driven by her heart and soul, and that’s precisely how music should be.
According to Mitchell, however, all of this comes with the possibility of scrutiny, which is even scarier considering how honest and vulnerable she becomes when working on music. Her sounds and words come from deep within, and putting them out there means letting others in, which always invites negativity. However, part of her ability to shun the paranoia comes from knowing the exact type of artist she wants to be.
“I want to be a pioneer, not a traditionalist,” the musician once said. “It does put you kind of in no man’s land. Sometimes you think, ‘Geez, look what I’ve done with my life. Wonder they haven’t stoned me to death at this point.’ I’m too different in many ways. I’ve made myself too individuated in a time when individualism is massively discouraged.”
Still, instead of listening to the relentless squark of voices that don’t actually hold much meaning, Mitchell continues to thrive, even as a legacy act whose impact has already been and gone. Perhaps that’s exactly the point; instead of revisiting old wounds, Mitchell continues to heal new ones, guiding the industry in subtler, albeit still incomprehensibly profound ways.
