Why do you think it’s most?

I notice often that celebrities came from upper middle class or wealthy families.

I think it’s selective attention.

Also, maybe people aren’t inclined to brag about a solid middle class upbringing. People want to believe they succeed against the odds, not by luck of birth.

Being successful has nothing to do with your background. I would even say that you are lucky to be from an upper class family since it will give you more time to concentrate on pursuing your dream.

And who cares if people around you don’t care for the things you want, as long as they don’t force you to give up? You don’t set out to please them. All you need is a strong love for your passion to stand by it when someone opposes to it.

I want to be an artist too, and I’m still finding my way to become one. Most people around me don’t care for art. And that’s fine by me, as long as no one deliberately stands in my way.

But I think the most dangerous trap to fall into is the need to be famous. It drains your passion away and leave you more materialistic and people-pleasing than you should be, and that is against the very principle of being an artist. You have to create because you want to first.

Although I sense that your definition of “artist” seems to be “working in some kind of entertainment industry”. I don’t really consider it to be an artist in the true sense.

Because despite all that nonsense about wealth resulting from hard work, the rich know full well that there are much smarter and better paved toil free roads to fortune. Most of these involve the convenience of profiting substantially from the hard work of others. In other words, let the entertainers work their asses off and pay them a nickel a record. Fame is for suckers. You don’t want to BE the talent. You want to OWN the talent.

I don’t want to burst your bubble, but you live in a society where the arts are given short shrift. I feel very badly for those under the spell of the muses. Those around you have been conditioned to accept and recognize the truth. Your very description “upper class family” says it all. No one is likely to EVER refer to any Kardashian as upper class. They are flukes, equivalent to the bearded lady or 2 headed snake in a carnival show. In general people of multigenerational wealth discipline themselves (and discourage their offspring) from the trap of impoverishment around careers in the arts. Those terms “starving artist” or “starving musician” aren’t cliches, they’re the rule.

I don’t know if that’s statistically true, but most financially successful people want their children to be financially successful so they promote careers that are rewarded financially in a fairly consistent way. The arts are very hit or miss. One person in a thousand (I totally made that number up) might make more than $50k a year in acting. Selling artwork even more difficult, unless they go into more practical disciplines like graphic design. Most people I know who made a lot of money chose their careers very deliberately. A few found their way to big financial success down a winding path that they didn’t know would lead to so much money.

I don’t see the correlation you posit.

My sample population of actors, musicians, and comedians is from about nine hundred interviews on the WTF podcast. The backgrounds of those people run the gamut from single parent impoverished to upper class.

Yes, and what percentage of that population would you estimate rises to levels meriting an interview?

Of course there are people in the arts and entertainment who excel at their craft. But I can introduce you to a coterie of top notch actors, visual artists and orchestra grade musicians that would fill an NBA stadium who work as waiters, tending bars or driving for UBER. Of course these folks are concentrated in the nation’s larger cities, but for the shameful price of $75 bucks or so I can spend the evening doing my books to flawless live renditions of Beethoven piano trios. I hate this fkn autocorrect. How do I go about turning this shit off?

When I see a movie or hear about a famous person that interests me, I usually google them to learn about them. Anybody, old or new. Many of them are from very ordinary backgrounds, for example having a teacher as a parent or insurance salesman or something like that. Many of them are from relatively wealthy backgrounds (google Julia Louis Dreyfus or Carly Simon). I remember, if I’m not mistaken, Valerie Bertinelli too being from a father who was not doing too badly for himself. Those are just a few examples I can think of off the bat.

As for why celebs want do to things like wait on tables or something while they’re waiting for their big break, maybe it’s because they don’t want to continue to ask mommy or daddy for a stipend. Maybe they want to be independent.

I don’t buy your “most” assertion (and I probably have a different idea of “celebrity” and “arts”); but it’s obvious that there are a few fast tracks out of poverty, if you can manage to get on them. Entertainment and sports are two of them. That possibility would be a powerful motivator for many.