Dessa: Can we choose to fall out of love?
Ντέσα: Μπορούμε να αρνηθούμε τον έρωτα;
Dessa is an internationally touring rapper, singer and writer who built a career by defying genre conventions and audience expectations. Full bio
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collective called Doomtree.
κολλεκτίβας που λέγεται Doomtree.
touring rapper and singer.
ως ράπερ και τραγουδίστρια.
this is what our shows look like.
τα σόου μας είναι κάπως έτσι.
There's a lot of sweating.
unintentional body checks onstage.
σπρωξίματα στη σκηνή.
intentional body checks onstage.
αγώνα χόκεϊ και μιας συναυλίας.
an intramural hockey game and a concert.
ως σόλο καλλιτέχνις,
my own music as a solo artist,
more melancholy sounds.
ένα πρόχειρο δείγμα ενός νέου άλμπουμ,
the rough mixes of a new album,
αλλά γιατί είναι πάντα τόσο στενόχωρο;»
but why is it always so sad?"
out with that you know that phrase?"
και ξέρεις αυτή τη φράση;»
έχω γράψει τόσα λυπητερά ερωτικά τραγούδια
I've written so many sad love songs
Χρειάζομαι βοήθεια για το χωρισμό μου».
I need help with my breakup."
and touring those songs for a long time,
και έκανα περιοδεία με αυτά τα τραγούδια,
ήταν η ερωτική μου απόγνωση.
was essentially romantic devastation.
είχαν γραφτεί για τον ίδιο τύπο.
had been written about the same guy.
to sort ourselves out,
να βρούμε μια λύση,
και τα φτιάχναμε για δέκα.
that I couldn't rebound
που δεν μπορούσα να ανακάμψω
to recover from so regularly.
ανέκαμπταν τόσο φυσικά.
καλό σε κανέναν μας,
it wasn't doing either of us any good,
τρόπο να σταματήσω τον έρωτα.
how to put the love down.
εν ονόματι Δρ. Έλεν Φίσερ,
named Dr. Helen Fisher,
been able to map the coordinates of love
να σχεδιάσει τις συντεταγμένες του έρωτα
if I could find my love in my brain,
τον έρωτα στον εγκέφαλό μου,
εργαστήριο μαγνητικής τομογραφίας,
passes and whiskey."
για τα παρασκήνια και ουίσκι».
Center for Magnetic Resonance Research.
Μαγνητικής Τομογραφίας της Μινεσότα.
with a sample size of one, me.
αναπαραστήσουμε με μένα ως δείγμα
of forest green scrubs,
μ' αυτήν την τεχνολογία,
is a big, tubular magnet
ένας μεγάλος, σωληνοειδής μαγνήτης
of deoxygenated iron in your blood.
του αποξυγονωμένου σιδήρου στο αίμα.
what parts of your brain
ανάγκη σε οποιαδήποτε στιγμή.
at any given moment.
are associated with a task,
will always light up the same region,
φωτίζει την ίδια περιοχή,
who just sort of resembled my ex-boyfriend
ενός που μοιάζει τον πρώην μου
high-resolution images of my brain.
εικόνες του εγκεφάλου μου.
inside all of the wrinkles, essentially,
για να δούμε όλες τις ρυτίδες
αποκαλούσε το «χαλάκι του εγκεφάλου».
called the "brain skin rug."
when I looked at images of both men.
του μυαλού μου στη θέα των δύο αντρών.
όλη τη δραστηριότητα
and when I looked at my ex,
και όταν είδα τον πρώην μου,
that we'd be able to find the love alone,
θα μπορούσαμε να απομονώσουμε τον έρωτα,
to step on a scale fully dressed
θα ήταν το βάρος των ρούχων μου.
would be the weight of my clothing.
αφαιρέσαμε το ένα απ' το άλλο,
we subtracted one from the other,
που η Δρ. Φίσερ είχε προβλέψει.
that Dr. Fisher would have predicted.
εγκέφαλός μου.
orange dot, the ventral tegmental area,
στην κοιλιακή καλυπτρική περιοχή,
is the anterior cingulate
ο πρόσθιος προσαγώγιος φλοιός
is the caudates.
είναι ο κερκοφόρος πυρήνας.
the data with her team
τα δεδομένα με την ομάδα της
την Άντρεα και τον Φιλ,
μια εικόνα, μία διαφάνεια.
my feelings for this dude.
γι' αυτόν τον τύπο.
I was going to these outrageous lengths.
που προσπαθούσα τόσο πολύ.
felt like such a vindication,
που το αποδείκνυε ήταν σαν μια δικαίωση,
but now I know exactly where."
αλλά τώρα ξέρω πού ακριβώς».
who had her mark.
που είχε το σημάδι του.
on a course of treatment
μια πορεία θεραπείας
την έλεγαν Πένιτζιν Γκρέισφαιρ,
Penijean Gracefire,
ήταν να εκπαιδεύσουμε τον εγκέφαλό μου.
was training my brain.
that we would train a muscle,
που θα εκπαιδεύαμε έναν μυ,
ευλύγιστος και ανθεκτικός
and resilient enough
to my circumstances.
σωστά στις συνθήκες μου.
στον διάδρομο, θα περιμέναμε
we would anticipate
αυτός ο μυς να χαλαρώσει.
we would ask that that muscle slow.
viable, loving romantic relationship,
βιώσιμη, ερωτική σχέση,
του εγκεφάλου μου πρέπει να συγκρούονται,
of my brain should engage,
viable, emotional, loving relationship,
βιώσιμη, ερωτική σχέση,
μικρότερα κι από μια δεκάρα
just smaller than a dime
ανιχνεύσουν τα εγκεφαλικά μου κύματα
to detect my brainwaves
και του κρανίου μου.
τον εγκέφαλό μου να δουλεύει ζωντανά.
I could see my brain working in real time.
of my brain were hyperactive,
του εγκεφάλου μου ήταν υπερκινητικά,
just those parts of my brain
αυτά τα μέρη του εγκεφάλου μου
with the romantic regulation
να κάνω ή να σκεφτώ οτιδήποτε.
have to do or think anything.
had to hold pretty still
λειτουργούσε σ' αυτό το υγιές μονοπάτι,
in that healthy threshold,
or vibraphone music.
με την ταχύτητα μηχανής γύρου
at roughly the speed of a gyro machine
ουσιαστικά υποσυνείδητα.
essentially unconscious.
πράγματα που είχα μάθει
the other things I had learned
my conscious mind.
my left calf muscle is doing,
της αριστερής μου γάμπας,
να κινείται όταν κουνιέμαι στα δεξιά.
to engage when I wobble to the right.
don't know a lot about, like,
πιθανώς να μην ξέρουν πολλά
ή για την κυματομορφή ενός κουδουνιού,
or the waveform of a ringing bell,
γιατί το σώμα συνέδεσε το ερέθισμα.
because the body paired the stimuli.
της Δρ. Σέριλ Όλμαν,
Olman's fMRI machine,
in the interest of scientific rigor,
της επιστημονικής αυστηρότητας,
didn't know who was who,
δεν ήξεραν ποιος είναι ποιος,
influence the results.
να επηρεάσουν τα αποτελέσματα.
to analyze that second set of data,
το δεύτερο σετ δεδομένων,
άντρα στον εγκέφαλό σου
αποτέλεσμα» κόμμα, ναι, ερωτηματικό.
comma, yes, question mark.
το επιθυμητό αποτέλεσμα.
the desired result.
a moment to introspect,
να κάνει μια ενδοσκόπηση,
που είχα στην αρχή.
that I'd had at the outset.
ενός Καθαρού Μυαλού».
of the Spotless Mind."
και φιλία και έλξη και σεβασμό
and amity and attraction and respect
that you amass after long-term love.
που συσσωρεύετε σε μια μακροχρόνια σχέση.
had risen to the surface,
είχαν έρθει στην επιφάνεια,
και τα λιγότερο γενναιόδωρα
and the less-generous feelings
κατά κάποιον τρόπο,
a small thing in some way,
your wisdom teeth,"
in which I did those two things.
θα έκανα αυτά τα δύο πράγματα.
philosophical privilege
φιλοσοφικό προνόμιο
να εκτυπώσει τρισδιάστατα τον λοβό μου.
it at the merch table at my shows.
στην αγορά στα σόου μου.
από τη Μινεάπολις,
of friends back in Minneapolis,
ντισκομπάλα απ' αυτό-
from the ceiling at my big shows.
στα μεγάλα σόου μου.
to better understand love,
να κατανοήσω καλύτερα τον έρωτα,
Valentine's heart.
καρδιά του Αγίου Βαλεντίνου.
buried somewhere deep within your skull,
θαμμένα κάπου βαθιά μέσα στο κρανίο σου,
and you make each other happy,
και κάνετε ο ένας τον άλλον χαρούμενο,
of neuroscientists
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Dessa - Rapper, singer and writerDessa is an internationally touring rapper, singer and writer who built a career by defying genre conventions and audience expectations.
Why you should listen
As a writer, Dessa has contributed to the New York Times, National Geographic Traveler and literary journals across the United States. As a musician, she's recorded critically acclaimed studio albums, co-composed for a 100-voice choir, collaborated with full orchestras and contributed to The Hamilton Mixtape on the invitation of Lin-Manuel Miranda.
On stage and on the page, Dessa's work is driven by an interest in finding unexpected connections -- between heartache and neuroscience, aerodynamics and grief, or simply between two people who live far away and in disparate circumstances. Her delivery is crafted to balance wit and tenderness, intellectual rigor and a poetic sensibility.
Dessa started out in Minneapolis, Minnesota as a member of the Doomtree hip-hop crew, a tight-knit group known for their explosive live shows, innovative sound and fiercely independent business model. For years, the seven-member crew shared stages, hotel rooms and head colds building an international following one sweaty show at a time. Dessa's work within the collective and as a solo artist earned several entries on the Billboard Top 200 charts (Chime, Parts of Speech and All Hands). Alone or with Doomtree, she's performed at Lollapalooza, Glastonbury, SXSW, velvet-lined theaters in LA and New York, punk venues in Central Europe, black box rooms from Tijuana to Beijing and once while standing on a wooden chair in South Africa. According to the LA Times, Dessa "sounds like no one else" and was called "a national treasure" by NPR's All Songs Considered.
Since her teenage years, however, Dessa wanted to become a published writer. So while recording and touring as a musician, she continued to write poetry, essays and short stories. Under the Doomtree banner, she began printing short books, some barely larger than a matchbook. In 2013, Doomtree Press published Spiral Bound, a collection of poetry and prose. In 2015, Dessa partnered with Rain Taxi on a poetry chapbook titled A Pound of Steam. On the strength of that collection, a New York literary agent telephoned; within a few years, Dutton Books (Penguin Random House) published her first book-length collection of essays, My Own Devices: True Stories from the Road on Music, Science, and Senseless Love, named one of the best books of 2018 by both NPR and Amazon. She also became a frequent radio contributor: on behalf of Minnesota Public Radio, she's interviewed best-selling authors in front of live audiences (most recently talking with Michael Pollan about his exploration into psychedelic drugs). At WNYC's The Greene Space, she served as Artist in Residence, designing a series called HEARTBREAKERS that investigated research on love, sex and determinism with both scientists and musicians.
In recent years, Dessa partnered with the Grammy-winning Minnesota Orchestra to stage six sold-out performances at Minneapolis's Orchestra Hall (all arranged by composer/musician Andy Thompson and conducted by Sarah Hicks). The Minnesota Orchestra and Dessa cut a live record together in March of 2019, Sound the Bells: Recorded Live at Orchestra Hall, slated for release in November of 2019.
Dessa | Speaker | TED.com