Every band’s worst enemy

Illustration by Sonam Kaloti

By Sonam Kaloti, Arts Editor

Toy soldier jumping around
singing, bored
to a pop-punk song (instead of hardcore)
from the early 2000s. Could’ve put on a show
that would’ve moved mountains
but instead he stays surly, stuck
spinning like a tapping top
singing pop-punk, pop-rock.
It doesn’t show any vocal ability. He’s tired
of showing humility and decides to become
every band’s worst enemy. “Diva,” “big ego,”
“self-absorbed entity,”
they say: smiles for the cameras but lacks all empathy.
Stiff in his box at the end
of each day.