After reading Rick Rubin’s book, The Creative Act: A Way Of Being, on Serj Tankian’s recommendation, I decided it was time to close the circle by reading his book as well.

Well, to be more precise, I listened to the version narrated by him personally.

The book begins with the events of September 11, 2001. Just a few days prior, System of a Down had released their album Toxicity. With tracks like Prison Song or Chop Suey! containing lyrics easily interpreted as somewhat critical or hostile toward the US, they ended up facing some issues. The timing for the album release couldn’t have been worse.

However, what really added fuel to the fire was an article written by Serj on the band’s website a few weeks after 9/11. In it, he mentioned that part of the blame for the tragedy lay with the great powers (specifically the US) due to how they had intervened in the Middle East over time.

At that moment, the prevailing sentiment in the US was strictly “you’re either with us or against us.” Serj ended up being called for an interview with Howard Stern and grilled about that article.

As he admits, that interview is a moment he somewhat regrets because he didn’t stand his ground; due to the high tensions in the US, he chose to explain that it wasn’t intended as an attack on the country he is now a part of.

The book then transitions into the history of Serj Tankian’s family. We learn about his Armenian origins, his grandfather, the genocide that took place in Armenia, the way they were moved or driven from their lands, and the suffering and intergenerational trauma born from this tragedy.

Before you get to learn more about System of a Down, there is a large section dedicated to him and the activism that influenced his life and decisions. I think it’s important to understand this part: he doesn’t identify solely with the band; the band was simply his way of manifesting himself and creating something.

Creatively, he discovered multiple paths he chose to follow, from his solo career to other collaborative albums and composing music for films and video games.

But he always had a goal and did everything he could to make it known: the recognition of the Armenian genocide committed by the Ottoman Empire (Turkey).

Here are a few ideas he mentioned that I liked:

• Do not create neutral, boring art. Art must provoke a reaction, stir an emotion, and take a stand.
• Meditation is an important process in his way of being.
• He mentions the same idea I heard from Rick Rubin: art is everywhere around us, but it waits for a receiver through which to materialize. That is why an artist must always keep an open mind for new ideas.
• The lyric “father why have you forsaken me” was chosen when Rick asked him to open a book at random.
• The title of the song “Chop Suey” is a contraction of “chopped suicide”; the original title was supposed to be “Suicide,” but that was a bit too much for a song intended to be a single.
• Art exists for art’s sake; it doesn’t need a stage.

And yes, most likely we won’t get a new System of a Down album. Although they have started touring together again, the creative differences seem to be too great.