By Kayla Boujja – Contributor

If you follow Timothée Chalamet on Instagram, then you’ve already heard of A Complete Unknown. If you don’t, let me catch you up… The film chronicles Bob Dylan’s legendary career, and Timothée stars as Mr. Dylan himself. I’m really happy that Bob Dylan is receiving the recognition he deserves. I believe that Chalamet’s performance and the buzz around the film served as a conduit for Gen Z’s newfound interest in the artist. Let’s talk about it. 

I’ll be honest… “Like a Rolling Stone” was the only song that I was already aware of before I watched A Complete Unknown. I’m sure that many of us can say the same. I won’t sit here and claim to have been interested in Bob Dylan before seeing Chalamet impersonate Dylan in his extremely cool ways… Did I leave my local Cineplex and look through Dylan’s catalogue when I got home? Sure. Did Chalamet sell the image to me? Sure. But does it matter? It’s still great to see how people aged 50 and under are becoming more aware of Bob than ever before… Upon getting into his tunes a little more, I realized that he was kind of a cool guy. 

Chalamet serves as a great vehicle towards a culture that we otherwise may not have been aware of. At least I think so! Musical interests shift depending on what you’re exposed to. If I hadn’t gone to Bishop’s, I wouldn’t be into Zach Bryan. Country nauseated me before I arrived… Now that I’ve been exposed, I’ve integrated the genre into my listening. I never thought I would, but here we are! 

“Don’t Think Twice”, “It’s All Right”, “Blowin’ in the Wind”… Bob Dylan is an extremely talented artist whom I’m glad has been brought back up in conversation. Some have never forgotten… I know that Bob Dylan is a big name for certain people, but I believe that he’s gaining traction from individuals of our demographic in a big way. Did you know that he won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016 for “having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition”…? He’s been covered over 1000 times, too! By the likes of Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Wonder, amongst others, to add. Dylan has influenced many artists along his path and he continues to be recognized as one of the greatest today—rightfully so! Thanks for doing him justice, Chalamet!