In a relatively popular video that circulated in 2016, an individual recorded himself behaving in an obnoxious manner with a fast food drive-thru employee. For those who are unfamiliar with the clip, the following dialogue unfolded:
Content creator: Yyyrrrooooooo!!! Hello!? Hello!?!? Hello!?!?!??
Fast food employee: Why are you screaming?
Content creator: Because I’m saying hello.
Fast food employee: Okay, but you come to the window like, “Yyyrrrooooooo.”
Content creator: Well, then –
Fast food employee: That’s disrespectful.
Content creator: That ain’t disrespectful, ‘cause I ain’t even curse.
Fast food employee: Anyway, may I help you?
Content creator: Ain’t no “anyway,” nigga!
Fast food employee: [unintelligible conversation with another individual]
Content creator: Yo! For one, you gonna have to see me when I come to the window, so you better have the same energy!
Fast food employee: Yeah, whateva!
Content creator: Suck my dick!
According to one source, “Keep that same energy or KTSE essentially means that you would like for another individual to continue to act (in terms of attitude, in relation to actions) the way they were acting during a previous encounter.”
Thus, the content creator invited the fast food worker to continue forward with her mood and behavior in a congruous manner, as to how it was when initially speaking with him, by the time he arrived at the fast food window for payment. (I wouldn’t eat whatever was served that day.)
The process of semantic change (alteration in the meaning of words) has impacted how “energy” is used in common parlance. This is similar to how the word “feeling” (relating to an emotion or bodily sensation) is colloquially used to describe thoughts, beliefs, hunches, or suspicions.
When viewing the matter of one’s “same energy” through the lens of rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT), I consider how the term “attitude” (used in the description of KTSE) is described. Before I address this matter, it may be useful to know about the ABC model.
REBT theory maintains that when an unexpected Activating event occurs and a person uses an irrational Belief about the situation, it’s one’s unhelpful assumptions and not the undesirable circumstance that causes unpleasant emotional, bodily sensation, and behavioral Consequences.
Rather than remaining self-disturbed, an individual is invited to try Disputation which may lead to an Effective new belief that is used in place of an unproductive self-narrative. With the ABC model, a person learns to stop needless suffering which is caused by unhelpful assumptions.
In one REBT source, an attitude is described as a “philosophy of life” (page 71). Regarding this description, I stated in a blogpost entitled Unrealistic Philosophies:
The personal philosophy an individual maintains about life doesn’t always comport with logic and reason (rationality). Some people may even argue that it’s the default nature of fallible human beings to use irrationally unrealistic philosophies rather than rationally realistic attitudes.
Given this perspective, if a person uses a self-disturbed attitude or philosophy, the common parlance term for this is “energy” – under only the specific criterion addressed herein. Can a person change one’s own energy in this regard? According to a separate REBT source (page 24):
Specific philosophic change means that individuals change their absolutistic demands (“must’s,” “should’s” about given situations to rational relative preferences. General philosophic change involves people adopting a non-devout attitude toward life events in general.
In the case of the content creator, he could’ve used a specific philosophical or attitudinal change by taking personal responsibility and accountability (collectively “ownership”) for his own reaction to the response by the fast food employee.
This involves disputing unhelpful philosophies of a personal nature. As an example, he could’ve asked himself, “Although I don’t like how I’m being spoken to, and given that I don’t believe I was being disrespectful, might I be wrong about how my behavior is being perceived?”
Similarly, he could’ve opted for a general philosophic or attitude change by using the helpful REBT tool known as unconditional acceptance. For instance, he could’ve said to himself, “People don’t have to behave how I desire, as I, too, have behaved in undesirable ways.”
Unfortunately, the relatively popular video clip isn’t a demonstration of healthy tolerance and acceptance. Unsurprisingly to me, many rap songs have since used the “same energy” phrase to promote self-disturbing attitudes of life.
There’s no shortage of musical content to illustrate a lack of personal ownership. As an example, in Runt Dawg’s song “Same Energy,” the rapper states, “Ayy, man. When you see me in the street, keep the same energy. I always got the same energy. Every time, nigga.”
One could interpret Run Dawg’s invitation as provocation to engage in conflict. Who benefits from two people with self-disturbed emotions and behavior going at one another at a fast food drive-thru window or in the streets?
In a separate song entitled “Say A’,” rapper A Boogie Wit da Hoodie states, “Hold up, talking shit don’t ever get to me. When they see me now, they’d better have that same energy. In abandoned houses, in and out, it wasn’t shit to me. When you see me now, don’t try to act like you remember me.”
When the content creator stated, “For one, you gonna have to see me when I come to the window, so you better have the same energy,” and when A Boogie Wit da Hoodie says, “When they see me now, they’d better have that same energy,” these are expressions of demandingness.
Saying that someone will have to or better have that same energy is akin to rigidly demanding that an individual should, must, or ought to maintain the same attitude as was previously exhibited. This is an altogether unhelpful, and arguably irrational, approach to life.
Shifting from a focus on hip hop and into the sociopolitical realm, I now consider the 2024 United States (U.S.) presidential election results. Since Donald Trump became the president-elect, electorally beating Kamala Harris, I’ve observed unproductive attitudes regarding the results.
Before I proceed any further, I think it would be helpful to offer context in the interest of personal disclosure. In a blog entry entitled Let It Begin, I stated:
I said in a blogpost entitled Information Overload:
Uncertain about the likely shenanigans which occurred before my very eyes, I wondered how it could be that results were possibly altered as drastically while I slept during the 2020 election night.
I maintain a healthy degree of skepticism regarding the 2020 U.S. presidential election results. Still, I don’t engage claims of unfalsifiability which maintain that Joe Biden didn’t win the election, given that I can’t accurately identify all manner of shenanigans which were said to have taken place.
With this understanding, one source addresses speculation regarding the Trump-Harris match-up thusly:
CLAIM: President Joe Biden won approximately 20 million more votes in the 2020 election than Vice President Kamala Harris earned in the 2024 race, proving either that Trump has cheated his way to a second term or that there was widespread fraud four years ago.
THE FACTS: The claims are unfounded. Votes from Tuesday’s presidential election are still being counted, so any comparison with previous races would not be accurate. In addition, election officials and agencies monitoring the vote have reported no significant issues with Tuesday’s election. Claims of widespread fraud in 2020 have been debunked countless times.
I remain skeptical of the source’s assertion. First, it’s reported by a member of the media—an entity that has earned its much-deserved distrust by U.S. citizens for unbalanced bias in one partisan direction over another.
Second, the author of the source uses proper titles when referring to Biden and Harris, though neglects to do the same for Trump. Again, this infers an imbalance of partiality.
Third, “widespread fraud” regarding the 2020 U.S. presidential election isn’t the same as a stolen election. Although a stolen election suggests widespread fraud, the latter merely indicates that rigging, deception, or other dishonest actions likely occurred and isn’t entirely representative of the former.
Finally, claims of the “unfounded” or “debunked” nature of the 2020 results are for members of the public to determine, not members of an elite media class to decide. However, without available evidence (e.g., examination of now-suppressed video footage), people can’t make a proper determination.
In any case, I’ve witnessed people on the right-wing taunting left-wing individuals about election integrity this time around. Conversely, I’ve observed people on the left-wing openly denying that Harris lost to Trump. Regarding this matter, one source states:
Donald Trump’s 2024 election victory is fueling claims of fraud on both sides of the political divide. His right-wing supporters claim the outcome vindicates their debunked claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him. To a smaller degree, those on the left are circulating their own baseless claims casting doubt on this year’s results.
I support members of the right- and left-wing being able to challenge election results. After all, this is a matter of critical thinking which I advocate when practicing REBT. For example, I question the 2020 election results and in doing so I’m not behaving as an “election denier.”
Contrarily, I’m not advocating that people have that same energy when January 6, 2025 rolls around. The last group of people who protested on January 6, 2021 were – in my humble opinion – subject to all manner of federal fuckery and a number of them remain as political prisoners today.
Therefore, in the interest of rational living instead of provocative taunting, I invite people to have different energy when they pull up to the proverbial drive-thru window of life. This isn’t to be confused with advocacy for abandoning one’s rights under the First Amendment.
Rather, I’m encouraging people to think rather than to self-disturbingly believe in unfavorable philosophies, feel uncomfortable emotions, and behave in an unproductive manner. You don’t have to have that same energy if you want to live rationally.
If you’re looking for a provider who works to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As the world’s foremost hip hop-influenced REBT psychotherapist, I’m pleased to help people with an assortment of issues from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply helping you to feel better, I want to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
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