Creativity Quote by Larry Hovis

Tasteful is doing a lot of defensive work here. Larry Hovis frames his creative decision as a moral obligation, not just an aesthetic preference, which tells you he’s anticipating pushback before it arrives. The line is less about taste than about permission: permission to participate in a moment that could easily tip into spectacle, kitsch, or exploitation, and permission to be taken seriously while doing it.

Coming from a working musician, the quote also carries the quiet pressure of being “professional” in a culture that loves to treat entertainers as disposable. “I had to be sure” reads like a backstage whisper from someone who knows how thin the line is between moving an audience and embarrassing yourself in front of them. It’s the language of someone who’s seen projects get steamrolled by hype, producers, or the market, and who’s trying to plant a flag: we’re not doing the cheap version.

The subtext is reputation management, but not in a cynical way. It’s the kind of self-editing that happens when a performance is tied to something bigger than the performer: a tribute, a controversial topic, a cross-genre collaboration, a TV appearance that could freeze you in the public’s mind as a punchline. “Tasteful” becomes a shield against misreading. Hovis isn’t promising innovation; he’s promising restraint, a commitment to not turn emotion into product. In an industry that often rewards the loudest choice, he’s arguing that credibility is built by what you refuse to do.