Personally I Think Magic In The NSR World Is Something That Can Be Utilized By Anyone Should They Be

personally i think magic in the NSR world is something that can be utilized by anyone should they be able to learn to use it. it’s a skill that you can grow over time, and in theory, should be a resource anyone can pick up. perhaps magic is learning to connect your inner self or soul with the energy surrounding you to achieve different effects, which takes great mental focus and a lot of practice.

other areas may learn/hone magic differently than vinyl city. but in vinyl city, skill in magic is cultivated through music. perhaps the founder of the city was a very skilled magic-user who specialized in music, and wanted to create a ‘gleaming capital of the arts,’ and so music permeates the culture there and everything is seen through the lens of art; politics, power, education, and so forth.it may seem outlandish to people not from vinyl city, maybe even outright RIDICULOUS. but to the citizens, this makes sense. where other cities may export goods and natural resources, this one exports entertainment.

which would mean that because access to music is very limited to the elite artists, they’re able to grow their power in ways that others can’t. this would explain why the artists can seem to manipulate reality as they please, but mayday and zuke can’t. this would also give tatiana more incentive to shut down indie music projects, because if music = power, citizens gaining power en masse would leave her easily overthrown.