In the dance music industry at least, 2018 has been the year of artists speaking up about mental health issues. Avicii‘s tragic and untimely death certainly ignited a real watershed over the issue of how demanding a life in the industry can be on an artist’s mind and body. While many artists have come to the table about their own mental health struggles, none have been quite so consistent and forthcoming as Ekali.
Over his Twitter account, Ekali has now opened up further by sharing his own personal perspective over “industry pressure, consumer hate, the neglect [artists] feel as a public figure trying to express their art,” and “societal stigma.” He then goes onto to talk about his own mental health symptoms — which include a rare mixture of epilepsy, panic/anxiety disorder, and extreme dissociative symptoms — all brought on by him smoking PCP as a young adolescent.
It seems Ekali’s hopes is that his honesty and openness can trigger more artists to come forth about their own struggles, in order to ignite healthy discussions about the sigma surrounding mental health. What’s at stake could be life-changing.
Read Ekali’s extremely revealing and deeply genuine open letter to his fans below.