Music is known to soothe the soul; expressing the feelings we can’t put into words ourselves.
Mental health can be a tough topic to discuss, but luckily there are songs that sum up how it feels to be trapped inside your own head, making familiar feelings sound poetic.
Here are some of my favourites.
Fake Happy – Paramore
Standout Lyric: “If I smile with my teeth, bet you believe me”
An ode to putting on a façade and masking your internal struggles, this synth-pop track uses an upbeat instrumental to conceal and contrast the bleak reality of the lyrics. All it takes is a smile to make people think everything’s rosy, when in reality we’re all projecting a “fake happy” persona in public to some extent.
Lead singer Hayley Williams, before performing the track on Good Morning America, said: “The title is pretty self-explanatory. I think there’s a lot of time we go out or we do things and we don’t feel the way that we project.”
Black Dog – Arlo Parks
Standout Lyric: “It’s so cruel what your mind can do for no reason”
Written from the perspective of a concerned friend, Black Dog feels like a warm hug from someone you trust. A voice encouraging you to get out of the house, eat regularly and take your medication, Arlo Parks recognises the devastating fear of never getting better despite how hard you try, and brings comforts with her silky vocals.
“I didn’t want it to be a negative song,” said Arlo in an interview for The Evening Standard. “There is a prevalence of mental health problems, but there is also a lot of hope, a lot of ambition, a lot of activism, people taking action to achieve change.”
Secret For The Mad – Dodie
Standout Lyric: “There will be a day when you can say you’re okay and mean it”
Secret For The Mad is an uplifting anthem for those in the thick of it, offering concrete reassurance that others have been in your position before and survived. Dodie promises listeners that “it’ll all make sense again”, offering some much-needed clarity for those in a dark place. Dodie has been open about her struggles with Derealisation Disorder on her YouTube channel, describing it as a dream-like state that is “like being drunk all the time but without the fun tipsy side of it.” She has undergone various treatments and speaks openly about her journey, showing that she understands enough to sincerely give advice to anyone struggling, as she does in this song.
Summer Depression – Girl in Red
Standout lyric: “My worst habit is my own sadness, so I stay up all night wondering why I’m so tired all the time”
Although typically associated with winter, Girl in Red shows that seasonal depression can occur at any time of year- just because the weather is nice, doesn’t mean our problems disappear. For young people, summer usually means a lot of free time, or as Girl in Red puts it: “so much time to question my life.” Seeing everyone going out and having fun doesn’t always inspire you to do the same, and it often feels easier to shut the world out when you’re feeling down.
“As a kid, I’d be so alone during the summer because everyone was just travelling and doing all these things,” the Norwegian artist told NME. “Summer is just a floating existence. You don’t have to be anywhere and no one is waiting for you.”
The Ballad Of Me And My Brain – The 1975
Standout lyric: “Where would I be if I was my brain?”
An amusing story about the search for frontman Matty Healy’s misplaced organ, The Ballad Of Me And My Brain serves as a metaphor for losing your head. The personification of Healy’s brain, that he suspects he may have left in a Sainsburys, portrays how his mind doesn’t often co-operate with him, meaning he has to look after it carefully. Behind the pretentious persona, Matty has admitted to struggling with depression and addiction due to the loneliness of touring, telling DIY: “I loved going out on stage and talking to 12,000 people. I didn’t like going back to my hotel room and sitting on my own.”
Everything I Wanted – Billie Eilish
Standout lyric: “I tried to scream, but my head was underwater”
Everything I wanted was inspired by a nightmare Billie Eilish had in which she took her own life, and was a song her family didn’t want her to write. According to Billboard, she insisted on pursuing it, saying: “this song is the way I can feel these things without doing something to myself.” Reflecting on her dark mental state, she said: “it was me admitting to something that was very serious about my depression.” During the writing process, Billie’s brother Finneas convinced her to give the chorus a tone of affirmation, promoting the message that other people can help save you from yourself.
Billie’s disturbing dream was likely caused by the pressure she’s constantly under, singing: “cause everybody wants something from me now and I don’t wanna let ’em down” about a desire to please people, something everyone relates to whether they’re in the spotlight or not.
I’m Fine – The Night Café
Standout lyric: “Wondering if they hate me or I’m just beating my mind”
In plea to a loved one, a desperate Sean Martin sings: “And I’ll pray to you don’t let this be the end, when I say to you, I’ve lost my head again.” He begs for ties not to be severed during a particularly poignant depressive episode, where his head is cloudy and he’s not sure whether to believe everything his mind is telling him. Sean, lead singer of The Night Café, knows all too well the toll that depression can take, since the band had to reschedule their 2019 tour in part due to his mental health issues.
Breathin – Ariana Grande
Standout lyric: “Feel my blood runnin’, swear the sky’s fallin’”
Based on Ariana Grande’s struggles with anxiety, Breathin is a somewhat sugar-coated depiction of a panic attack, the feeling of not being able to get a full breath, and the procedure of calming yourself down. A pop hit that received considerable radio-play upon its release, the song served its purpose by helping to de-stigmatise a common mental health disorder, especially important considering her young fanbase.
In an interview with Vogue, Ariana said: “I’ve always had anxiety. I’ve never really spoken about it because I thought everyone had it.” Talking about combatting the condition, she told BBC Newsround: “It takes hard work and practice and therapy and self-care and so much love.”
