Help Musicians, Britain's largest independent Music charity and provider of health and welfare support, has announced a new campaign for the music industry called MUSIC MINDS MATTER. This offers wide support of the world's first dedicated 24/7 mental health service for people working in the music industry.
Help Musicians has been serving the music industry for almost 100 years and has identified a ‘mental health crisis’ in the music industry, which has led the charity to initiate a unique Mental Health Fund with an investment starting at £100,000.
The announcement of the campaign sees Help Musicians call for ‘arm in arm’ support from the industry and philanthropists to match its investment pound for pound, as a response to the recent, tragic, death of Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington.
Launching late 2017, the campaign MUSIC MINDS MATTER will fund the incredible 24/7 mental health helpline and service that will combine listening, advice and signposting with clinical, medical, therapeutic and welfare support for those who need it. The charity remains committed to campaigning, educating, and encouraging conversations about mental and emotional well being.
The funding will allow the mental health service to be sustainable beyond 2018 and the charity can then continue to proactively raise money for the new fund, with ambitions to roll out with global partners in the US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
Matthew Leone, bassist with Madina Lake who toured with Linkin Park in 2007, says: "I spent many hours working alongside Chester and he was an incredibly passionate man. I'm sure that this investment and the Music Minds Matter campaign would have met with his approval. Likewise, having spoken to Linkin Park's management, I know that they are anxious to follow this campaign through to a successful conclusion. This unique service will revolutionise the way musicians and the music industry think about mental health. It's been a long time in coming and I strongly urge the music community to support this brand new fund. I am also delighted to be joining Help Musicians as their International Development Executive at this time - it is a cause I feel incredibly strongly about and more so after the tragic death of Chester Bennington."
Help Musicians has been working hard to tackle stigma start conversations and ultimately, find solutions to mental health since May 2016 when it launched ‘Can Music Make You Sick’, as part of the Music And Depression campaign. Help Musicians commissioned the University of Westminster and MusicTank to undertake the research.
Richard Robinson, CEO Help Musicians UK added: “For generations and generations, the music industry has lost some of its brightest talent and future stars due to the scourge of mental health and related issues. The situation is now urgent and we can no longer allow this to continue. We have decided to make this landmark investment as a precursor to a dedicated service – but we cannot undertake this work in isolation. We need the music industry to step up, arm in arm with Help Musicians, and match our support pound for pound, so we are proud to launch the MUSIC MINDS MATTER campaign. The forthcoming specialist 24/7 mental health service will be a global first and go hand in hand with Help Musicians’ traditional health and welfare support, which offers advice and often financial support to people in the industry across a wide range of issues.”
You can donate to MUSIC MINDS MATTERhere
