Lucy Spraggan, a twenty-five-year-old singer and songwriter from the UK released her newest single, ‘Dear You’ yesterday and the song made us seriously question how we treat mental health problems in comparison to our physical problems.
The music video for ‘Dear You’ has been on YouTube one month before the download release of Spraggan’s single yesterday. Lucy wrote the lyrics and also co-directed the music video with Damien Reeves, Reeves previously directed Spraggan’s music video ‘Beer Fear’. The ‘Dear You’ music video stars Thomas Turgoose who is known for his role as Shaun in 2006 film This is England. Turgoose plays the main character in the music video who struggles with his mental health while also discovering that somebody he knows has taken their own life after struggling with their mental health.
The single, as a standalone without the music video accompaniment, is still a tear jerker. Lucy’s delivery of the emotional lyrics in a diary style format makes the song easy to listen to, engage with and understand. The lyrics themselves are deep, meaningful and a verbal masterpiece for things often left unsaid by people who cannot find the words to describe their situation. Lucy communicates with her listener in a way we never thought possible, she manages to not only tug on heartstrings but also left us with valuable questions to ask ourselves – how are we feeling mentally?
Not only is ‘Dear You’ a great song, it is an important stand that Lucy is taking as she relays her negative experiences with mental health in an attempt to make that negative a positive if she can reach out to somebody who maybe feels lost about their mental health.
According to an information pack put together by MentalHealthFoundation.org.uk “In the 2013 UK Wellbeing Survey, nearly 1 in 5 people in the UK aged 16 and older showed symptoms of anxiety or depression. This percentage was higher for females (21.5%) than for males (14.8%)”
“The National Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness (2015) found that, from 2003-2013, 18,220 people with mental health problems took their own life in the UK”
“Suicide is the largest cause of death for men aged 20-49 years in England and Wales. In 2012, more than three-quarters of deaths by suicide were by men.”
Mental health is as important as your physical health.
Fans, politicians, Celebrities and Mental Health Charities around the world have reached out to Lucy on Twitter @LSpraggan with messages of thanks and support for such a beautifully orchestrated video and song which highlights mental health:
https://twitter.com/HANybooboochild/status/753163010710044672
Proud to support @lspraggan moving new single which is centered on her tackling mental health issues. See here: https://t.co/QNTILiPBuC
— Frank Bruno MBE ?? (@frankbrunoboxer) August 12, 2016
Check out moving new song Dear You from @lspraggan, tackling mental health – watch vid here: https://t.co/EVL5imAeqc pic.twitter.com/R1cxcF5fN4
— YoungMinds (@YoungMindsUK) August 12, 2016
We’ve had the pleasure of hearing Lucy perform ‘Dear You’ live on two separate occasions and not once have we managed to choke back the tears. Most recently we watched Lucy perform ‘Dear You’ at Y Not Festival and silence filled the arena as the large audience reflected on their emotional response to such an incredibly powerful song and the reaction at Y Not Festival was incredibly similar to the response given at 2Q Festival when we saw Lucy perform ‘Dear You’ previously. Witnessing people react like this to one woman, a guitar, her voice and a story about mental health and suicide is a clear affirmation of how many people can take something away from ‘Dear You’ and it is a statement as to why people should listen to Lucy’s new single.
CelebMix would like to extend a massive round of applause to Lucy Spraggan for a beautiful song which highlights a mental health struggle that many of our readers, staff and families deal with, often alone for fear of speaking up about their mental health.
If you would like to speak to somebody about your mental health and you don’t feel like you can talk to someone you know, please click here to find a list of global contact details for organisations and charities who can help you, answer your questions or simply just chat to you about how you feel.
Lucy is due to release her next album in early 2017 and we hope to see ‘Dear You’ on the tracklisting.
Take a look at the music video for ‘Dear You’, right here:
What do you think about Lucy Spraggan’s new single ‘Dear You’? Did ‘Dear You’ make you think more about mental health? Let us know by Tweeting us @CelebMix or by writing on our Facebook wall.