What’s up, gang? I’m coming at you today with chats about something very near and dear to my heart. I’m talking serious emotional currency. Today’s serving of piping-hot realness is dedicated to It’s Mental — a grassroots, not-for-profit mental health advocacy initiative on which myself, my soul sistah Amelia Curran and the lovelies at Music NL have been scheming, dreaming and teaming for some time. Buckle up, bys!
Lean on Me
Most musicians will tell you that mental health is key in sustaining a creative life. The mental and emotional murkiness that often accompanies “doing” in the world of music is real as hell and advocacy resources have historically been scarce (read: “non-existent”). That’s why we made It’s Mental. We’re working on raising funds (north of 20K — no problem, right?) for getting a designated individual “Master Trained” in the various capacities and abilities that will allow them to help the arts community stay healthy and grounded. It’s about empowering ourselves as stewards of our own wellness, rather than relying solely on third-party assistance that’s often a day late and several dollah bills short.
Crazy Love
We have some amazing friends. It’s Mental wouldn’t exist without the community love that flows through our ongoing partnership with MusicNL. We held a live-cast panel discussion about the mental health issues facing musicians in our province at the 2018 MusicNL Awards in Twillingate — peep the awesomeness.
We’re working together to roll out a checklist of 12 mental health moves that musicians can rock to maintain healthier creative lives — look for it during Mental Health Week in May.
The Dc team is also gonna be hitting the streets of our fair city in the coming weeks to distribute some deadly promo pieces we worked on with our amazing CNA and Quikprint fams (mad props for the sweet print job!) to get the word out about what’s happening with It’s Mental and what it means for people in our city and our province.
#RealTalk — we’re feeling a lot of feels. Proud. Honoured. Humbled. Excited. We’re going to keep building productive partnerships with people who share our vision. We’re going to keep acknowledging that mental health realities exist and that people deserve places to turn.
Wanna work with us on building our community? There’s always room on our Friend Ship. Hit me up at Dc@dcdesignhouse.ca, let’s talk.
Looking forward,
Dc
