Scottish Musicians Back FeelsFM

Posted by See Me, 24 September 2018

SCOTTISH musicians have backed FeelsFM and joined thousands of people in creating playlists in the first week of the campaign.

We launched the campaign last week, after surveying 1455 young people aged 12-26 on mental health.

They found that only 26% of young people would tell someone if they were finding it difficult to cope, compared to 67% who would tell someone if they were feeling physically unwell.

To help young people to speak about how they are feeling we launched https://feelsfm.co.uk/. The online emoji powered jukebox, created as part of the Year of Young People, is designed to help young people express their feelings, use music as a positive coping strategy, and find new ways to talk about mental health stigma.

Young people can pick an emoji that represents how they feel, then Feels FM will make a playlist that reflects that feeling.

It has now been backed by a number of Scottish bands and musicians, with support on social media from Fatherson, Prides, Declan Welsh, Kloe, Brownbear and The Twilight Sad, who have provided the soundtrack to the campaign, with their song, Videograms. The Violet Kind and Losing Ground also joined See Me to launch the campaign at the Barrowlands.

Joe Rattray, bass player from Admiral Fallow, who are also backing the campaign, said: “It's vital that young people feel enabled and empowered enough to speak about how they are feeling.

“It can be difficult, because when you open up you are putting yourself in a vulnerable position. We still tend to see vulnerability as a negative or weak place. It absolutely isn't. Speaking about your mental health is a bold step and one that will help you feel better prepared for what life throws at you.

“Luckily for me I have a group of friends around me that I feel comfortable talking to. It isn't easy to do, and you often feel that your problems might seem trivial or unimportant but we all deserve to feel happy and loved.”

Matthew Hickman, from Brownbear, said: “Music is therapy. It is the soundtrack for your life. It is there in the good times and it can get you through the bad ones. Sometimes a song can say what you have been feeling or thinking but have been unable to express yourself. That's the beauty of music. We should use it to accompany our emotions. Feeling down is ok and it is normal.

“Whenever I hear a song that resonates with my feelings, it makes me feel less lonely and like there is understanding out there of what I'm going through.”

Declan Welsh added: “I think that this generation has made great strides in removing some of the stigma around mental health, and it’s something to be commended. It’s compassion becoming the norm.

“It’s important to talk about it because it shares the burden, it shows you that you aren’t alone, or weird, and most of all talking about it is always the first step to taking control and getting the help ye need, whatever that is.”