Joyner Lucas

With songs like “I’m Not Racist” and “Ross Capicchioni,” Joyner Lucas is no stranger to touching on sensitive and often controversial topics. Lucas recently opened up about his struggles with ADHD on his album titled: “ADHD.” In the album, Lucas raps about his struggle with constantly taking and depending on his ADHD medication, and the challenges that this raises for him in his everyday life. Although it can be heavy to listen to, the stories Joyner tells through his album allow him to share the difficult parts of his life in a way that allows others to understand his struggles. I see Lucas’ decision to put his own story out there as inspiring— being honest about lived mental health problems is no small thing. While honest stories like Lucas’ are vital to reducing stigma against people with mental health disorders, I find myself running into challenges in just admitting to myself that I have problems. In that sense, Lucas' public honesty about his feelings sets an important example for others who aren’t as vocal about their experiences.

*Trigger warning: this next paragraph mentions depression and suicide*

Lucas has also gone further than his own struggles with ADHD by producing “I’m Sorry,” a song that is meant to raise awareness for people struggling with depression and suicidal urges. In this song (and music video), Lucas tells a humanizing story of someone who struggles with thoughts of suicide from both that own person’s perspective, and that of a loved one. In an interview, Lucas mentions that this song “is meant for someone to look at his or herself and make a decision: Is this what you wanna do?” Since the song (and video) is deeply emotional and deals frankly with suicide and depression, it could be triggering for anyone who isn’t in a good space to see such a video.

Nevertheless, Lucas’ advocacy through his rap career has joined in the ranks of other artists who detail their struggles with mental health, including NF, and Logic in his famous song “1-800-273-8255.” Although songs that honestly and openly talk about personal mental health struggles are often darker and less fitting for a party setting, they play an important role in telling stories of lived mental health experiences to others who are struggling . Hopefully as time goes on, more people will follow in the footsteps of Lucas and tell their own stories about their struggles with mental health as well.

Interview link: https://www.thefader.com/2016/08/12/joyner-lucas-im-sorry-video