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"Lots of stress": Are musicians today sacrificing mental health to write songs?
At the end of the day, all musicians are bound to ask themselves: Is the passion worth the pain?
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Breaking down: Rayhan Noor has experienced how fear and fatigue can deteriorate mental health. (Courtesy of Sun Eater) (Archive/Courtesy of Sun Eater)
At the end of the day, all musicians are bound to ask themselves: is the passion worth the pain?
It has only been a year since the 28-year-old Adi Perkasa made his debut in the Indonesian music industry, but the struggle has been nothing short of flagrant.
The Jakarta-based newcomer, who also maintains his day job as a private-sector employee, released his pop-oriented extended play (EP) titled KULASENTANA back in February 2022 – a record whose production not only tested his creativity and grit, but also his stress level. On top of that, Adi suffers from bipolar affective disorder, a mental illness for which he has sought therapy at least once a month since 2013.
Unfortunately, to his surprise, making music was not as therapeutic as he imagined.
"To be brutally honest, yes, it has been a lot of stress," Adi told the Post on April 6. "Turns out, making music is more than just writing and singing. There's so much more than that! Especially as an indie musician. You cannot do things half-baked because there are external and internal factors that stand in your way."
Adi is not alone in his continuous war against personal demons. The younger, up-and-coming musicians in the modern era grow more vocal in acknowledging their mental woes as they shed light on the grislier side of their vocation.
Bad days and panic attacks
