The effects of fame and fortune have somewhat different effects on different individuals, thanks to varying environments, circumstances, and personalities. During an interview with Show Studio, the well-known artist Travis Scott recently opened up about his battle with depression and mental illness.
Travis Scott Admits To The Real Secret Struggles Of Being A Celebrity
According to Scott, many people tend to iconize fame and lifestyle similar to his own. However, few of them entirely understand the pressure and frustration placed upon a person like Scott. Imagine a world where you cannot do everyday tasks like grocery shopping or fueling your car without people assaulting you with questions and photographs. Imagine constantly having to strive after your ambitions and goals and meet them to maintain your place as a world-famous artist. While many of us might look at this as not altogether too bad a trail, sometimes, when all the world is watching you, it feels like everyone is waiting to watch you fail. Many of us think fame solves problems, but for others, it can worsen insecurities and fragilities to dangerous extents.
We all tend to idolize rap stars, but this very action makes us forget how human they are. This is a common and incredibly serious distortion of reality since the moment you stop considering someone a human, youβre incapable of treating them like one. Boundaries soon cease to exist, meaning that instances of harassment, persecution, and stalking quickly occur. Travis Scott opened up about how these things were all parts of his ordinary life due to the distortion between people and reality. Additional artists besides Scott have experienced mental issues due to this stress, evidenced by Kanye Westβs hospitalization.
The Toll Fame Has On Mental Health
Mental illness is not a rare thing for celebrities to face, and instances of them have been mentioned in many hip-hop records. Yet somehow, weβre continually astonished to hear that a famous person struggles with such βnormalβ problems, confused when they have mental illnesses, and talk or write about it. Rap and hip-hop arenβt always about cars and money. Some speak about depression, suicide, and mental disorders. In 1994, Notorious B.I.G. released a song called Suicidal Thoughts, which became utterly revolutionary.
Celebrities are human beings even though their lives might look very different than our own. Artists like Travis Scott can suffer from depression and other mental disorders just like everyone else–sometimes even worse since theyβre under the spotlight of the world and forced to perform well. Poetry–especially in the form of music–has such strong cathartic power and can help people who feel alone find comfort and peace from imperfection.
This distorted reality due to our idolatry of celebrities and current artists is restricting their ability to remain human in our eyes. Making this change could help us as a society allow art to once again make this world a better place rather than forcing art makers to uphold some standard of perfection and productivity. Why not leave them alone and simply appreciate their art?
Parthaβs Rx
- Get Help.Β Acknowledge that you are experiencing depression and consider speaking with a medical professional.
- Download a free copy of Calm the Chaos, my free meditation series to help you get back control of your life.
- Consider Supplementation. My Mood Support is specifically designed to create balance and help manage depression.
Click here to learn more about what can be done to improve mental health and depression.
