Variety: I’ll admit it. I used to think pop stars who canceled tours “due to exhaustion” were just being divas, or worse-yet, downplaying a major drug or alcohol problem… until I suffered a breakdown on tour that effectively ended my career as a performing musician and sent me into a tailspin of depression, anxiety and alcoholism that lasted a decade.
4 comments:
You know, it's good to see articles like this and the other one about how rough it is to tour. I mean, on one hand it sucks that conditions have to be that bad in the first place. But on the other, it really seems that the industry as a whole is coming more to terms with the fact that the flow of the entertainment industry isn't conducive to a healthy lifestyle. That doesn't mean it can't work in moderation, but the fact that we are even willing to talk about our discomfort is a good sign that the industry as a whole is willing to acknowledge these things and maybe start moving in the direction of some compromises with the whole work and life balance thing, Everyone says the job is so easy until the stress of the "I need it like this and I need it absolutely right now" gets to them.
I think this is a problem that many people just dismiss in the entertainment industry. Musical artist also suffer from burnout both mentally and physicaly but they feel they have this responsibility to always perform for their fans. And often times fans don’t consider the health go the artist when they cancel a show and fans tend to get very upset. I thing that just like any other job you should be able to call in sick or take a personal day. I also think looking at the schedule for tours they should start including rest days and vacation weeks so not only the artist can recover but also anyone else who is working the tour. I’m glad to see music artist start to feel more comfortable with canceling shows for overall health and well-being, I hope to see this continue. Also I found it interesting that this is something that Ryan Dusick struggled with on there very first big tour because I remember my dad telling me that when they came to ATL after there show they came into our bar absolutely exhausted and all they wanted to do was relax.
I am glad that is is being talked about more openly now. I have never wanted to participate in touring or that life. To me it is not life and there doesn’t seem to be any work/life balance, which is one of the most important things to me right now. It is also, you guessed it, extremely unsustainable. I am always concerned when young artists are going on tour. I need to do more research, I know there are laws in place to protect them, but I feel it’s just not enough. We hear time and time again of young stars having mental breakdowns because the demand and the pressure is so high. Being at the top of your game all of the time just seems like a lot. Not just for kids that don’t even have their drivers license but also those middle aged and older. There needs to be some new developments in schedule making for this kind of work, regardless of the costs.
When it comes to touring artists taking breaks for mental health, it seems like a no-brainer. But it’s actually really true that hundreds of people’s work, as well as crowds and crowds of fans’ attention, could be arguably wasted if a concert is canceled. The tour is supporting people’s lives, so how many scalebacks are too many, if at all? It’s so important that mental health is being talked about much more openly now. I feel like Simone Biles withdrawing on account of her mental health was a pretty significant example and roadmark, encouraging others to do the same. I understand what it’s like to be burnt out both as a performer and as an artist, and it can be extremely tough. On top of that, I’ll say this: as a music artist, you’re performing as yourself, as opposed to playing a character on Broadway, for example. Personally, I think that playing an upscaled version of yourself is much more taxing than escaping into a different person.
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