Eddie Vedder emotionally discussed how to deal with distress and mental health issues at a show last week in Amsterdam, and why people should reach out for help, especially based on his own experiences.
“I asked Glen [Hansard] if I could even do, sing his song, and I’ve, uh…I just….(hands over face) God, I…I just want people to know if you ever, it’s…(struggling to get the words out), I’ve been through it so I know there are times when it feels like there’s, there’s no one around and I know that seems…crazy, because, uh, I’ve been very fortunate and even when I was young, I, I…that was the roughest…time. I don’t know if I had anyone when I was an adolescent, for a while there. Um, I probably did, though. I just didn’t know it, and I didn’t reach out and then as I got older maybe there was a couple of times I didn’t reach out, uh, because I felt like that would be a sign of weakness or, um (trails off)…you know I…but, but it actually empowers other people.
They, they, like to help. It gives them, um, they’ll drop everything, you know there’s, there’s people out there and sometimes there may be strangers on the other end of a phone line that, that dedicate their lives to helping people in distress. I, I’m not saying anything about anybody in particular, please allow me to talk about it without……making it seem obvious, but it just, uh, it’s just..I can’t stop..(voice shakes) thinking..(trails off). Uh, so, this..and, and, music can can do it, too. You know, people have said “your music helped”.
We’ve been lucky, you know, a lot of people…I, I think Bon Jovi had people say “your music really helped me get through this”, (audience laughs) so it’s nothing…(audience laughs and applauds)…but it’s really, it’s the, it’s getting through that moment. It’s the strength of that person, maybe you’re just adding or somehow, uh, allowing them….I don’t know what, what it is, but um, but it’s that moment that uh you want to do whatever you can to get out of it (voice quiet) and reach out or put on that damn song and this is one of them for me. (Glen starts playing Song of Good Hope).”
