Listen, Talk, Party :: BeyondBlue fundraiser replaces Dro Carey shows

January 13th 2012

“Some people may think that I am hardly a champion for the cause of mental health issues if I continue to breakdown in public like this. I disagree. If you are alive, you are fighting.”

Dro Carey, in a personal statement explaining the sudden cancellation of his national tour.

Dro’s words speak volumes about the way that we frame depression, anxiety and mental health issues. Despite being one of the most common mental health problems – affecting one in five of us at some point in our lives – depression is still being stubbornly swept under the rug.

It’s not a reality that is easy to accept. We tend to think of ‘depression’ as just a mood, or something with a direct cause: a crappy day at work, a bad breakup, a slew of nights spent in front of the TV with a tub of ice-cream and a very large spoon… What is more difficult is understanding that depression is an illness that can affect any person at any time, no matter what is happening around them.

Dro Carey is only 19. He lays down beats that turn your head inside out, and then get stuck in there, repeating like a pulse that makes you want to dance for hours on end. I’m not nearly street enough to use words like this, but his music is dope. Yeah. I said it.

Because of that, he’s earned himself a hyped up national tour before he’s even out of his teens. But, like many brilliant creative souls, he suffers from a sickness of the mind that is real, persistent and serious. And he’s had the balls to come out and say that, straight up. So let’s say something back. Let’s use this to start up a proper conversation, because these are issues that need to be talked about without any shame or stigma.

There’s no need to turn off the sweet, sweet music. Dro’s promoters, Astral People, have decided turn his Sydney show into a charity event raising money for BeyondBlue. A ‘secret headliner’ will be joining local beat-makers 48/4, Hensen, Option Command, Preacha and FBi’s own grime-master Max Gosford tomorrow night for a fundraiser of, well… dope proportions. 100% of door sales and 50% of bar profits will go directly to BeyondBlue to help those suffering from depression and mental illness.

No-one wants to break down in public, no-one wants to cancel shows, and no-one wants to admit they’re struggling. But that just makes it all the more important to applaud people when they do speak up, so that we can slowly break down this idea that it is wrong to ask for help.

Entry is by donation at the door. Y’all dig deep now – drink up, party down, and most importantly, speak out: mental illness is nothing to be silent about, like Dro has proven.

48/4 – Run by Astral People

 

Hensen – Maddison by Astral People

 

WHAT: Beyond Blue Charity Fundraiser

WHERE: GoodGod Small Club, 55 Liverpool St, Chinatown

WHEN: Saturday 14th January, 8pm – 1am

HOW MUCH: Entry by donation at the door

For more information and factsheets on depression and mental illness, visit BeyondBlue.com.

 

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