Singer John Newman has revealed how the strains of success played a toll on his mental well being and made him take a five year sabbatical from the career he is ‘addicted’ to
John Newman has candidly admitted the pressures of fame got to him five years ago and made him take a break from his career. The DJ and musician, now 35, had a meteoric rise with huge hits such as Love Me Again in 2013, but he confessed being thrust into the limelight took its toll on him.
Speaking exclusively to the Mirror ahead of mental health awareness week, John said: “In 2021 I’d taken a break in music because I’d been going for 10 years and had number ones and mad success. But also felt the turbulence that can come in a career and had health issues throughout that stole bits from me maybe, I don’t know if that’s right word.
“And Yeah, I just needed… I think I got ‘famous’ like really young and it was odd odd on my brain to take that on and I didn’t really know myself as an adult, or like John. It was really odd because my name is my passport name.”
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He explained that he felt the best antidote was to step away from the rigmarole that came with being such a well-known figure. The singer-songwriter, admitted that it was the best thing that he could have done as he went back in search of himself and to be there for his family. After undergoing two operations to remove a benign brain tumour in 2012 and 2016, John revealed he had also suffered with his mental well-being over the years.
And the dad-of-one says the industry can often have an “exhausting” effect on his brain due to his addiction to his craft. “I work constantly,” he said. “I’m addicted to my art. I can’t sleep at night. I sleep, four, five, six hours then I’m up in the morning ready to go with new ideas.
“So, that’s really exhausting in my brain and when you want, sometimes you feel like a mad scientist that nobody knows what he does, and I think that’s really hard as somebody that’s also quite emotional.”
But he admits he has taken the time to explore his “mental instability” and understands the journey he has been on. And while he doesn’t have a definitive answer, he has an important message: “I think it’s important that we educate kids to feel emotions,” he said.
“The way that I deal with it is being aware and actually be really open…I think it helps to be able to talk. I think people listen a lot more [now compared to previous eras] and it’s good that we have things like mental health week, we have mental awareness, we’ve got people going into schools and doing talks I think it’s really important and yeah, I’m glad it exists.”
Now he happily says he is in a good space and is back to doing what he loves – creating. Whether it is music, or even fashion, he is set on leaving a legacy for his daughter to be proud of. Speaking of his latest song, Merry Go, John admits it has been “a long time coming”.
Revealing the thought process behind the new hit and the video that goes with it, he said: “The idea was to explore new things to just see where it got to and I think now where it’s got to is what I see. Like numbers, stats and other people aside, what I see as the peak of me.
“The most rounded version of me being comfortable and just being able to pull on sounds wherever I like. Pull on characters of eras enough or whatever it is, just to be comfortable with myself and I think the second that I found that Merry Go came and it’s a mixture of what you might have heard me doing with Rudimental, it’s got elements of Love Me Again in there and simple choruses like my early work, but inevitably it’s me producing a dance song as well.
“For me, it was the most commercially viable but also comfortable version of me to put at first, even if the next one might be even more ‘commercial’ in that way. It just felt like this was the right step to say ‘hey this is where I’m at and this is what I feel like stepping next’.”
*If you are struggling with mental health, you can speak to a trained advisor from Mind mental health charity on 0300 123 3393 or email info@mind.org.uk
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